Nala Cyriac
Mr. Cohen
ELS20
October 3rd
Target Audience: Non-equestrians who want to learn more about the scandal
Eric Lamaze: A Story of Controversy and Scandal
Introduction
In 2019, Canadian Olympian and gold medalist, Eric Lamaze, publicly announced his retirement from equestrian sports with the claim of his diagnosis of brain cancer that he has been battling since 2017. These reports have been called into question in late 2023, and he is facing many lawsuits that call his credibility into question. However, it is not the first time that this particular Olympian has been the centre of controversy.
Who is Eric Lamaze?
Born on April 17th 1968 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He was the first Canadian equestrian to win an Olympic gold medal in individual jumping, and a silver medal in team jumping at the 2008 Summer Olympics. According to the Olympic website:
As a junior rider, Canadian Eric Lamaze showed great promise to emerge as one of Canada's great international equestrians. He entered grand prix jumping in 1992 and, within one year, was named to the Canadian national team, making his first major appearance at the 1994 World Equestrian Games. (Eric LAMAZE Biography, Olympic Medals, Records and Age)
He went on to achieve great success in equestrian sports and even was regarded as “one of the world’s most respected show jumpers and achieved so much throughout his stellar career.” (Eric Lamaze: the retirement of a Legend) He has been an inspiration to many young equestrians looking to achieve success in the sport and his interesting history and struggles are admirable but have caused him to be involved in some controversy throughout the years, leading to this scandal.
Previous Controversy
He showed great promise and was on his way to becoming one of the greatest and at such an early age however, controversy struck when in 1996, he tested positive for use of cocaine and subsequently received a four-year suspension and was banned from participating in the games. However, due to personal circumstances; growing up with a mother who dealt drugs, his ban was lifted and he was able to compete in the 1998 World Equestrian Games. The following year he helped his team to a bronze finish in the 1999 Pan American Games.
With his career taking a huge leap in success at this point, he was offered an opportunity to represent his country at the Summer Olympics in 2000 however, yet again, he was found guilty of testing a forbidden stimulant and for this he received a lifetime banishment from the sport. According to the Olympic website:
Believing his career to be over, he went to a party immediately after hearing his result and smoked a cigarette laced with cocaine. Less than two days later, however, the test that he failed was stricken from the record and he was given another opportunity to pass it and attend the Games. He failed again, this time for cocaine, and although he again avoided a lifelong ban, Canadian officials still refused to send him to Sydney. (Eric LAMAZE Biography, Olympic Medals, Records and Age)
Despite this, he made one more attempt at a comeback, in 2008, he became the first Canadian equestrian in over two decades to be ranked among the top ten. He also had two more Pan American medals from 2007: silver from the team jumping competition and bronze in the individual. In 2008 he made it to the Olympics and did not disappoint, capturing gold in the individual jumping tournament and silver in the team version aboard his winning stallion, Hickstead, who later died in November of 2011 and will go down in history as one of the greatest stallions of all time. Despite his champion horse’s death, he opted against retirement and continued the search for other horses to further his career, competing in more Olympic games such as in 2012, where he finished 29th in the individual event and 5th in the team competition.
The Grounds
Despite all of his previous controversies, the lawsuit was completely unrelated to his prior drug use. The lawsuit that prompted the reveal of the forged medical documents was first filed in 2010 over three horses that were reportedly misrepresented during the sale. According to Horse Sport:
In 2010, Iron Horse Farm Inc., a family-owned stable operated by Karina Aziz, filed a $500,000 lawsuit against Eric Lamaze and his Torrey Pines Stable over three horses that Lamaze sold to Iron Horse for Karina to compete. Iron Horse claims that the three horses were not of the quality represented to it by Lamaze, who denies the allegations (Lamaze Submits Forged Medical Documents to Court)
Given Eric Lamaze’s record for questionable behaviour in the past, Lamaze was trying his best to keep the lawsuit hidden from the public by denying allegations and delaying trials; attempting to push it past the date at which the statute of limitations expired.
The Lawsuit
This lawsuit garnered many delays that left the lawsuit open for thirteen years, and it is still ongoing. However, Lamaze’s long-time defence attorney, Tim Danson, filed a motion on July 12th to further delay proceedings due to Lamaze’s ongoing medical issues as a result of his brain cancer. However, the reports that Danson provided aroused suspicion as they were unaddressed medical reports dated April 5th that had been forwarded to him by a representative of Lamaze. This prompted the owners of Iron Horse Farm Inc. to hire a private investigator in the summer of 2023 to look into the credibility of several of the letters that were allegedly signed by physicians at the Chirec Cancer Institute in Brussels. However, in speaking with the physicians and other hospital staff, they determined that these reports were falsified. According to Horse Sport:
By August 11th, Iron Horse counsel presented the court a signed report from a licenced Belgian private detective. The investigator had visited the Chirec Delta Hospital in Belgium and spoke with Dr. Oulad Ben Taib who confirmed that the signature on the document was not his and referred him to the hospital’s legal department. The hospital’s in-house council subsequently confirmed in a written statement that “The documents on Chirec Cancer Institute’s letterhead which are in your possession are fraudulent.” The hospital’s statement also includes a note from Dr. Pirotte stating that the letter is a fake and that he has no memory of Lamaze. (Lamaze Submits Forged Medical Documents to Court)
And according to The Chronicle of the Horse:
Lamaze’s alleged cancer status has played a role in many of the lawsuits he currently faces in the U.S.—frequently as a reason to delay or not participate in court proceedings. (Wright, Forged Cancer Treatment Documents Cast Doubt On Lamaze’s Health Status)
This led Timothy Danson; Lamaze’s lifelong friend and lawyer, to remove himself from the case after the forgeries were discovered. During his final appearance on September fifth, Danson told the court: “Eric is very sick, but maybe not with cancer.” (Wright, Forged Cancer Treatment Documents Cast Doubt On Lamaze’s Health Status)
Results
After the reports of Lamaze’s forgery were published, he has been facing court and they have come to the decision on the compensation that Iron Horse will receive.
Lamaze has been ordered to pay $32,400 to cover Iron Horse’s cost for the July motion to adjourn. If Lamaze does not pay the amount by September 29th and find a new attorney to represent Torrey Pines by the October 9th trial date, the Iron Horse pleadings will be “struck”. This direction from the Justice means that if Lamaze fails to pay or find a lawyer, he will have admitted the allegations by default, though Iron Horse will still have to prove to the court the amount of the damages. (Lamaze Submits Forged Medical Documents to Court)
Even though this lawsuit is the one that has gained the most attention, this is not the only other one that he is involved with. According to Horse Sport:
Lamaze is currently being sued by several other parties including Robert Chad and his Stone Ridge Farm, as well as Muffie Guthrie. Chad’s complaint alleges that Lamaze didn’t faithfully execute a partnership agreement and has failed to account for $1,000,000, and also a complaint by Stone Ridge for a horse deal gone horribly wrong. Guthrie’s complaint states that Lamaze deceived her about the purchase of investment horses Newberry Balia NL and Nikka VD Bisschop and withheld the proceeds of their sale. (Lamaze Submits Forged Medical Documents to Court)
Eric Lamaze is now facing multiple lawsuits from many other parties that now, due to the reveal of the forged medical documentation, are able to be compensated for their losses. At this time, Lamaze is facing multiple ongoing lawsuits for multiple horse deals that have also been misrepresented and he is facing the loss of possibly millions of dollars due to this.
Importance and Conclusion
To many, this story just seems like another person attempting to avoid paying for previous misdemeanours that they may have committed but to the equestrian community, this is something that calls into question the credibility of other members of the sport that young equestrians everywhere have looked up to and admired. Not only that, but it also crushed the members of the equestrian community that were inspired by him. As Tiffany Foster put it, when asked what the most useful thing she learned from him, she said:
The most useful thing I have learned from Eric is to be resilient. There is no room for not trying your hardest every time when Eric is involved. He pushes you to give your all and he will not accept cowardness of any kind. He has made me stronger than I would have ever been without him. (“Eric Lamaze: the retirement of a Legend”)
With the development of these allegations and the multiple attempts to delay or hide the lawsuits, it is no wonder why this came as a shock to many equestrians. As a previously well-respected member of the Olympic team, it is a shame to see him lose all credibility and respect. This will forever be remembered as one of the greatest equestrian scandals; up there with the likes of George Morris and Jimmy A. Williams. In conclusion, this scandal really puts into perspective just how desperate and greedy celebrities can be when you truly take a closer look into their actions and evaluate why they might have done this.
Works Cited
“Eric LAMAZE Biography, Olympic Medals, Records and Age.” Olympics.com, https://olympics.com/en/athletes/eric-lamaze. Accessed 3 October 2023.
“Eric Lamaze - Team Canada - Official Olympic Team Website.” Canadian Olympic Committee, https://olympic.ca/team-canada/eric-lamaze/. Accessed 3 October 2023.
“Eric Lamaze: the retirement of a Legend.” Rolex Grand Slam of Show Jumping, https://www.rolexgrandslam.com/en/Grand-Slam/News/Eric-Lamaze-the-retirement-of-a-Legend.html. Accessed 3 October 2023.
“Lamaze Submits Forged Medical Documents to Court.” Horse Sport, 6 September 2023, https://horsesport.com/horse-news/lamaze-submits-forged-medical-documents-court/amp/. Accessed 3 October 2023.
Wright, Melissa. “Forged Cancer Treatment Documents Cast Doubt On Lamaze's Health Status.” The Chronicle of the Horse, 8 September 2023, https://www.chronofhorse.com/article/forged-cancer-treatment-documents-cast-doubt-on-lamazes-health-status/. Accessed 3 October 2023.
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