Flat out, here is the most informative article that has been published during the bute FEI turmoil. We are glad to work with horsetalk.co.nz, and they did a great job on this one. They have also published a full prohibited substances list.
Also in the news, a Belgian vet supported Princess Haya in a recent letter supporting the FEI's progressive list. A few quotes from the letter and my take on them:
"The German Federation in particular has done our sport a disservice over the past number of years by behaving in an ill-considered and unbalanced manner towards any rider suspected of doping. Instead of standing up for its riders and taking mitigating circumstances into account, instead of explaining to the public that there is a difference between doping and a positive medication finding, they would without fail start hacking around with their battle-axe, causing several people to be undeservedly condemned and hung and quartered by the press." My Take: Right, it would have been much, much better for equestrian sport if the German Federation had let their riders off the hook and explained to the public that their horses were contaminated because a vet touched a broom handle, which touched a groom, who touched a horse, because that's what happened...right? That strategy worked great for baseball, right up until the sport was crippled by the steroid controversy.
The fact that Princess Haya has had the courage to submit two lists for voting proves that she is not led by rabble-rousing and false sentiments, but that she, as FEI President, knows what is going on in her sport...On behalf of the horse, thank you Princess Haya!" My take: I'm going to just let that last sentence go, but one thing that is clear to me over the past week is that the FEI leadership does not know what is going on in equestrian sport. Mismanagement regarding the vote, preventing a revote, and the long silence by the FEI after the vote all indicate arrogance and detachment by the FEI leadership.
The letter also claims that the permitted levels are not related to doping, which disagrees with the FEI's own findings in 2004. There have been some very eloquent and persuasive defenses of the progressive list, but this letter is not one of them. That said, the letter has some informative points about the allowed drugs and I am being too harsh. I would suggest reading it.
Voices against progressive list thus far: British Equestrian Federation, British Equine Veterinary Association, Group of FEI Vets, FEI Petitioners, German Equestrian Federation, VP of the FEI, World Equestrian Fair and Deutsche Bank
Voices for progressive list: Princess Haya, United States Equestrian Federation, and Some Belgian Vet. One thing that I will also mention is that most of the vets I have talked to support having more tools to treat horses for non-performance enhancing reasons, such as if a horse colics friday night. The other thing to remember is that voices of dissent tend to be much more vocal than voices of support, which skews our perception of overall opinion. Go eventing.
Comment from the FEI
Dear John, we are following your blog with interest and are flattered that you found the Q and As published on horsetalk.co.nz "the most informative article you have read on the bute turmoil". Just to let you know that these Q and As were written and sent to journalists by the FEI and it would be fair that this is acknowledged, whether or not you are in agreement with the majority of National Federations that voted in favour of the Progressive List.
Thank you,
Malina Gueorguiev
FEI Press Manager