Gorder suspended 14 months after horse tests positive for methamphetamine

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kellyn Gorder, a Kentucky-based trainer, has been suspended a total of 14 months by the Kentucky state stewards after a horse he trained tested positive for methamphetamine and a related barn search turned up syringes and unlabeled bottles of medication.

The positive test came from Bourbon Warfare after the horse won his maiden Nov. 22 in the 11th race at Churchill Downs in Louisville, according to stewards’ rulings. After the positive test came back, investigators searched Gorder’s barn at Keeneland in Lexington on Dec. 27 and found the unlabeled medications and syringes, which are illegal for trainers to possess.

In a statement released late Wednesday, Gorder categorically denied administering methamphetamine or any other performance-enhancing drug to a horse. Although he acknowledged that the barn search turned up hypodermic syringes and a needle, he said he had used the equipment to prepare and administer a prescribed antibiotic solution to a horse through a nebulizer earlier in 2014 and that he had failed to dispose of the equipment “properly” after the treatments were completed and the horse was shipped out of his barn in the summer.

Gorder’s statement said he is “looking into an appeal so I can better present my case before the authorities.” The suspension is scheduled to begin May 1, and Gorder has until that date to lodge an appeal and request a stay of the suspension.

“To put it bluntly, I did not, nor would I ever, give a horse methamphetamine, nor have I ever done or been in contact with methamphetamine,” Gorder wrote.

Methamphetamine, a stimulant, is a Class A prohibited drug, meaning that a finding of the substance at any level in a post-race sample is a violation, regardless of the concentration of the drug. While racing officials would not comment on the concentration of the drug found in Bourbon Warfare’s sample, Gorder’s statement said the concentration “suggests that this is a contamination situation rather than doping.”

Barbara Borden, the chief state steward in Kentucky, said she could not comment on specifics of the methamphetamine violation because Gorder is expected to appeal to the racing commission.

Class A substances are considered to have a high likelihood of enhancing performance and no therapeutic benefits to a horse. The substances are treated as zero-tolerance because there is little published scientific information on what amount of the substances would produce a performance-enhancing effect, in large part because most of the substances are illegal and dangerous to administer.

If Gorder appeals, the concentration of methamphetamine likely will be carefully weighed by his legal team. If the concentration of the drug was high, it would indicate that the horse received a deliberate administration of the drug. If it is low, that would introduce the possibility of accidental contamination from a widely abused human drug.

Gorder said he had tested all 31 of his stable employees since he was notified of the positive in December. None of his employees tested positive, Gorder said.

Borden said the unlabeled medications found in Gorder’s barn were therapeutic medications. However, all medications in a barn must be clearly labeled under Kentucky racing rules, and only veterinarians can possess hypodermic needles.

Gorder, 47, is a former jockey who also broke yearlings for WinStar Farm. After a brief period training in 2001-02, he turned to training full time in late 2007, and he has gained a reputation for his attention to detail around his barn, as well as his horsemanship. Several high-profile owners who are outspoken on the perceived abuse of drugs in racing rallied to his defense on social-media sites after the suspension was announced.

This year, Gorder has 12 wins from 105 starts, with 22 second-place finishes and 13 third-place finishes, for a win rate of 11.4 percent and an in-the-money rate of 46.7 percent. From 2012-14, his most productive years, he won 202 races from 957 starts, for a 21.1 percent win rate. Annual earnings in those years averaged approximately $2.1 million.

As a result of the ruling, Bourbon Warfare was disqualified from the Nov. 22 race, and Gorder was fined $5,000.