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After a long-winding case stretching back nearly four years, Racing NSW stewards have handed down a three-and-a-half year suspension to trainer Paul Murray for multiple cobalt-related infringements.
Murray was initially pulled up back in 2013 when one of his gallopers, Alma’s Fury, brought back high amounts of cobalt in a post-race urine sample after running second in the Doncaster Prelude.
There was found to have been up to 940 micrograms of the substance per litre of urine taken from the test.
Cobalt is a substance found naturally in most animals, including horses, but at low levels. It is a trace element that appears in the structure of vitamin B12 and has been found to increase red blood cell counts when given more of it.
In short, it means greater oxygen flow and higher endurance for the horse.
Racing NSW put a 200mcg/L threshold on the substance in 2015 after Murray and multiple others were brought in under investigation.
That number has since been lowered further to 100mcg/L in 2016 an effort to keep the limit as close to the natural level as possible.
On top of the Alma’s Fury incident, Murray came under fire again in 2014 after a stable inspection revealed a bottle in a fridge containing cobalt that was labelled “concentrated trace mineral.”
The stewards reached a conclusion on Wednesday and hit Murray with five separate charges, totalling seven years of suspension from horse training, a $1000 fine and the second place finish of Alma’s Fury at Doncaster has been disqualified.
After reviewing the decision, Racing NSW decided on reducing the ban for a number of reasons including Murray’s clean record in respect to the relevant charges as well as the commonality of the infringements which was a deciding factor in the end result.
“There is a commonality in respect of a number of the breaches, such that it would be an unfair result if the penalties were cumulative. In light of the above matters, the Stewards consider that where there is commonality, there should be an element of concurrency,” said the report from Racing NSW following the suspension.
Three and a half years of the suspension will be served concurrently and thus the overall ban for Murray will be three and a half years in itself.
Murray has won a touch under $5 million prizemoney in his training career, dating back to his debut win with Northern Ruler in 2005.
Unless a successful appeal comes through, which is highly unlikely, Murray will be out of action until late 2020.
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