Mumbai: The much awaited and possibly the decisive phase of the anabolic steroid boldenone inquiry concerning three top trainers is set to start at 2.30 pm on Tuesday when the stewards of the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) meet at the Mahalaxmi Racecourse.
After the resignation of Shivlal Daga as chairman of the stewards, managing committee chairman Vivek Jain will chair the meeting which is likely to hear out the arguments of trainer Pesi Shroff and Sheraz Sunderji in the boldenone case.
The inquiry concerning the third trainer Cooji Katrak, will be held probably within a week as he has informed the stewards that he would not be present at the Tuesday’s meeting.
The stewards will decide on trainers’ request to send the feed supplement to certify the contamination for boldenone at another lab instead of RWITC’s choice of UK based Horse Racing Forensic Laboratory (HFL) which has reportedly said that it can only certify the contamination sensitivity at or around 10 nanograms. Trainers feel that there are other labs in the world that can certify contamination well below that level.
“The Stewards have to hear the trainers and go through the enquiry process before arriving at a conclusion,” said Jain to TOI.
No new steward
At the committee meeting held at Pune on Sunday, it was decided not to fill the casual vacancy caused by Daga's resignation. "The committee took a view that as there is only a few months left for the next AGM, and as there are already eight stewards, there is no pressing need to fill the vacancy."
It is gathered that the selection of new chairman of stewards has been deferred till the month end and till such time the meetings will be chaired by one of the remaining steward nominated to do so for each meeting.
