On 19 June 2017 numerous major equestrian media outlets received an open letter from Brazilian Grand Prix rider Dr. Jorge Da Rocha in which he expressed unethical and misleading behaviour from Italian 5* judge Enzo Truppa in the sale of Eremo del Castegno. Truppa replied with an open letter a day later.
Da Rocha: "Decency and Honesty Must Prevail"
The world's most important press agencies received Da Rocha's open letter alongside numerous emails in the private correspondence between Brazil and Italy as well as several vet statements. The two-page open letter can be synthesized to the fact that Da Rocha felt misled and lied to by Truppa.
"I am stepping forward to make it public, motivated by the genuine belief that animal welfare is of paramount importance in our sport and that it will only be accomplished and preserved through the immaculate demeanor of all parts involved," said Da Rocha. "Above all, decency and honesty must prevail. Anything or anyone not driven by these principles should never be part of the horse family. Vincenzo Truppa, the former owner of Eremo del Castegno, the horse I bought in December 2015, is the protagonist of a series of misleading acts that profoundly and negatively impacted the above-mentioned community"
Eremo del Castegno was sold in December 2015 as Da Rocha's 2016 Olympic Games' hopeful as a fit horse with one remark of exostoses in the front limbs. At the same time Truppa told the Italian Equestrian Federation, who had sponsored the horse with 280,000 euro to retain it for Italy until the 2016 Games, that the horse was no longer fit to compete and therefore sold. Furthermore, Da Rocha added that during the pre-purchase process Truppa refused to have Eremo undergo an MRI and the blood samples for a doping test went missing.
"In the month of December 2015, Truppa addressed a letter to FISE, disclosing his intentions to sell Eremo del Castegno and revealing the motivation for such a decision: Eremo was no longer fit for competitive purposes. At the same time, however, Truppa was addressing an email to me, stating that “the horse was never lame and that his word as a five star FEI judge was worth taking”, while vehemently and strongly objecting to my requests for more detailed investigations (namely MRI) on soundness issues of the horse. I felt obliged to believe in the word of a man working inside FEI’s heart.
"While waiting for the results of the doping tests – and still giving full credit to Truppa’s statements and pleas - the deal was concluded, based on acceptable findings in the clinical examination of Eremo. In January 2016, I learned that the blood drawn for doping screening at the moment of the clinical examination had been discarded upon Truppa’s requests."
Da Rocha never competed in the Brazilian Olympic qualifiers as the horse went lame in May 2016. In the open letter Da Rocha stressed t that he is not interested in returning the horse nor in suing Truppa for what happened. The Brazilian only wishes to alert the world and the FEI of unethical behaviour.
"From my part, I expect nothing from you. The suffering and damage caused by your acts are irreparable. To finish, after having learned about the circumstances of the dealing of Eremo del Castegno, it is not understandable that - with our so divergent principles and expectations – we stand as members of the same International Equestrian Federation. It is beyond my comprehension that the FEI, aware of these facts, still has your name in the list of Official International Judges. Or that you have horses under your training supervision."
Da Rocha concluded: "As I said in the beginning of this letter, above all, decency and honesty must prevail. Anything or anyone not driven by these principles should never be part of the horse sport industry. This is the reason I decided to come public, in hope horses’ interests remain a priority, warranting long life all Equestrian disciplines."
Truppa Replies
One day later Truppa replied with a four-page open letter in which he aimed to refute several of Da Rocha's arguments.
When it comes to the missing blood sample, Truppa argues that the fact that Eremo competed at the CDI Salzburg on 2 - 6 December 2017, suffices for a negative doping test.
Truppa stated: "On the occasion of the afore-mentioned vetting, my own vet Dr Brignolo, who was Eremo del Castegno’s regular vet, informed your vet that the anti-doping test you refer to in your letter would not be carried out as the results would only be available after the date agreed for the sale; in any event, Dr Brignolo pointed out to Dr Monaco Brossi that the only medication given to the horse was Bonefos and that Eremo had just come back from the Salzburg international, held two days before, and that, therefore, he had been subjected to all relevant tests, including anti-doping."
The FEI did not test Eremo for doping at the CDI Salzburg. The pre-purchase exams and drawing of the blood took place two days after the competition.
Truppa stressed that Da Rocha was well aware of the horse's medical issue with exostoses. "What was reported by Mr (Hubertus) Schmidt and Ms (Mariette) Almasy unequivocally demonstrates that Eremo del Castegno’s sole problem was the presence of exostoses in the front limbs, which was pointed out straight away to both Mr Schmidt and Dr Brossi before the sale negotiations even began, and that clearly did not prevent the horse from carrying out his sporting career."
Truppa accuses an unidentified person who convinced Da Rocha to write an open letter after his successful lawsuit settlement with FISE. "Your letter almost seems to have been suggested by somebody who was not pleased by the friendly manner in which the controversy was solved," Truppa stated.
Truppa concludes by saying: "Like you, I have been working for over 40 years to spread the sport of dressage under the banner of passion and correctness."
Read the complete Open Letters here: Da Rocha - Truppa (PDF files)
Related Links
Eremo del Castegno Sold to Brazil
FISE Drops Lawsuit Against Enzo Truppa and Reaches Settlement
FISE Sues Truppa for the Sale of Eremo del Castegno