Four horses that contested the Olympic show jumping event have tested positive for the banned substance capsaicin. Lantinus, ridden by Ireland's Denis Lynch, failed a test and the pair has been suspended from the Games.
Norway's Tony Andre Hansen on Camiro, Brazil's Bernardo Alves on Chupa Chup and Germany's Christian Ahlmann on Coster has also been suspended.
Lynch, Hansen and Alves were all scheduled to compete in Thursday's individual competition.
Ahlmann was not entered into the event.
If the horses' B sample tests confirm their A samples, their countries will be disqualified from the team show jumping, which took place on Monday. The development casts another shadow over the equestrian after positive drugs tests forced a medal re-allocation at the 2004 Athens Games.
Germany were stripped of the team jumping gold in Athens after the horse ridden by Ludger Beerbaum, who is a lynchpin of his country's team in Beijing, was disqualified for a positive test.
Also in Athens, the Irishman Cian O'Connor was stripped of his individual gold medal on Waterford Crystal. BBC equestrian commentator Michael Tucker told BBC Radio 5 Live: "It's very bad news all round, particularly as two of them were highly thought of as individual medals and all four riders are world-class jockeys.
"Capsaicin is basically rubbed onto the front of the legs and it makes the horses pick up their legs.
"The testing facilities and laboratories here in Hong Kong are second to none in the world class. The B samples are going to be carried out very, very quickly indeed.
"Norway will drop out of the medals and Switzerland will come up. There is a further, unconfirmed rumour that the American Will Simpson, who is not involved in the individual, has also got a problem.
"That may mean the US go down to silver and Canada win the gold."
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