The controversy surrounding Olympic showjumper Cian O’Connor was finally put to rest on Easter Sunday 2005. An oral hearing in Zurich saw our Athenian hero stripped of his gold medal by the International Equestrian Federation’s Judicial Committee. While equestrian enthusiasts awaited the decision with interest, for the majority of the disillusioned public it was a foregone conclusion.
For us, as soon as the words “contaminated urine sample” were uttered back in October, the name Cian O’Connor was added to the vault of fallen sporting legends. Since then, many tortured themselves further by trying to establish exactly what happened, but were confused rather than illuminated by the media’s inability to report the story in an accurate and coherent way. Even now there are questions about the debacle that remain unanswered.
Initially a flicker of hope remained in the insistence of innocence by the O’Connor camp. That was until the B blood sample went missing. At this point the drama became a farce and the cynical reaction of the public was the least Cian could expect. As it turned out, his horse, Waterford Crystal, was found to have traces of the drugs fluphenazine and zuclopenthixol in his system from both blood and urine samples.
O’Connor asserted these were merely remnants of a therapeutic sedative. Neither he nor his vet could understand why the traces were still there at the Olympics. They also maintained it would have no positive effects. Be that as it may, someone made the decision to administer forbidden substances to an Olympic horse in a zero-tolerance situation — a foolish decision that close to the Games.
O’Connor was disqualified, but the saga looked set to continue when the 25-year-old rider was given the opportunity to appeal this decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The odds of success were considered good due to one crucial statement in the judgement that the committee was satisfied he had not made a “deliberate attempt” to affect the performance of his horse. However, he announced in early April that he would accept the decision of the judicial committee “in the best interests of the sport and to avoid further controversy”, and added that “the process to date was essentially about clearing my good name and thankfully this has been done.”
He must now return the medal, which will become the property of the runner-up, Brazil’s Rodrigo Pessoa. O’Connor has also been suspended from representing Ireland in international competition for three months. However, this does not restrict him from competing both here and abroad as an individual. While he can theoretically compete, he also has eager equestrian students and 45 horses to keep him busy back home in Co Meath.
Cian O’Connor is a human being. He had been preparing to represent his country at the Olympics for years, showcasing Ireland’s unique talent for producing horses and riders. He made a mistake. He seemed ill-prepared to deal with the backlash and avoided the limelight until a final decision was made. He is probably the only one who knows what exactly happened but admirably was unwilling to capitalise on this by selling his story. He was foolish and is having to pay for his ‘crime’. The media circus is thankfully over.
Ultimately, he is a horseman and has chosen his occupation out of his love for the game. He let himself down. He let his sponsors, his staff and the nation down. It is unlikely he will do it again. In fact, it is doubtful that any Olympic rider will take any substance-related risks like it ever again, and if we ditch the Irish cynicism we might realise that this loss could be equestrian sport’s gain. After all, there are plenty of talented sportspeople in Ireland who want to restore Ireland’s sporting reputation and have their sights set on Beijing.