Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit

Trainer Phil Serpe, who has an appeal pending with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in an attempt to overturn a two-year suspension imposed in July by a Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) arbitrator over a contested clenbuterol positive case from last summer at Saratoga Race Course, is also seeking to renew his request for a preliminary injunction in a 10-month-old lawsuit against the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) and the FTC. A key issue in Serpe's federal court filing is the fact that HIWU and HISA did not...

The arbitrator in charge of trainer Phil Serpe's contested clenbuterol positive detected in a filly who won last summer at Saratoga Race Course has issued a final decision that metes out the exact penalties sought by the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU)--a two-year suspension, plus a race disqualification and forfeiture of purse winnings. Beyond the potentially career-ending banishment of the 66-year-old trainer, what was striking about the decision is that it did not impose any monetary fine upon Serpe. According to ADMC Rule 3223, Serpe could have faced a...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 07/08/2025 Licensee: John E. Salzman, trainer Penalty: Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Final decision by HIWU. Explainer: Medication violation...

In its ongoing case against Philip Serpe for a Clenbuterol positive stemming from last August, the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) will not pursue a fine against the trainer--what could have been a $25,000 penalty--as per a letter issued by the agency last week. Serpe, however, argues that this action was taken by HIWU to prejudicially stymie his legal efforts in a federal court case against the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which includes the contention that he has been wrongfully denied his...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 04/08/2025 Licensee: Cathal Lynch, trainer Penalty: 7-day period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on April 9, 2025; Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of...

Trainer Todd Pletcher has accepted a seven-day suspension imposed by the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit after a horse from his barn tested positive for betamethasone. "After learning of the allegation, Todd conducted an internal investigation and discovered he and his team followed all timelines and protocols as laid out by HISA," Pletcher's attorney Drew Mollica said. "Despite this fact, the test seems to show a trace amount was discovered in the system of the horse, and rather than litigate, Todd made the prudent choice to accept the penalty and...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 02/25/2025 Licensee: William Blair, trainer Penalty: A fine of $500; imposition of 1.5 Penalty Points. Admission. Explainer: Vets' list medication violation for the presence of Triamcinolone—Controlled Medication (Class C)—in a sample taken from Dot on 1/19/25. Date: 02/25/2025 Licensee: Dr. Larry...

Every week, the TDN posts a roundup of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. The following rulings were reported on HISA's "rulings" portal and through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit's (HIWU) "pending" and "resolved" cases portals. Resolved ADMC Violations Date: 01/28/2025 Licensee: Joanna Shankle, trainer Penalty: 7-day period of Ineligibility for Covered Person, beginning on January 29, 2025; Disqualification of Covered Horse's Race results, including forfeiture of all purses and other compensation, prizes, trophies, points, and rankings and repayment or surrender (as applicable); a fine of $1,000; imposition...

Philip Serpe, a licensed trainer since 1984 who has maintained a nearly violation-free record while campaigning graded stakes winners up and down the East Coast, is fighting "banned substance" sanctions involving the alleged detection of clenbuterol in an Aug. 10 Saratoga Race Course winner he trained by suing the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in federal court. Serpe's Oct. 17 lawsuit in United States District Court (Southern District of Florida) cites the purported unconstitutionality of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA), "because, first,...

According to the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU), a horse from the barn of veteran trainer Phil Serpe tested positive for the banned substance clenbuterol on Aug. 10. The alleged positive occurred in a $30,000 claiming race at Saratoga, which was won by the Serpe-trained Fast Kimmie (Oscar Performance). The horse has been banned from competing for 14 months from the time of the violation. Serpe's status is on hold since he has the right to request that the B Sample is analyzed. If that sample also comes back...

The Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) has granted a temporary stay of enforcement to connections in six pending total carbon dioxide (TCO2) cases, all of which are out of Pennsylvania. In total, 11 of the 14 pending and resolved TCO2-related cases reported since the advent of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) have concerned horses that ran in Pennsylvania. Of the three other TCO2-related cases, one ran in California and two were out of Ohio. When asked about the reason behind the temporary stay of enforcement, HIWU spokesperson...

Every week, the TDN posts a round-up of the relevant Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) related rulings from around the country. Among this week's rulings, trainer Odin Londono has been suspended for 18 months and fined $12,500 as a result of his trainee Private Drive testing positive for Diisopropylamine, a banned substance, when winning at Mahoning Valley Feb. 14 this year. The Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) classifies Diisopropylamine as a vasodilator, which is a substance that dilates the blood vessels to allow blood to flow more freely...