USADA's Travis Tygart and Tessa Muir Join the TDN Writers' Room

  To coincide with the release of its anti-doping guidelines for the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency's CEO Travis Tygart and Equine Program Director Tessa Muir joined the TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland Wednesday evening. Sitting down for an expansive, near hour-long interview as the Green Group Guests of the Week, Tygart and Muir broke down all facets of the potential uniform medication policies and regulations, talked about the varying  working relationships they've developed with state racing commissions, elucidated how testing and doping investigations would work under HISA and much more.

“Some of this can be a challenge because it is a bit of transformational change,” Muir, who has previously worked for Racing Victoria and the British Horseracing Authority, said of USADA's overarching goals. “But it's about securing a future for the sport and making sure we've still got the social license to operate. And the end goal, the vision of what we're all here for, is for the horse. To keep the horse safe. We're here to make the sport fair for the trainers, owners and bettors, the people who invest in the sport and come to the races to embrace it. Those are the principles behind what we're doing, and it's a huge privilege to be involved in this process.”

Elsewhere on the show, which is also sponsored by Coolmore, West Point Thoroughbreds, XBTV, the New York Thoroughbred Breeding and Development Fund and Legacy Bloodstock, Joe Bianca, Bill Finley and Jon Green reacted to the outstanding performances from Breeders' Cup weekend and criticized the mess at the gate that left bettors hanging in the Juvenile Turf. Click here to watch the podcast; click here for the audio-only version or find it on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.