HIWU rescinds metformin positives for two trainers

The Horseracing Integrity and Wagering Unit has withdrawn cases affecting two trainers after a review of its laboratory network turned up differing standards at the labs for the detection of metformin, a popular human drug used to manage diabetes, HIWU said on Thursday.

The trainers, Guadalupe Munoz Elizondo and Javier Morzan, had their provisional suspensions withdrawn after each had a single horse test positive for metformin after races in June. HIWU will not pursue any penalties against the two, the organization said.

The decision to withdraw the cases came after HIWU “conducted an internal review” of the limits its six accredited laboratories were using to detect metformin. HIWU said the review was initiated “based on feedback from horsemen.”

During the review, HIWU found that not all of the laboratories were using the same limit of detection, which is a term referring to a level at which the concentration of a substance in a sample is considered a positive. The labs have now implemented the same limit of detection, HIWU said.

“HIWU is committed to the harmonization of its laboratories and continues to work with them to reach this goal,” HIWU said, in a statement.

Three other trainers – Jonathan Wong, Angel J. Castillo Sanchez, and Michael Lauer – have also had horses test positive for metformin since HIWU’s rules took effect on May 22 this year, but those three remain suspended and their cases remain open.

Alexa Ravit, a spokeswoman for HIWU, said that the two cases that were thrown out involved concentrations of metformin that were below the new limit of detection. The three other cases involved concentrations above the limit, Ravit said.

Metformin is a common ingredient in diabetes medication, but its use has been studied in horses as a treatment for overweight mares.

In the past two years, prior to the advent of HIWU’s rules, the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission issued suspensions to trainers Wesley Ward and Jimmy Baker for metformin positives. Ward was also issued a suspension in New Jersey earlier this year for a metformin positive in a different horse. Both trainers said they believed their horses’ post-race samples had been contaminated by employees who were taking the drug.

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