The ruler of Dubai ordered Thursday the drafting of a decree to ban the import, sale, purchase and use of anabolic steroids in horse sports in the United Arab Emirates, local news agency WAM reported.

Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum's decision to criminalize the doping of race horse followed a scandal in his own Godolphin horse stables in Newmarket, Britain.

In April, one of his former trainer Mahmood al-Zarooni was charged with doping race horses, as samples from at least 11 horses at the Moulton Paddocks stables run by the trainer revealed to contain anabolic steroids, a forbidden substance that can increase a horse's endurance. On April 24, Sheikh Mohammed ordered the closure of the stables.

Sheikh Mohammed said Thursday that "I have always believed in the integrity of horse racing and all other horse sports."

"As soon as the internal investigations are complete and the requisite preemptory rules are put in place, Godolphin will go from strength to strength and lead, once again, adherence to the highest standards in that gracious sport," he said.

Since 1996, Sheikh Mohammed has been organizing the annual Dubai World Cup, the most prestigious hippodrome event in the world which the Godolphin stable won several times. Godolphin won over 2,000 races globally since the stables were set up in 1992. Endi

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