Shiners Chic Tests Positive for Prohibited Substance in CRI3*

Shiners Chic & Jessica Sternberg, pictured at the CRI3* in Katy, Texas • Photo by Kristin Pitzer

The Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) has announced an adverse analytical finding involving a prohibited substance in a horse shown in the CRI3* during the National Reining Breeders Classic (NRBC) in Katy, Texas.

The new case involves the use of Stanozolol, an anabolic steroid, which is a banned substance under the FEI’s Equine Anti-Doping and Controlled Medication Regulations (EADCMRs).

  • Horse: Shiners Chic (FEI ID 103DF20/GBR)
  • Person Responsible: Jessica Sternberg (FEI ID 10055844/GBR)
  • Event: CRI3* in Katy, Texas (USA); April 20-21, 2017
  • Prohibited Substance: Stanozolol

Shiners Chic (Smart Chic Olena x Ebony Shines x Shining Spark) and Sternberg had marked a 142 in the CRI3* to finish 10th out of 15 horses in Katy. The athlete has been provisionally suspended from the date of notification (July 5, 2017) until the FEI Tribunal renders a decision. The horse has been provisionally suspended for two months.

Updated details on this case will be published as they become available. Information on the substance Stanozolol is available on the searchable FEI Equine Prohibited Substances Database.

The FEI’s Prohibited Substances List is divided into two sections – controlled medication and banned substances. Controlled medication substances are those that are regularly used to treat horses, but which must have been cleared from the horse’s system by the time of competition. Banned (doping) substances should never be found in the body of the horse.

In the case of an adverse analytical finding for a banned substance, the person responsible is automatically provisionally suspended from the date of notification. The horse is suspended for two months. In the case of a positive for a specified substance, provisional suspension is not automatic.

The FEI has also introduced the concept of specified substances. Specified substances should not in any way be considered less important or less dangerous than other prohibited substances. Rather, they are simply substances that are more likely to have been ingested by horses for a purpose other than the enhancement of sport performance, for example, through a contaminated food substance.