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Trainer Cristian Leandro Alcala was summarily suspended by stewards in Oklahoma on April 26 after he was found with numerous boxes of a substance labeled Arsil in a backpack at Remington Park in Oklahoma City.
According to a ruling released April 26, the stewards determined “public health, safety and welfare are at imminent peril,” necessitating emergency action. The summary suspension began April 22 and continues until a hearing on April 28.
Arsil is the name of an injectable product made by the Mexican pharmaceutical company Parfarm. According to the company’s website, it contains arsenic and is formulated for use in horses, cows, sheep, pigs, dogs, and cats.
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According to peer-reviewed research conducted by scientists at the Hong Kong Jockey Club, arsenic is commonly used in small doses in tonics for horses but may also be used as a doping agent. Products containing small amounts of arsenic are marketed as effective in stimulating appetite, improving hair coat or reducing general weakness or anemia, though little research exists on its therapeutic impacts, if any, in horses. As with humans, arsenic can be poisonous to horses if administered in large doses. It is naturally present at very low concentrations in many parts of the environment, according to racing authorities in Australia and South Africa.
Rough translations of the labeling for Arsil also claim it can be effective against obstructive pulmonary disease in the horse.
Images of Arsil boxes available for sale online clearly designate it is for veterinary use, though it is offered to the general public by several retailers at prices ranging from $25 to $320 for a 100-milliliter bottle.
Equibase records show Alcala began training in 2022 and also owns horses, including the Quarter Horse Glamazon, who won the Grade 3 Balloon City Stakes at Albuquerque in New Mexico last year. So far as a trainer, he has amassed two wins from 22 starts. As an owner, his stable brought in just over $225,000 in earnings last year, with 10 wins from 35 starts.
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