Asmussen fined after horse tests positive for human heart drug

Trainer Steve Asmussen has been fined $1,000 after a horse he trains, Shang, tested positive for the hypertension drug Atenolol after running third in last July’s $250,000 Iowa Derby at Prairie Meadows, according to a ruling from stewards at the track.

Shang was disqualified from the race and placed last as a result of the positive. Although the horse finished third under the line in the Iowa Derby, he was elevated to second due to interference in the stretch.

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The ruling was first reported Tuesday by Thoroughbred Daily News.

Atenolol is a beta-blocker commonly prescribed to humans with heart problems. The drug is a Class 3, Penalty B substance in the RCI Classification system, which typically calls for a 15-day suspension for the trainer for a first offense, “absent mitigating circumstances.”

According to the ruling, Asmussen’s attorney, Clark Brewster, argued in a hearing conducted telephonically on May 15 this year that the drug positive could be traced to contamination of the water supply. The ruling stated that the drug was found in an “extremely low” concentration, and that “there was substantial persuasive evidence provided showing Atenolol can be an environmental substance.”

“The board believes it was an inadvertent exposure, and not a deliberate administration,” the ruling stated. It went on to note that Altenolol is not a regulated medication under racing’s drug classification system and is treated as a "zero-tolerance" substance, necessitating the disqualification of the horse.

In an interview late on Wednesday, Brewster said that he disagreed with the board’s decision to issue a fine and a disqualification, but he said that Asmussen would not appeal the ruling. He noted that the concentration of the substance found in the sample was “beyond even a trace level, with no pharmacological impact on the horse at all,” and that he had presented ample evidence to the stewards that tests of the local water supply in 2019 in Altoona, where Prairie Meadows is located, had turned up Atenolol contaminations.

“I really just want to appeal to everyone’s common sense,” Brewster said. “We’re not talking about someone trying to cheat. This isn’t a case of anyone administering this to a horse. If we keep treating these cases like this, we’re going to continue to find these stray contaminants in horses and drag trainers through the media spotlight for nothing at all.”