3 Feb. USA. Suwannee River H. G3. Gulfstream Park. 9f. Turf. 100.000 $
1.- LA DOLCE VITA (K.Desormeaux)
2.- J'RAY (E.Coa)
3.- WAQUIOT'S LOVE (E.Castro)


GREEN GIRL (Fr) (Lord of Men) has been disqualified from her victory in the Suwannee River H. (G3) on February 3 at Gulfstream Park for not carrying "the full weight assigned for the race from the paddock to the post," hearing officer William Greely ruled on Wednesday. As a result, LA DOLCE VITA (Quiet American), who finished second, was awarded victory in the Suwannee River. Green Girl was placed last.

Trainers Mark Hennig, who saddled second-place La Dolce Vita, and Todd Pletcher, conditioner of third-place J'RAY (Distant View), immediately protested the results after the race was declared official by the stewards. Their claim was that the first across the line, Green Girl, did not carry the weight assigned her, according to house rules, "from paddock to post and post to finish."

Gulfstream Park association stewards Chip Spencer and Jeff Noe heard the protests in a February 15 hearing. Florida state steward Kevin Sheen chose not participate and, in his absence, Bernie Hettel, Gulfstream Park Racing Operations Manager and a well-respected former steward, served as the third person on the committee, without objection from the interested parties.

That protest was denied in a 2-1 decision, with the stewards finding that there was no evidence that the winner had gained an unfair advantage. Hettel did not concur and cast the dissenting vote.

Gary L. Zwerling, owner of La Dolce Vita, appealed the decision claiming that Green Girl benefited from not carrying the assigned weight for upward of eight-to-11 minutes. Green Girl was unruly in the post parade and unseated jockey Rene Douglas on two occasions prior to the nine-furlong grass race.

In his report, which was released Thursday, Greely found "the record shows without question or any real disagreement that Green Girl did not carry the full weight from paddock to post."