Iditarod champion Dallas Seavey denies allegations that he doped his dogs
Seavey, a four-time champion of the Iditarod, posted a video in which he strongly denies cheating
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1 min read
When it comes to the annual Iditarod sled dog race, it's more than just the trail that seems to be icy this year.
On Monday, four-time Iditarod champion Dallas Seavey was accused by The Iditarod Trail Committee of administering banned substances to four of his dogs prior to a race in March. Those dogs tested positive for the opioid pain reliever, Tramadol.
Following the allegations, Seavey posted a video online vehemently denying the committee's claims.
"I have done absolutely nothing wrong," said Seavey. "I have spent the last 10 years becoming the best musher I possibly can. I have done nothing wrong. I have never knowingly broken any race rules. I have never given any banned substance to my dogs."
The 30-year-old Seavey also announced his intentions to withdraw from the 2018 Iditarod race as a result of the accusations from the committee, which he believes has "thrown [him] under the bus."
Seavey isn't expected to face discipline for the determination that he gave drugs to the dogs, but he can potentially be banned from future Iditarods because of his comments on this incident. There apparently is a gag-rule designed to prevent mushers from speaking ill of the event and its sponsors, and Seavey says he fully expects to be expelled from the competition. He doesn't care.
"I don't care if I never race another dog race. I don't care if I don't make another cent around the sport," said Seavey. "I will not spend the rest of my life looking in the mirror knowing I backed down when I did nothing wrong."
Seavey is one of the most accomplished names currently active in the sport. He won the Iditarod in 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2016 and has had nine straight top-10 finishes. With that in mind, it's a major scandal in the sled dog community and it'll be interesting to see where it goes from here.
Essentially, this is Alaska's version of LeBron James being accused of squirting Secret Stuff into his teammates' water bottles in the NBA Finals. Come to think of it, LeBron may want to consider that if he's forced to go up against Steph Curry and the Warriors again. It's only cheating if you get caught.
