BHA To Conduct Breath Testing

The British Horseracing Authority will conduct breath testing of riders at British racecourses from Feb. 17 in a move away from the practice of having an external supplier conduct the testing.

From Mar. 1, new rules will come into effect allowing a more flexible approach to breath testing.

Chris Watts, Head of Integrity at the BHA, said, “This is an important and positive step in our testing procedures and will allow us to adopt a smarter and more cost-effective approach to testing. It will allow us to test more frequently but also with more flexibility, hopefully minimising the impact that it has on riders.

“There are plans to consider the other ways in which we test riders later this year, to examine if the testing methods that we use and the matrices that we are testing are as effective as they can be.”

Paul Struthers, Chief Executive of the Professional Jockeys Association, said, “The PJA and its board has long been in support of increased testing for riders. Bringing breath testing 'in-house' and increasing the flexibility of the testing process are important steps which we fully support.”