The stewards at Thistledown have imposed a one-year suspension and $1,000 fine on trainer Alejandro Murillo Rodriguez after a 2-to-5 winning favorite from his stable tested positive for metabolites of the Class 1/Penalty Category A drug Nikethamide on June 21.
Murillo Rodriguez has appealed the penalties. Potentially complicating the adjudication is that the horse in question, Two Eagles (Morning Line), got claimed for $7,500 out of that sprint victory against fellow Ohio-breds. Two Eagles subsequently started and ran fifth for new connections on July 18. The stewards did note in the Aug. 8 ruling that the entire matter would be referred to the Ohio Racing Commission.
Nikethamide is a respiratory and circulatory stimulant that was developed in the mid-20th Century to reverse tranquilizer overdoses in humans. It is no longer used for that purpose because of the evolution of safer, more effective, medications and is not believed to be legally sold in the United States for any human or veterinary purpose.
But online searches bring up plenty of ways to acquire Nikethamide via sources in Argentina and Europe. The drug has gained black-market favor with high-altitude mountaineers who use it in lozenge form to gain a respiratory efficiency boost, despite the known risks to cardiac health.
The Ohio-based Murillo Rodriguez has been training since 2018. He currently has 15 wins from 113 starters this year. The website thoroughbredrulings.com that is maintained by The Jockey Club lists one previous drug infraction for Murillo Rodriguez, a $1,000 fine for a dexamethasone overage in a Mahoning Valley winner in 2020.
Class 1A medications on the Association of Racing Commissioners International (ARCI) Uniform Classification of Substances list are considered the most dangerous and harmful drugs, and thus carry the highest recommended penalties. The ARCI's recommended penalty for a first-time 1/A violation by a trainer is a minimum one-year suspension and a minimum fine of $10,000.
Decades ago, Nikethamide was abused by human athletes and administered to equine athletes to get them to run faster. It seemed to fade from the doping scene in the early 2000s decade, but has resurfaced sporadically since then in both human sports (professional tennis player Marin Cilic in 2013) and in racehorses.
Its recent detection in Thoroughbreds has resulted in penalties that have included a six-month trainer suspension and $5,000 fine (West Virginia in 2013) and a $75,000 fine and a four-year suspension (New Mexico in 2017).
According to the British Journal of Sports Medicine, “It is well known that Nikethamide is metabolized very rapidly…Hence, there is difficulty in proving that Nikethamide has been used as a doping substance.”
Unless he prevails with his appeal, Murillo Rodriguez's suspension starts Aug. 18 and will run through Aug. 17, 2023. Two Eagles has been disqualified from the victory for then-owner Murillo AAA Racing, with the purse money redistributed.
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