LAUSANNE, Switzerland -- Part of a doping sample taken from the horse that won Ireland its only gold medal at the Athens Olympics has been stolen, the International Equestrian Federation said Monday.
Part of Waterford Crystal's B-sample was taken Oct. 21 by unknown individuals in Cambridgeshire, Britain, FEI officials said. They declined immediately to give further details or say if the theft would halt the anti-doping investigation of the horse, which could ultimately cost rider Cian O'Connor his individual show jumping medal.
"The FEI is proceeding with the medication control case of Waterford Crystal in accordance with the FEI regulations," the federation said in a statement.
The A-sample from Waterford Crystal tested positive for a banned substance, FEI announced earlier last month.
The B-sample was being shipped by a courier service from a laboratory in Paris to the Horseracing Forensic Laboratory in Newmarket, England, said FEI. The town is a hub for equestrian sports.
Swiss and British police have opened an investigation, said FEI, adding that it also has launched an internal inquiry.
O'Connor has denied any wrongdoing.
The Irish equestrian federation has said Waterford Crystal was given a sedative for a fetlock injury a month before the Olympics in August. O'Connor said his veterinarian assured him the sedative would work its way out of the horse's system before the games.
O'Connor has acknowledged that another of his top-performing horses, ABC Landliebe, tested positive for a banned substance in Rome in May. O'Connor said the horse received sedatives for back pain and that he likewise expected all traces of the drugs to be out of the horse's system within days.
The other horses competing in Athens tested positive for banned substances, FEI said last month. Among them was Goldfever, ridden by Ludger Beerbaum of Germany's gold medal-winning quartet in team jumping.
If Waterford Crystal's second test turns up positive, O'Connor's gold could be awarded to silver medalist Rodrigo Pessoa of Brazil.
