RTC lives up to its promise of drug-free racing in Nuwara Eliya

Thursday, 9 June 2016 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Untitled-5 Dr. Mahesh, Bangalore Turf Club, Professor Neville de Silva, vet from University in Kandy and Dr. Shiromi from SLADA

During the recently concluded April Racing Festival in Nuwara Eliya, the Royal Turf Club (RTC) with the assistance of the Sri Lanka Anti-Doping Agency conducted racehorse drug testing for the first time in Sri Lanka.

The chestnut mare Supreme trained by S. P. A. Raju goes down in history as the first horse to be drug tested in Sri Lanka, when she won The Mayors Class 3 Stakes over 1400M on 20 March.

There were 14 random samples taken from the 35 races run during the April racing season which ended on 30 April , with all samples having been returned negative by an overseas accredited laboratory, namely the National Dope Testing Laboratory (NDTL), which also conducts testing for some internationally recognised race clubs.

Not all samples collected from the racehorses were taken from the winners; some were taken from placed horses randomly selected by RTC Chairman of Stipendiary Stewards Wayne Wood, to doubly ensure clean racing.

The club will kick off the next racing season on 6 August with a Bollywood theme and both race enthusiasts as well as those looking for a fun-filled weekend should make their reservations without delay.