Some leading owners and trainers have requested the RVL board make an exception to the anti-inflammatory drug ibuprofen. This request has come about because gifted stayers such as Signoff and Rib Eye as well as 20 other racehorses have returned positive swabs to this drug in recent times.

The problem appears to be that ibuprofen acts unpredictably in the horse with some experts believing that administration of the drug can lead to the drug being deposited in fat tissue, which then means the drug is re-released into the system when fat is burnt during exercise.

This has meant that these horses are producing positive results many months after treatment has stopped and in some circumstances after there have been some clear swabs preceding the positive.

Nonetheless, for those who understand Australia's position as a supporter of drug-free racing, the RVL board had no alternative but to reject any such exemption.

To exempt any drug would destroy the drug-free policy and put Victorian racing on par with racing in some American states where controlled medication is allowable.

The rest of the world however, including most American states, all of Europe all of Asia all have a policy of drug-free racing.

The problem with ibuprofen is multifaceted. The drug is not registered for use in horses meaning there is a paucity of any information on drug accumulation metabolism and excretion. The other feature of ibuprofen is that the drug is excreted unchanged by the body. Ibuprofen goes in and ibuprofen comes out. This means there is no opportunity for drug analysts to time frame a positive swab. A treatment yesterday appears the same as a treatment six months ago.

Ibuprofen, a potent anti-inflammatory and pain-killing drug, has been used to rehabilitate tendon injuries in racehorses but it is likely that any ibuprofen use will be banned in the future.

Fairfax Media understands that the recurrent ibuprofen positives in horses like Signoff are related to treatment at a Gippsland Rehabilitation facility where there are concerns over the type of ibuprofen used and the dose and duration of ibuprofen treatment.

The ruling by Racing Victoria's board on Thursday might well spell the end of the racing careers of these horses as if Ibuprofen is bound into fat tissue then the excretion or elimination of the drug becomes totally unpredictable and may continue for months.

Fairfax Media understand that there are at least two horses that continue to test positive nine and 12 months after the treatment ceased.

The general consensus following the board's decision was agreement and support, with many industry participants believing that drug-free racing is vital.

In recent times racing has been rocked by numerous drug scandals and there are many observers that believe that the only way to restore public faith in racing is drug-free racing with it accompanying tough penalties for any breaches.

One of the reasons drug-free racing is supported is that controlled medication presents an almost unworkable alternative in that trainers can withhold treatment which means horses can perform badly without the benefit of the medication which they are meant to be getting.

Controlled medication requires regulators to test every horse that is meant to be on medication every time they race to ensure that performance is not manipulated by trainers withholding treatment.

This poses a nightmare for regulators and is clearly no where near as efficient as drug-free racing where one positive swab means there is a problem.