NSW chief Marc Van Gestel says stewards not afraid to call on police in war against drug cheats
Chief racing steward Marc Van Gestel doesn’t go for the ‘sheriff’s hat’ these days like his predecessors but he’s not afraid to call the shots in an industry where integrity and reputation is everything.
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These three words form a polarising phrase: “Drugs in sport!”
This became a hot topic again last week when sport’s figure of suspicion was pointed at the NRL and horse racing.
Cronulla Sharks rising star, Bronson Xerri, is facing a four-year ban from the game after a cocktail of performance-enhancing drugs were detected in his system from a targeted ASADA test.
In horse racing, some Queensland trainers spoke out about integrity issues in that state, claiming there wasn’t a level playing field and insisting more needs to be done to stop doping and cheating.
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And in the United States, one of the world’s leading trainers Bob Baffert is furious a swab irregularity taken from his top three-year-old, Kentucky Derby favourite Charlatan was made public.
For each case, there is a presumption of innocence. Xerri is waiting on the results of his B sample, Queensland trainers will meet senior racing officials on Monday to discuss their concerns, and Baffert is eager for his case to be expedited so he can have his say.
There are rogue elements in every walk of life and it would be naïve to suggest every sport is clean, particularly when money and prestige is the reward for winning.
But Racing NSW chief steward Marc Van Gestel, the man responsible for catching the crooks in racing, maintains his team has never been as well prepared to weed out the rorters.
His message is crystal clear — any drug cheats will be caught.
Van Gestel and his stewards panel employ specific strategies including pre and post-race swab samples, out-of-competition testing, the equine biological passport program and comparisons of out-of-competition and raceday samples, plus frozen samples that can be retrospectively tested which gives stewards the opportunity to stay one step ahead of the cheats.
The stewards also have a full-time NSW Police Detective Sergeant working with them to investigate any possible criminality.
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“If there was an incidence of direct evidence of cheating, we have that opportunity to refer the matter to the NSW Police,’’ Van Gestel said.
“So, not only do stewards exercise their authority under the rules of racing but certain matters can be dealt with in a criminal sense as well.
“In our opinion, because we can involve the police that provides a significant deterrent.
“Whenever there is gambling and a lot of money at stake, some people might be willing to test the boundaries on occasions.
“But I think with the systems we have in place, the likelihood of that happening is quite remote.’’
Racing NSW’s annual report last year revealed there was a record 23,336 raceday sample drug tests by the Australian Racing Forensics Laboratory and only 16 tested positive.
Van Gestel, who has been in charge of the Racing NSW stewards panel for four years, makes no apologies for the blanket, no-nonsense approach to drug testing in NSW racing. He knows punter confidence in racing is paramount.
It’s a mantra he learned when rising through the ranks under two of the great chief stewards of Australian racing, initially with John Schreck and then Ray Murrihy.
The duo were high profile stewards, instantly recognisable to punters and race fans with their pork-pie hats — once a necessary, almost symbolic part of a steward’s attire.
But Van Gestel shunned the hat from the start. He is his own man. He goes about his role of chief steward with a quiet efficiency and dogged professionalism.
Van Gestel probably takes the view a good steward is like a good NRL referee — the less he’s noticed, the better for the sport.
The son of a Belgian immigrant, Van Gestel once dreamed of becoming a jockey but with a physique more suitable for rugby league — he was a handy second-rower in his youth — riding was never going to be his calling.
Van Gestel had grown up around racing as his father, Mike, who left his 17 brothers and sisters behind in Belgium when he was very young for a life in Australia, trains a small team at Hawkesbury.
“I had never been to Belgium until three years ago when I went over to meet the extended family,’’ the chief steward revealed.
“My Dad’s family have a dairy farm over there and it was quite moving to see what he went through as one of 18 children.’’
But Van Gestel always wanted to pursue a career in racing and once he finished Year 12 at Richmond High in 1989, he joined the then-Australian Jockey Club’s racing office where he worked alongside the venerable Colin Tuck for 12 months before Schreck offered him a trainee stewards position.
“I had a fantastic grounding under John Schreck and Ray Murrihy,’’ Van Gestel said.
“They provided me with my skills set, taught me to be measured in my decision-making, and adapt their methods to suit my style of stewarding.
“I still talk quite regularly with Ray Murrihy, not necessarily about racing matters, but he’s a great resource to have if needed.’’
Van Gestel said the role of a steward has changed considerably over the years, particularly with the advent of social media.
“When I started there was no social media but these days we are dealing with it on a daily basis,’’ he said.
“It provides a lot of positives and benefits but also a lot of negatives. In some respects it has made our job harder but you have to take the good with the bad.’’
But there are some things that never change for a steward and that includes the tidal wave of complaints they receive from punters.
Racing is driven by opinion and Van Gestel is swamped weekly with messages from disgruntled punters urging stewards to take action on various matters.
“We do get our fair share of complaints,’’ Van Gestel said. “But the stewards take every complaint seriously and we review them all.
“Most of the time, a complaint may relate to a person having a vested interest in a certain matter but if there is a need for us to investigate further, we will do so.
“I don’t discourage that activity because sometimes it can highlight an offence or a matter that we need to look at more closely so we to consider and review every complaint.’’
Van Gestel also maintains his stewards panel have the resources to protect the integrity of NSW racing.
“The recent legislation that was introduced through parliament has given stewards the power to order a person to attend an inquiry whether they are licensed or not,’’ he said.
“This legislation is a strong advance for the regulatory framework stewards work within. Also having the secondment of a Detective Sergeant on board provides stewards with an additional resource.
“I am very comfortable where NSW racing is sitting at the moment in terms of having sufficient power to police these matters.’’
Originally published as NSW chief Marc Van Gestel says stewards not afraid to call on police in war against drug cheats