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International Olympic Committee to begin drug testing on polo ponies in Wellington this season
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Preparing for polo season
Wellington. On April 20, 2009, 21 polo ponies died before the US Open polo tournament to the horror of a packed audience. All of the horses were from the Venezuelan Lechuza Caracas polo team. It was a devastating scene as the horses were off loaded from the trailers and then stumbled and collapsed on the manicured lawns. A few days later on April 25, 2009, information confirmed that a pharmacy error in a vitamin supplement overdosing horses on selenium most likely caused their deaths. Selenium is a trace mineral commonly added to the diet of horses in minute amounts to help their muscles recover as a result of the strenuous activity on the polo field. The doses should have been 0.5 milligrams per millimeter but human error resulted in administering the horses 5.0 milligrams, 10 times higher than the recommended dosage.
Out of this tragedy, however came education and some protection for the real stars of the sport. In January, starting with the introduction of the 2010 season of the International Polo Club Palm Beach, urine and blood testing is slated to begin. Up until now, there have been no government or organization entity to oversee the medical and health treatment of the polo horses. The state division of Animal Industry regulates drug usage in the thoroughbred industry only and the US Polo Association had no rules either.
Exactly what drugs the horses will be tested for has not yet been announced, but it is hoped that this will be a deterrent to anyone considering using any performance drugs.
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