Number One. Frankie Dettori is one of the greatest jockeys of all time
Frankie Dettori’s career was in fresh crisis on Tuesday as it emerged that he had tested positive for a banned substance while riding in France this autumn.
The Guardian reports that it is less than a month since the famously ebullient jockey split from Sheikh Mohammed’s Godolphin operation, his principal employers for the past 18 years, who provided him with 110 successes in the world’s biggest races.
His supporters argued he would bounce back from the separation and be among the contenders for champion jockey next year but he is at risk of a worldwide ban from riding that could run into months, depending on the identity of the substance. That issue remained in doubt, with officials at France Galop, the body which runs French racing, refusing to disclose details while a web report naming a substance was quickly pulled.
Rumours about a positive test have circulated for weeks but the news was finally broken by a statement from Dettori’s solicitor, Christopher Stewart-Moore.
“On behalf of Frankie Dettori I can confirm that, as a consequence of a positive test at Longchamp on 16 September 2012, he will be the subject of an inquiry by the medical committee of France Galop next week,” Stewart-Moore said.
“In compliance with, and out of respect for, the regulations of France Galop, he will not be commenting further until the France Galop procedures have been completed.”
Officials at the British Horseracing Authority were in the dark on Tuesday. Having approached France Galop for more information as news began to leak out, they were told none would be provided until a hearing had taken place.
The positive test was taken while Dettori, 41, was riding on Arc trials day at Longchamp, when he partnered four horses without success. It was the day after he suffered a professional setback in the St Leger at Doncaster, won by the Godolphin horse Encke, ridden by Mickaël Barzalona. The glory would have been Dettori’s in previous years but rides have been shared between him and two other jockeys this year and his consequent disaffection is seen as the main reason for his leaving Godolphin
Mr Popularity. Dettori is a popular and charismatic character
Dettori follows Kieren Fallon as the second high-profile, British-based jockey in recent years to return a positive test in France, having never done so in Britain. Fallon fell foul of the rules twice, serving a six-month ban from late 2006 and then an 18-month ban from January 2008 after testing positive for cocaine.
Dettori himself received a police caution for cocaine possession in 1993, when he was 22, but later said that drug abuse was in his past.
“I was a stupid, cocky, arrogant kid,” he was quoted as telling one reporter in 2010, when asked about the incident. “I was riding, I was winning, I was a kid who’d gone from earning £12 a week to getting big money. Too much money.”
On other occasions Dettori has discussed his use of diuretic drugs to keep his weight down until they were banned by the Jockey Club. “I took Lasix, pee pills, diuretics, laxatives; all sorts,” he told a Newsnight reporter in 1999. When asked whether he still took pills, he said: “I try not to.”
Under strict French rules, a jockey would be in breach if positive for over-the-counter medication, including aspirin. Those who have backed him to be champion jockey at odds down to 8-1 must hope his test is for something of that nature.
www.guardian.co.uk
