An Industry's Integrity and Reputation On The Line
10/10/08 Terry Cullipher for KyHarnessRacing.com
10/10/08 Terry Cullipher for KyHarnessRacing.com
- When did reputation become a major factor in determining guilt or innocence?
Shouldn’t evidence determine guilt or innocence?
- With the recent erythropoietin (EPO) positives at The Red Mile (reported in the Herald
Leader), many reputations are on the line. But whose reputations are at stake? The
reputations of the trainers with the positive tests, the lab, the track, and the
Kentucky Horse Racing Commission are all at stake, but it goes much further than
that.
The reputation and integrity of Kentucky horse racing is on the line.
In horse racing’s war on drugs, the worst offenders are sought by regulators of the
industry. However, even someone with a "squeaky clean" reputation, who uses a drug
for the very first time, can be caught. Should a first-time offender get a free pass, or
should they have to pay the piper?
Is it possible for a trainer to be both legal and successful? Ask any number of
trainers, and several will say it gets old chasing the drugs. The rest will say they do
what they have to do to survive.
Recently, an experienced trainer with over fifty horses said, "If you’re racing -
anywhere, you have to do what they do -- or get out of the business. If it’s out there
and you're not doing it, you're finishing up last on the track. How long do you think I
can survive finishing up the track?"
Has it gotten so bad that trainers are forced to make the tough decision -- join the
"Dark Side" or perish?
Unfortunately, it doesn’t make things any easier when a double standard is used and
the rules are not enforced. If a jury convicted or acquitted people based on their
reputations, not facts, the credibility of the judicial system would be questioned. How
is this any different?
Fighting the Chemical War must be fought fairly – regardless of the reputations of
the accused. In addition, penalties must be enforced.
An organization’s culture is deeply affected by its integrity. A strong values-based
culture aligned to a core purpose, which delivers a level playing field to its participants,
is the only way to develop integrity. Integrity enhances and fosters relationships
between the organization’s members and supporters, thereby building a good
reputation.
However, when an organization’s reputation begins to suffer because double
standards are used and rules are not enforced equally, its integrity is threatened and
the industry as a whole is weakened.
- If the people involved in harness racing want to trust the trainers based on their
reputations, then they should trust the trainers.
If the people involved harness racing want to fight against the chemical warfare that is
rampant in the industry, they should use drug tests.
But, you can't play both sides of the fence.
