Committee endorses threshold limits for cobalt

A committee of the Association of Racing Commissioners International has approved a recommendation that state regulators treat any finding of cobalt in a post-race blood sample above the level of 50 parts per billion as a violation of racing rules, according to attendees of the committee meeting.

The Drug Testing Standards and Practices Committee approved the threshold at a meeting on Thursday of the RCI in Tampa, Fla., citing recommendations from its own Scientific Advisory Committee and the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium, an industry-funded group that studies medication and drug-testing issues. As a result of the approval, the full board of the RCI will vote on the rule in July.

The committee also passed a rule that would penalize any trainer whose horse tests over a 300 ppb threshold with a 10-year suspension, according to the attendees. Under that rule, cobalt would be treated as a Class A drug, defined as being highly likely to impact performance and of no therapeutic benefit to a horse.

The thresholds seek to prevent horsemen from administering concentrated cobalt supplements to horses, ostensibly for a cheap blood-doping effect. Rumors of cobalt use have surrounded horse racing worldwide for several years, and recent tests on blood samples have appeared to confirm that some trainers are administering concentrated cobalt supplements, according to officials. Those high tests have generally run in the 50-to-100 ppb range.

The rule approved Thursday would treat any finding in excess of 50 parts per billion as a Class B violation. A first offense for a Class B violation calls for a 15-to-60 day suspension, depending on whether regulators believe there was an intent to cheat.

Cobalt is a naturally occurring mineral that is essential to horse health, and it is typically ingested through a horse’s regular diet. Many commonly administered vitamin supplements also contain the mineral, and a handful of cobalt-salt products sold through on-line pharmacies are designed to deliver high doses of the substance. Studies have shown that it would be nearly impossible for a horse to test above the 50 ppb threshold without being administered cobalt salts, and that a horse’s natural range is well below a 10 ppb concentration.

The RMTC had recommended a two-tier threshold that would require a horse to be put on a vet’s list at 25 ppb, and the RCI committee voted to allow individual states to decide whether to adopt the secondary threshold, according to the attendees. Under that recommendation, a horse would be unable to start until it tested below the 25 ppb limit.