Over the past few months, the two substances caffeine and theophylline have been detected in several doping tests carried out on horses in equestrian sports and horse racing.

The suspected source of these substances is feed containing apple pomace contaminated with caffeine. Now, a stallion belonging to Holsteiner Verband Hengsthaltungs GmbH has also been affected. Specifically, the Comme il Faut son Charaktervoll: his stallion performance test, completed in September in Neustadt-Dosse, has been declared invalid by the FN in accordance with the HLP guidelines.

In early September, the German Equestrian Federation (FN) published a press release entitled: ‘Warning: Apple pomace in muesli and mineral feed – suspected source of banned substances’. Consequently, Norbert Boley, managing director of Holsteiner Verband Hengsthaltungs GmbH, feared that the feed containing apple pomace, which is fed to some of the association’s stallions, might also be affected. The feed analysis revealed that the feed was contaminated with caffeine.

A statement from the feed manufacturer now reads: “To the best of our knowledge, the horse feed delivered to you in May and July should not have tested positive. The batch delivered in August also tested negative. For this reason, no measures were taken in your case either. However, based on current information, it appears that even batches of apple pomace sampled at random may have been contaminated […]. Unfortunately, this realisation comes too late in your current case. You have been caught up in this situation through no fault of your own. We can only offer you our sincerest apologies for this. This is the first time this issue has arisen in our company’s history, and we, too, are affected by the contaminated goods from our supplier.”

The stallion will repeat his performance test at the earliest possible date.

Photo: Janne Bugtrup