Palermo tightened controls on Gerardo Alteño during his eight-month suspension

The Racing Committee established a series of measures to supervise the horses remaining under its domain during the suspension imposed on him by San Isidro

Gerardo Alteño (third from the left), under the spotlight at Palermo / JUAN I. BOZZELLO

The eight-month suspension imposed by the racing committee of Hipódromo de San Isidro on trainer Gerardo Nicolás Alteño has taken a significant step forward, after Hipódromo de Palermo resolved to establish a series of additional controls aimed at guaranteeing full enforcement of the penalty.

Through an official resolution dated August 20, the Palermo racing committee drew on the measure adopted by San Isidro on July 8, under which Gerardo Nicolás Alteño was suspended from June 24, 2026, through February 23, 2027, inclusive, following an infraction of Article 25, Section II, Subsection c of its General Racing Rules regarding Unauthorized Therapeutic Treatment concerning Have Fun (Fortify).

Palermo also highlighted in its recitals that the professional holds repeated disciplinary priors linked to violations of regulations governing medication controls and authorized horse treatments—a factor that proved decisive in advancing these new enforcement provisions.

The core objective of the resolution is to prevent horses under the sphere of Gerardo Nicolás Alteño from simply being entered under the name of another professional during the eight-month suspension while remaining under his actual training, care, or direction.

In this sense, the committee noted that his repeated record and the duration of the sanction make it necessary to "apply maximum scrutiny" over any thoroughbreds that might remain under his responsibility.

Furthermore, the resolution explicitly states that having a horse formally registered to or presented by another trainer is not alone sufficient to rule out potential liability for Gerardo Nicolás Alteño, provided objective evidence demonstrates that he continues to exercise, directly or indirectly, the functions of a trainer or caregiver.

Consequently, one of the primary mandates requires Gerardo Nicolás Alteño to submit to the racing committee, within three business days of notification, a complete roster of all thoroughbreds under his care, responsibility, training, or scope of intervention, detailing horse names, owners, and identification data.

This list must remain updated throughout the entire suspension period, with any additions or removals reported within 48 hours.

Additionally, Gerardo Nicolás Alteño must disclose the identity of the licensed professional who will act as the replacement trainer for any horses tied to his barn entered to compete while he serves his suspension.

However, Palermo went a step further on this point. The formal designation of another trainer will not prevent the committee from investigating who effectively fulfills the duties of trainer, caregiver, or person in charge of each runner.

Thus, if documentation, background checks, inspections, or other gathered evidence reveal that a horse formally presented by the substitute trainer remains, in practice, "under the actual direction, care, training, or effective responsibility" of Gerardo Nicolás Alteño, the committee will hold him fully accountable as the effective trainer, regardless of any liabilities applying to the registered paper trainer.

He was also informed that any non-compliance with these requirements or actions intended to evade or nullify the intent of the suspension may trigger additional disciplinary proceedings and penalties under the General Racing Rules.

Finally, the racing committee established another weighty directive: moving forward, whenever Gerardo Nicolás Alteño seeks to enter runners at Hipódromo de Palermo, he must obtain prior authorization from the board.

The stated goal of the resolution is to safeguard industry transparency, facilitate inspection efforts, and ensure strict compliance with disciplinary rulings.

In doing so, Palermo did not merely acknowledge the suspension issued by San Isidro, but took a far more aggressive stance: policing what actually happens to horses linked to the trainer during his ban, beyond whichever name appears on the official race card.

It is a firm decision with implications extending well past this specific case, placing a long-debated racing practice directly under the microscope: how far an trainer's suspension truly reaches when a sanctioned professional's horses are formally transferred to a program proxy.