2008 News

I didn't cheat, why would I cheat?

August 25, 2008 — If the news for Denis Lynch in Hong Kong on Thursday was shattering, it wasn't much better back in his native Tipperary on Friday.

The newspaper headlines were rough, reporters were besieging the family home and his parents had had a sleepless night.

His horse, Lantinus -- ranked number one in the world -- had tested positive for a banned substance, he'd been suspended from the Olympics just hours before the showjumping final and his reputation as an honest sportsman had been tarnished.

Aggrieved by the media coverage and distressed for his family, Lynch, in the early hours of Saturday morning Hong Kong time, spoke by phone from his hotel bedroom to the Sunday Independent in a bid to set the record straight.

"I didn't cheat," he said, "and I've no reason to cheat. I'm on the best horse in the world, why would I cheat? I've won four five-star Grands Prix (this year), I'm in the top 20 in the world, I know what I've done all year and I did nothing different (for the Olympics)."

Lantinus has been tested 12 times this year and Lynch voluntarily submitted the horse again for testing after the 10-year-old gelding arrived in Hong Kong for the Games, "to make sure the horse was clean".

Ingredients: Active Ingredient: Capsaicin (0.025%) Other Ingredients: Deionized Water, Chamomile Extract, Carbomer 940, Polysorbate 20, Triethanolamine, Propyl Gallate, Methylparaben, Imidazolidinyl Urea, Propylparaben, Fragrance.

This was his 11th test, the result was negative. The 12th was taken after the second round of jumping last Sunday. At about 2:15pm on Thursday Lynch was informed by the showjumping team manager Robert Splaine that this test had produced a positive result.

They met with officials and veterinarians from the international equestrian federation, the FEI, who told them that traces of a substance called capsaicin had been found in the animal's sample. It had been found in three other horses which were also banned from competing in the final.

At a subsequent press conference senior FEI officials said capsaicin was a prohibited substance because its pain-relieving properties were potentially performance-enhancing. It also had "hypersensitisation" properties: if applied to a horse's shins it could inflame them, thereby inducing the animal to jump higher to avoid painful contact with a fence -- a practice known as 'chemical rapping'.

Paul Farrington, a vet with the FEI, said capsaicin had always been banned but only recently had a test been developed to detect it.

But Lynch claims that "the FEI moved the goalposts" for the Beijing Games. "How can a horse test negative all year and then test positive when I've changed nothing? That's the question. I didn't change anything, I did nothing different (for the Games), why change anything when I was doing the same thing all year and winning?"

The substance is contained in an ointment sold commercially as Equi-Block. "I've been using this product for eight years," said Lynch. "And a lot of international riders have been using the product for the last eight years, over half of them I would say. You can buy it from every vet, in every tack shop, at shows all over the world. It does not make a lame horse sound, it does not make a horse jump higher. It's a cream that we rub on a horse's back to warm him up and make him loose."

Lynch said he was the only one of the four suspended riders who spoke to the media after the story broke. During his press conference he produced a tub of Equi-Block. The label on the product has a specially highlighted piece of information: 'Contains CAPSAICIN. Will not test positive'. Did this not trigger alarm bells for Lynch?

"But everyone's been using it! Fifteen horses were tested and four were positive. If 40 horses were tested then 14 would have tested positive and what would have happened then? If you use it (Equi-Block) over eight years and I've been tested and tested and tested, why would you think it was a doping product? It's not about cheating, it's got nothing to do with cheating."

But shouldn't he have checked out what sort of substance capsaicin was, given that it was linked with the words 'positive' and 'test' on the label of the product? "Do you know how much (capsaicin) is in the cream? Well I don't either. And yesterday (Thursday) the FEI couldn't tell me how much of the substance was in the sample. They couldn't say how long he (Lantinus) was positive: was it two days in his system, was it two hours in his system? They couldn't tell me anything."

He also rejected any suggestion that he was engaged in chemical rapping. "Jesus I don't have a clue about it. I've used it on horses' backs, that's it. There's no ifs and buts anymore. That's all. I've got nothing to do with it, I know nothing about it, I never want to have anything to do with it."

On Thursday evening while the final was underway, Lynch returned to his hotel and "closed the door". He didn't watch the final on television, he was in a state of shock. On Friday morning he woke up to headlines that humiliated him and news from home that upset him further.

"My mum called me and said reporters were there tormenting them. She hasn't slept, my father hasn't slept. They're getting hammered by the media. It's sickening. Sickening. I've got fantastic support from my family, my friends, my sponsors, people in Tipperary and from all around the country. And then to be slaughtered like that -- it's wrong."

Lynch, 32, and his horse jumped three rounds in Beijing. The first two were clear bar time penalties and in the third he faulted only at the water jump. The combination was in superb form and on course for a high finish in the final.

"I belonged in the ring that day. That was my dream. I worked 15 years to get there. I didn't go to the Olympics hoping to come 17th or 24th or whatever. I went there with a realistic chance of a medal. And then to be shot down like this . . ."

He knows he will be suspended from competition for a period of time. "But whatever (sanction) they give me will be nothing compared to this. To have everything taken away from you -- the biggest thing you could ever do in this sport is to represent your country at the Olympics and to have it taken away from you like that is a total shock."

Yesterday morning Lynch left Hong Kong for Germany where he lives with his partner Simona and their four-year-old daughter. He will return to Tipperary town "to thank the people for their support before the Olympics and especially for their support now. And afterwards life has got to move on."

But he left Hong Kong behind him with a world of regrets. He admits to being stunned and incredibly disappointed. "I went out there on a mission: to win a gold medal, or a medal of some sort, and that was it. Nothing else.

"And up to a quarter past two yesterday, everything was perfect."

TOMMY CONLON
Quelle: www.independant.ie

Team vet insists that rider was 'totally unaware' of the dangers

August 23, 2008 — IRISH team vet Marcus Swail last night insisted show jumper Denis Lynch was "totally unaware" of the danger of using the lotion that led to his disqualification from the Olympic show jumping final.

The 32-year-old Tipperary-born rider was disqualified from competing in the individual show jumping final on Thursday when it was revealed that his horse, Lantinus, had tested positive for a banned substance called capsaicin.

"When I told Denis about the test result we were close to the horse's stable and he turned around and walked straight over to Lantinus' stable door," Swail said.

"There was a wooden tack-box hanging over the front of the door with grooming things in it and the horse had his head hanging out over the top of it.

"Denis put his hand into the box and pulled out a tub of Equi-Block, saying that he thought it contained capsaicin -- now if you knew it was illegal to use it, you would hardly leave it sitting in a box at the front of the stable where anyone could see it would you? Denis was horrified."

The Irish contingent in Hong Kong are aware of the tidal wave of criticism being directed toward them following the latest humiliating disqualification from the Games.

Yesterday, they were holed up in their hotel while Typhoon Nuri blew through, leading to delayed departures for horses, competitors and officials.

"I've heard that people have been saying how can we all have been so stupid," Mr Swail said.

"But I would say to that -- if you were Denis Lynch and you used that preparation all the time and the horse was tested seven or eight times over the nine months since you had him and each time the test was negative and you never heard of a positive result for this product -- would it not be reasonable to believe it was fine to use it?"

The banned substance capsaicin creates a burning sensation and, if applied to a horse's legs, "could hyper-sensitise them and make them jump better in competition", a press conference heard earlier this week.

However, Mr Swail insisted Equi-Block has little or no burning effect when applied to the skin.

At the hastily convened Irish team press conference last Thursday night, the Irish veterinary surgeon said, "I invite you to come up here and try it" as he laid the tub of Equi-Block on the table.

Written on the label was "contains capsaicin", with the additional claim that horses will not test positive when the substance is applied. "If you were hoping to create a burning sensation with it, then you would be looking for your money back," he pointed out.

"Denis uses it to loosen muscles on his horse's lower back as part of his normal routine," Mr Swail explained.

Abusive

The FEI has only recently broadened its screening programme to search for capsaicin in the belief that it is being used in an abusive manner to make horses jump more carefully.

"The rules are changing all the time and people are getting caught up by mistake. Denis doesn't deserve this," Mr Swail insisted.

Lucy O'Brien in Hong Kong
Quelle: www.independant.ie

Horse Sport Ireland - Statement on Denis Lynch

August 20, 2008 — HORSE Sport Ireland (HSI) was informed by the world equestrian governing body, the FEI, at 2:15 p.m. Hong Kong time today (Thursday), that Irish Olympic rider Denis Lynch's horse 'Lantinus' had tested positive for a banned substance and that as a result he would be suspended from taking part in tonight's show jumping final.

Denis Lynch and Horse Sport Ireland officials attended a preliminary hearing with the FEI a short time ago and were informed that the substance found in the horse was called capsaicin.

At the tribunal the FEI indicated that this substance was an ingredient in some products in regular use. Subsequently it was identified by Denis Lynch as an ingredient in a product called "Equi-block" used by him on his horse. Equi-block is a product used in similar circumstances to 'Deep Heat' used on humans and Denis Lynch explained to the tribunal that he commonly applies Equiblock to the horse's lower back prior to exercise.

Denis Lynch holds up the tub of a Equi-Block, which contains capsaicin, during yesterday's press conference in Hong Kong. The label claims that it will NOT TEST POSITIVE and vet Marcus Swain invited journalists to rub the lotion into their own skin.

Following this preliminary hearing today the FEI informed Denis Lynch that he remained suspended for tonight's competition.

The FEI have subsequently confirmed that three other riders due to jump in tonight's final at Hong Kong have also been suspended as a result of the same substance being found in their horses.

Horse Sport Ireland has confirmed that they submitted a urine sample from the horse to a voluntary screening testing process made available by the FEI on the horse's arrival in Hong Kong and the results of this test were negative.

The horse has also been tested on numerous occasions, including following many of its recent victories, and has tested negative on all these occasions.

Lynch qualifies for Olympic Show Jumping Final

August 18, 2008 — IRELAND'S Denis Lynch and Flaminia Straumann's gelding 'Lantinus' have qualified for the Olympic Individual Show Jumping Final on Thursday August 21.

After today's (Monday) third qualifying round Lynch had accumulated a total of eight faults, and is equal eighth in the points table. The top 35 riders go through to Thursday's two-round final.

The points table after three qualifiers is headed today by Norway's Tony Andre Hansen on three faults.

The Individual Final will begin at 12:15 Irish time on Thursday, with the top 20 riders from the first round then going forward to the medals round, which starts at 3:10pm. All riders in the Final start with a zero score.

Quelle: Horse Sport Ireland

Lynch and Lantinus move onto round three at 2008 Beijing Olympics

August 17, 2008 — Denis and Lantinus had a clean 2nd Olympic qualifying round with just one time fault each and are now ranked fourth and will continue to the third round.

Lantinus' 2nd Olympic round

Lantinus (Landkönig/Argentinus) is Ranked #1 overall in the world by the FEI/WBFSH May and June 2008

1 LANTINUS 3 1113 Punkte
2 LACROIX 9 1045
3 OKIDOKI 1036
4 SHUTTERFLY 1013
5 CASTLE FORBES LIBERTINA 948
6 IDEO DU THOT 878
7 ABOYEUR W 871
8 FRESH DIRECT CORLATO 820
9 SANDRO BOY 790
10 NINJA LA SILLA 751
11 HICKSTEAD 730
12 THE SIXTH SENSE 725