News Releases

Friday, September 18, 2009Contact: Jennifer Voss-Franco (859) 224-2702
ROAP's Officiating Horse Racing Conference Set for December 7 in Tucson

A first of its kind seminar focused entirely on drug testing and the prosecution of a medication case will be the focus of the Racing Officials Accreditation Program’s (ROAP) second annual Officiating Horse Racing Conference on December 7, 2009, at the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program’s Symposium on Racing and Gaming at the Westin La Paloma Resort in Tucson, Ariz.

This year’s conference is geared especially for assistant attorneys general and presenters of evidence, racing commission counsel, investigators, stewards and racing commissioners. Presentations and discussions will cover virtually every aspect of drug case prosecution, including:

  • Sample collection and documentation
  • Interpreting the analytical data
  • Understanding toxicology and pharmacology
  • Due process
  • Drug classification and potential to affect performance
  • Expert witnesses and testimony
  • Case presentation
  • Developing trends in drugs and testing

Racing industry attorney Alan Foreman will lead the conference. Foreman is vice-chairman of the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium (RMTC) and counsel to the United States Equestrian Federation’s Drugs and Medications Program.

Other faculty include Ira Finkelstein, veteran equine law attorney and partner in Harnik and Finkelstein in New York; Dr. George Maylin, director of the New York State Racing and Wagering Board Equine Drug Testing and Research Program at Cornell University; Dr. Scott Stanley, director of the Kenneth L. Maddy Equine Analytical Laboratory at the University of California-Davis; and Dr. Scot Waterman, executive director of the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium.

Individuals can register for the Officiating Horse Racing Conference by completing and returning the registration form available on the ROAP website, horseracingofficials.com, along with a $25 registration fee, which includes lunch, to: Racing Officials Accreditation Program, 821 Corporate Drive, Lexington, KY 40503. The deadline to register is November 13.

Registration forms are also available by contacting Jennifer Voss-Franco at (859) 224-2702 or via e-mail at contactus@horseracingofficials.com.

ROAP is a 501 (c) (6) organization whose board of directors is made up of representatives of 15 industry organizations. Stewards and judges receive their accreditation and continuing education through this program. Rich Wilcke at the University of Louisville and Wendy Davis at the University of Arizona direct the schools and training used in achieving accreditation.

The ROAP website, horseracingofficials.com, features information about the accreditation process, a comprehensive listing of accredited racing officials, and lists of job opening and upcoming events.

The 36th annual Symposium on Racing and Gaming, presented by the University of Arizona’s Race Track Industry Program, will be held December 7-10, 2009.