CAS approves settlement between FEI and US athlete Paige Johnson

Samples taken on 21 January 2017 from the horse Luke Skywalker 46 (FEI ID 103XB94/USA), ridden by Paige Johnson at the CSI2* in Wellington (USA), tested positive for the local anaesthetic Pramoxine, Following the decision of the FEI Tribunal, the athlete appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

As the substance Pramoxine will to be reclassified from a banned substance to controlled medication, effective from 1 January 2018, the two parties – the athlete and the FEI – ultimately agreed a settlement, which was approved by the CAS.

Under the terms of the settlement, the athlete’s period of ineligibility has been reduced from one year to three months, from 5 April 2017 (the date of notification) until 5 July 2017 and therefore the athlete is now cleared to compete.

The CAS arbitration costs will be borne equally by the parties.

FEI Legal Director Mikael Rentsch explains “Given the fact that Pramoxine has been recently reclassified as a controlled medication, effective as of 1 January 2018, the FEI agreed as a matter of fairness and based on the principle of proportionality, that the period of ineligibility initially imposed by the FEI Tribunal should be reduced. Three months was deemed appropriate given the circumstances.”

Further details on the CAS decision can be found here.

The press release on the initial FEI Tribunal case can be found here.

Notes to Editors 

FEI Prohibited Substances List

The list of prohibited substances is revised by a group of experts: the FEI List Group. The Group devised the Equine Prohibited Substances List (EPSL) and reviews the EPSL on an annual basis in response to scientific advances and information available regarding the use of substances in horses. The List Group proposes changes to the FEI Bureau once a year and the changes are published a minimum of 90 days prior to implementation, most recently on 27 September 2017. The review is carried out in conjunction with a consultation process with all National Federations. 

The full list of changes effective as of 1 January 2018 can be found here

FEI Media Contacts:

Grania Willis
Director Communications
grania.willis@fei.org
+41 78 750 61 42

Leanne Williams
Media Relations and Communications Manager
leanne.williams@fei.org
+41 79 314 24 38