Steroids and Horses CAPITOL HILL (wypr) - On occasion, the sport of horseracing can take a stunning turn from thrills to heartbreak. That seems to be happening a lot lately. In Washington, Congress is looking to take the reins on safety issues and the use of performance-enhancing drugs in horses. The industry wants a chance to make changes at its own pace. Elizabeth Wynne Johnson reports from Capitol Hill.

Each leg of the Triple Crown is run under a different set of rules for steroids in horses. In Maryland's Preakness Stakes, for example, there's no rule against doping.
But going into the third and final race, the Belmont Stakes in New York, trainers of the overwhelming favorite Big Brown pledged to stop giving the horse injections of the steroid Winstrol.

And they're off!'

Big Brown then stunned the racing world by finishing dead last.

Here's a shocking finish '

Racing veterinarians say steroid-withdrawal is a non-issue, because of how the drug works in a horse's body. But that hasn't stopped observers from wondering.

"There are a lot of concerns about the horseracing industry as it exists today. Number one, there's not any governing body that has jurisdiction around the country with enforcement mechanisms."

Kentucky Republican Ed Whitfield was among the first in Congress to raise questions about the governance of horseracing. As many as 28 of the 38 racing jurisdictions across the U.S. and Canada permit the use of steroids in horses. Though guidelines vary.

"There needs to be one clear entity that has power to regulate, there needs to be uniform drug rules, there needs to be transparency."

That's because from gambling revenues to television simulcasting rights, horseracing has a major economic hoof print. C.A. Ruppersberger represents the District that includes Pimlico, home of the Preakness.

"Especially in the state of Maryland, the horse racing industry is extremely important as a business, it generates money - and it's not just about the horse racing, it's about the horse breeding which is very important to the state of Maryland."

It sustains some 15- to 20 thousand full-time jobs. According to Maryland racing officials, the economic impact far exceeds that of any other professional sport in the state. Ruppersberger is keeping a close watch as his fellow lawmakers explore the possibility of federal oversight.

"Sometimes Congress passes laws that have an adverse effect and I'd be concerned about that in this industry."

Over the last year, racing industry groups have come together on their own to examine safety issues and doping policies. A number of states have already signed on to model rules that strictly limit the use of performance enhancing drugs in horses. Those include neighboring states Delaware and Virginia. Michael Hopkins is executive director of the Maryland Racing Commission.

"You've got the largest concentration of horse racing on the East Coast within the mid-Atlantic region throughout the country. Therefore it behooves all of us to have some kind of uniform standard."

But recently Maryland rejected adoption of a steroid ban. At least for the rest of this year. Hopkins says the state wants to wait and see how its neighbors fare. And for the results of scientific studies.

"University of Florida was doing a study for withdrawal times. Cornell also doing a study and developing some procedures in both places "

So steroid-withdrawal in horses isn't an open-and-shut case, after all? For his part, Hopkins does NOT think that had anything to do with Big Brown's Belmont Stakes meltdown.

"It's like any athlete. Some athletes have good days and some athletes have bad days. It's not an exact science. You just never know. The horse can't talk to you and tell you how he feels."

Congress is relying on humans to testify. A hearing is set for June 19th in the House Commerce subcommittee on Trade and Consumer Protection.
I'm Elizabeth Wynne Johnson in Washington, reporting for Capitol News Connection on eighty-eight one, WYPR. © Copyright 2009, wypr