2018 Triple Crown Winner Justify Failed A Drug Test Weeks Before the Kentucky Derby

Justify, the last horse to win a Triple Crown, failed a drug test weeks before the Kentucky Derby. Justify tested positive for scopolamine after winning the Santa Anita Derby on April 7, 2018. Via the New York Times:

Instead of the failed drug test causing a speedy disqualification, the California Horse Racing Board took more than a month to confirm the results. Then, instead of filing a public complaint as it usually does, the board made a series of decisions behind closed doors as it moved to drop the case and lighten the penalty for any horse found to have the banned substance that Justify tested positive for in its system.

The question is, do you blame the athlete here? Do we strip him of the honor of being named the 5th best Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year in 2018? Will he have to give back his cut of the $60 million in breeding rights that his now-tainted Triple Crown earned? What will we tell our children about this? More importantly, what will we tell the mares?