France Galop declines to comment on arrest reports

PA Sport Reporters
December 7, 2021 5:57 pm

Sealiway trainer Rossi among those involved in police investigation, according to a French newspaper.

France Galop is “closely following the latest developments” following reports that Group One-winning trainers Frederic, Cedric and Charley Rossi were arrested on Tuesday.

According to a report by Le Parisien newspaper, the trio, along with Charley Rossi’s wife, the jockey Jessica Marcialis, were part of a larger group to be placed in police custody as part of an ongoing investigation into alleged equine doping.

Cedric Rossi enjoyed a memorable campaign on the track this year, highlighted by the success of Sealiway in the Qipco Champion Stakes at Ascot in October.

Sealiway was previously trained by Frederic Rossi, for whom he won the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere and finished second in the French Derby, before joining his nephew mid-season.

A statement from France Galop read: “France Galop is closely following the latest developments in the ongoing investigations, which were made public today. At this stage, France Galop is not making any comments.

“As part of its public service mission, France Galop is responsible for ensuring the regularity of racing and, in this context, it cooperates closely and on an ongoing basis with the Central Racing and Gaming Department of the French National Police.

“The fight against doping is an absolute priority for the racing industry, which devotes an annual budget of EURO 10million to it. The horse racing industry carries out nearly 30,000 anti-doping tests per year, many of them unannounced, in races, but also on horses in training, horses that come out of training and at stud farms.”