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NZ HARNESS RACER MAY HAVE BEEN DOPED BY AMERICANS(New Zealand Press Association Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)Wellington, April 5, NZPA - An aging New Zealand gelding is at the heart of an American horse racing scandal in which four members of a high-profile harness-racing stable have been arrested following ``miraculous'' performances by horses. The New Zealand horse, AllStar Blue Jean, was anything but an all-star when the harness racehorse was bought by Illinois trainer Seldon Ledford, the Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper reported. The 7-year-old gelding had reliably placed in the middle of the pack at the Meadowlands harness-racing track in New Jersey, but something ``miraculous'' happened when the horse joined the Ledford Racing Team, said Sgt. Brice Cote of the New Jersey State Police horse-racing squad. Seven days after the March 4 purchase, the gelding became the fastest pacer ever from New Zealand and the first to beat 1.49 for a mile when he exploded to a 1.48.4-5 winning time in a $US30,000 ($NZ49,734) Pace at the Meadowlands New Jersey on March 11. Allstar Blue Jean (Falcon Seelster-Gina Rosa) beat the previous fastest-ever New Zealand bred standardbreds, Jovial Joker and Franco Catapult who shared the honour at 1.49.2-5. Allstar Blue Jean's previous fastest clocking was 1.49.3-5. Allstar Blue Jean extended his bankroll to $332,046 in the contest. He went into his engagement with stake earnings of $317,046. The horse started seven times in 2006 for three wins, a second and a third. Allstar Blue Jean was bought by South Auckland Bloodstock agent John Curtin out of Gareth Dixon's Auckland stable at the end of his 3-Year-Old season for USA trainer Jerry Silverman, who sold the horse on nine months ago when he was in a $US50,000 claimer, having won only two of his 22 starts. Curtin was at the Meadowlands on Saturday night and watched the milestone record pace. Mr Cote said it was like watching Derek Jeter of the Yankees go from being a .300 hitter to suddenly hitting .500. ``AllStar was old for a horse. Everyone knew what he could do. All of a sudden he jumped three classes.'' Mr Cote, a harness driver before becoming a state trooper in 1992, said he had noticed other horses making miraculous improvements after joining the Ledford stable. He said Ledford Stables was cheating with some of its horses -- relying on Aransep, a potent long-lasting form of erythropoietin (EPO), to help them go faster -- and that there was a conspiracy to rig races. Not only were betters shortchanged, but horsemen competing against Ledford thought the best they could do was second place because the trainer's horses were uncatchable, Mr Cote said. EPO has detrimental effects and can cause liver damage and coagulation of the blood, which put the horses' health at risk, Mr Cote said. He has arrested four members of the team, closing an 18-month drug investigation called Operation Horsepower, and the arrests have stunned the US harness-racing world, largely centred at the Meadowlands, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. ``Someone who takes illegal means to improve their horses is seen as a cheater,'' said Ellen Harvey, executive director of Harness Racing Communications, a division of the United States Trotting Association. Seldon Ledford has not been charged. His son, harness driver Eric S. Ledford, 35, of Middlesex County, was arrested in the drivers' locker room at the Meadowlands and charged with fixing races by doping horses. Two Ledford employees -- Ryan Dailey, 31, an assistant trainer, and his wife, Ardena J. Dailey, 31, a stable hand -- were arrested at their home in East Windsor, New Jersey, and charged with race rigging and drug possession. The team's veterinarian, John R. Witmer, 68, of Freehold, was charged with conspiracy to rig a contest and supplying drugs to the operation, police said. His bank account and assets, valued at approximately $US1 million, were frozen after his arrest. A dead horse, Malamar Man, was found during the raid at the Ledford Stable in Englishtown and taken to be examined, Mr Cote said, adding that the horse showed signs of a substance that would cause it's blood to clot. Eric Ledford was the third-ranked driver at the Meadowlands, and Seldon Ledford was the 12th-ranked trainer of harness racers in the nation and won more than $US3 million in the 2005 season. His rise has been stellar, Mr Cote said. Between 1991 and 2003 Seldon Ledford averaged about $186,000 in winnings a year. In the first two months of 2006, Ledford's stable won more than $US500,000. NZPA WGT kca rq |