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Prix d'Amerique Winner Disqualified

March 9, 2006

European trotting champion Jag de Bellouet has ben disqualified from his victory in the Prix d’Amerique, which was raced at Vincennes in Paris, France on Sunday, January 29. Trotting fans throughout Europe were shocked when the official announcement was made at noon, Paris time on Thursday, March 9. Jag de Bellouet tested positive after his impressive win in the Prix d’Amerique. His trainer and driver Christophe Gallier, had steered the trotter to victory for the second consecutive year.

The doping test revealed traces of an anti-inflammatory substance, Tolfénamique, and the French trotting association, Cheval Francais disqualified Jag de Bellouet; the $600,000 winner’s share of the purse will now go to the owners of the Swedish trotter Gigant Neo, driven by Dominik Locqueneux, who had finished second. The investigation, which Cheval Francais launched immediately after the result of the doping test was received, showed that Gallier had used a vitamin supplement for Jag de Bellouet, trade named Vita-C, produced by the company, Vetoquinol. An investigation made by that firm reportedly showed that traces of the prohibited substance, Tolfénamique, were found in at least two batches of Vita-C.

Doping tests taken from Jag de Bellouet after his wins in the Prix de Cornulier, one week before this year’s Prix d’Amerique, and after the Prix de France, both returned negative results. Gallier has announced that he will sue Vetoquinol for any loss. Gigant Neo, a stablemate of the 2001 Hambletonian winner, Scarlet Knight, had also finished second to Jag de Bellouet in 2004 in the Prix d’Amerique. Gigant Neo is trained by Stefan Melander, and becomes the fifth Swedish trotter to win the Prix d’Amerique. Cheval France yet has to decide whether Christophe Gallier should be fined or not.