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Chris Froome with Tour de France and Vuelta winner's jerseys.jpgChris Froome faces ban and losing Vuelta title after failed drugs test
Team Sky’s Chris Froome could be stripped of the Vuelta title he won in September and faces a potentially lengthy ban after testing positive for excessive levels of an anti-asthma drug during the Spanish race.
News of the failed drugs test was broken by the Guardian and French newspaper Le Monde following a joint investigation, and has subsequently been confirmed by world cycling’s governing body, the UCI, and by Team Sky.
The anti-doping control, conducted on 7 September after Stage 18 of the Vuelta, found that the 32-year-old had twice the permitted level of the anti-asthma drug, Salbutamol, in his urine.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) permits athletes to use the drug provided the level does not exceed 1,000 nanograms per millilitre. No therapeutic use exemption (TUE) is required.
But Froome, who in July secured his fourth Tour de France victory in five years before going on to claim victory in Spain, returned a reading of 2,000 nanograms per millilitre.
Both the rider, who used the drug with an inhaler to treat his asthma, and Team Sky are adamant he did not exceed the dose permitted under WADA rules, which is a maximum of 1,600 micrograms (mcg) over a period of 24 hours and no more than 800mcg over 12 hours.
Froome was notified of the adverse analytical finding on 20 September. Later that day he won the bronze medal in the individual time trial at the UCI Road World Championships in Bergen, Norway.
Analysis of his B sample confirmed the results of the A sample, and the UCI said that “the proceedings are being conducted in line with the UCI anti-doping rules.”
It added: “Pursuant to article 7.9.1. of the UCI anti-doping rules, the presence of a specified substance such as Salbutamol in a sample does not result in the imposition of such mandatory provisional suspension against the rider.”
In a statement, Team Sky said that due to Froome’s asthma getting worse in the final week of the Vuelta, he increased his dosage of Salbutamol on the advice of the team doctor, but within the permitted level.
It added: “The notification of the test finding does not mean that any rule has been broken. The finding triggers requests from the UCI which are aimed at establishing what caused the elevated concentration of Salbutamol and to ensure that no more than the permissible doses of Salbutamol were inhaled.”
Froome said: “It is well known that I have asthma and I know exactly what the rules are. I use an inhaler to manage my symptoms (always within the permissible limits) and I know for sure that I will be tested every day I wear the race leader’s jersey.
“My asthma got worse at the Vuelta so I followed the team doctor’s advice to increase my Salbutamol dosage. As always, I took the greatest care to ensure that I did not use more than the permissible dose.”
He added: “I take my leadership position in my sport very seriously. The UCI is absolutely right to examine test results and, together with the team, I will provide whatever information it requires.”
Sir Dave Brailsford, team principal at Team Sky, said: “There are complex medical and physiological issues which affect the metabolism and excretion of Salbutamol. We’re committed to establishing the facts and understanding exactly what happened on this occasion.
I have the utmost confidence that Chris followed the medical guidance in managing his asthma symptoms, staying within the permissible dose for Salbutamol. Of course, we will do whatever we can to help address these questions.”
That Froome uses an inhaler to treat his asthma has been public knowledge for several years. In 2014, he was shown using one during Stage 2 of the Critérium du Dauphiné.
He said at the time: "I have had an inhaler since childhood, I have exercise induced asthma. It is ok. I didn't need a TUE.
"I don’t use (the inhaler) every time I race, normally only when I have a big effort coming up.
"Given sports history, people are obviously looking for a reason. There's no reason to make a big deal out. It's completely allowed by the UCI.
"It's a bit of a surprise everyone is talking about it," he added.
The attention that today’s news will bring is less surprising, with Froome at the very top of the sport having won four Tour de France titles and now the Vuelta.
He has said he plans to ride the Giro d’Italia in May as he seeks a third consecutive victory in a Grand Tour, before attempting to win the Tour de France for a record-equalling fifth time.
All of those plans are now in doubt, as is the question of whether Froome will keep his Vuelta title and even if he is found not to be at fault, he could still be handed a ban.
Meanwhile the news alone of the failed test will not only damage Froome’s reputation but also further tarnish the image of Team Sky in the wake of the recent UK Anti-doping investigation.
Riders including Alessandro Petacchi and Diego Ulissi in 2014 have received bans in the past for excessive levels of Salbutamol after failing to satisfy the authorities that they remained within the permitted dosage.
Petacchi, who was found to have a reading of 1,320 nanograms per millilitre at the Giro d’Italia in 2007, was banned for a year, although the Court of Arbitration for Sport was clear that he did not intend to cheat.
Ulissi, with a result of 1,920 nanograms per millilitre at the 2014 Giro d’Italia, got a nine-month ban.
However, Leonardo Piepoli, who tested positive for the drug during the same edition of the Giro d’Italia as Petacchi with 1,800 nanograms per millilitre, escaped sanction.
Last year, Simon Yates missed the Tour de France after he was banned for four months after testing positive for excessive levels of another anti-asthma drug, Terbutaline.
The doctor at his Orica-GreenEdge team had failed to apply for a TUE to permit the British rider to use the drug, and while the UCI ruled that it was a non-intentional anti-doping rule violation, it still imposed the ban.
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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80 comments
I remember mumbling to my disinterested wife when Wiggins and Brailsford were knighted that i really hope they are clean and what a nightmare it would be if any wrongdoings came out. Now Froome, oh dear. I think i will stay up and watch the cricket tonight, may as well have 2 teams disintegrate at the same time
This is absolutely ridiculous, he needs his drug so he can ride, there's nothing 'performance enhancing' about it. that is bollocks.
I too use an inhaler. I know the struggle, it's real. Still a champion.
oh dear.
Derek or Clive,
Some riders have been banned, others haven't. I'd imagine the investigations have been ongoing for months and the results will hold more credence (possibly) than your opinion.
It really doesn't matter what your body needs, it is unlikely that many of your physiological attributes match up. I don't need hair dye but it doesn't make me better than Peter Sagan.
My sister is an anaesthetist (perviously a Doctor with many years in A&E) she's also a very keen cyclist. She's always been surprised Froome was allowed to ride the Romandie in 2014 when he was on Pred (and obviously she knew all about the gear that Wiggins was taking). In her professional opinion, nobody - not even a professional athlete - needs 2000ng of salbutamol in their system and if they do then they need serious medical help.
If he's not banned then it's fixed and the UCI will be mud.
erm...
Could you ask her to explain this then:
"Petacchi, who was found to have a reading of 1,320 nanograms per millilitre at the Giro d’Italia in 2007, was banned for a year, although the Court of Arbitration for Sport was clear that he did not intend to cheat.
Ulissi, with a result of 1,920 nanograms per millilitre at the 2014 Giro d’Italia, got a nine-month ban.
However, Leonardo Piepoli, who tested positive for the drug during the same edition of the Giro d’Italia as Petacchi with 1,800 nanograms per millilitre, escaped sanction".
There may be many many reasons his reading was such including miscalculation, tampering, physiological anomolies, cheating... That's what the investigation is for.
Your reply makes no sense. What point are you trying to make?
So the Prednisolone Kid gets stung for puffer abuse. Well I never. If he doesn't get a ban then the UCI and Sky are in it together.
If I needed 2000ng to control my asthma I'd be in A&E on a nebuliser.
Think you're getting your ng & µg confused. As a mild asthmatic, my standard single dosage is 100µg = 100,000ng. We're talking 2,000ng (2µg) in 1 ml of urine here, not dosage taken.
To be honest, the WADA dosage limit of 800µg in 12 hours doesn’t seem a lot – even at my average club level I’ll take between 200 and 400µg before a race depending on how I’m feeling and what the weather’s doing, and I’ve got a mate with worse asthma than me who I climbed Ventoux with in the summer who dosed up with more than 800µg before we set off.
No idea what that equates to in terms of urine content, but I can't imagine dehyrdration does anything but concentrate the 'mineral content'.
It's actually ng/ml as quoted in this article. I just couldn't be arsed to type the /ml. But you crack on pal.
Salbutamol is used as a reliever,not a preventer in asthma treatment,pro athletes excepted I guess as the preventer medicines require TUEs.and whilst I agree and would use salbutamol almost as a psychological comfort blanket, if I told my doctor I was using my blue inhaler like you or your friend did,they'd be prescribing much stronger preventer medicines. The blue inhaler is for when your asthma is out of control, it's not the way to treat or contain it.
well, bladder volume is ~350 ml, that mean Froome had 700ug only in the bladder at that exact moment, add to it several urinations a day. On top of it only 80% are removed with urine pls the half life of the drug is 2.7-5.5 hours. So you need to take at least 1750ug during the race and not urinate even once before the drug test to reach 2000 ng/ml.
Agree, dehydration will increase the concentration of substance in the urine. I hope he's able to prove the doseage that he took and that the test is shown to be flawed.
I'm not saying Froome is innocent, but Sky have made a lot of enemies and are pretty much public enemy number one. The biggest cheats in the peloton will not get caught because they make friends and, if I might throw in a slightly confusing metaphor, make sure to greese the wheels.
Salbutamol when taken as a tablet has a different efficacy and works very well for weight loss and as a stimulant. Taken inhaled it is supposed to get your lungs to where they can be, not better than anyone else.
It has been used for years for weight loss and performance enhancement and I'm not buying any other story off Sky.
Why is it Sky seem to get fingered for low octane old school doping so often? Kenacort, Salbutamol etc.
the 8 puffs thing assumes 100% of the drug is absorbed into the system perfectly. you're looking at nearly twice that in reality, especially if you're doing it while going up a mountain and not stood still taking it like the pictures in the leaflet.
A lot of people expected some sort of positive in his lifetime, I'm most surprised it's for old hat doping and not your EPO etc.
Wiggo must be laughing his bits off.
"It's a bit of a surprise everyone is talking about it"
Daftest thing I've read for quite a while....
There is a body of evidence suggesting athletes do suffer from asthma more than the general population. For example, from the IOC:
https://stillmed.olympic.org/media/Document%20Library/OlympicOrg/IOC/Who-We-Are/Commissions/Medical-and-Scientific-Commission/EN-IOC-Consensus-Statement-on-Asthma-in-Elite-Athletes.pdf
One key snippet:
Long-term intense endurance training may be associated with an increased risk of development of airway hyperresponsiveness and asthma in the elite athlete. Environmental factors, such as allergens, chlorine derivatives, pollutants or cold air exposure may contribute to the development of airway inflammation and functional changes. Their penetration into the airways will be enhanced by the high ventilation required during intense exercise. The changes in lung function and airway responsiveness may be at least partly reversible after cessation of long-term endurance training.
The WADA code on Salbutamol use states: "Inhaled salbutamol: maximum 1600 micrograms over 24 hours, not to exceed 800 micrograms every 12 hours"
A standard salbutamol inhaler is 100 micrograms per puff. So 800 micrograms in 12h is 8 puffs. Or 4 instances of 2 puffs each time. It's not a crazy amount over the course of a racing day.
WADA goes on to say: "The presence in urine of salbutamol in excess of 1000 ng/mL or formoterol in excess of 40 ng/mL is presumed not to be an intended therapeutic use of the substance and will be considered as an Adverse Analytical Finding (AAF) unless the Athlete proves, through a controlled pharmacokinetic study, that the abnormal result was the consequence of the use of the therapeutic dose (by inhalation) up to the maximum dose indicated above."
So, now Froome has to go through such a study. If he can demonstrate that 8 puffs in 12h results in urine concentration of 2000ng/mL, then he's off the hook.
I would be very surprised indeed if Froome had deliberately taken over the permitted dose of a medication he is well known to take, when he knows full well that he will be tested for it every day during a grand tour.
I wonder whether there is a metabolic explanation for his blood level being higher than usual for the permitted dose?
Very disappointing news though.
As for those saying that if you have exercise induced asthma, you should pack in sport rather than use your inhaler within permitted levels... words fail me.
ANd besides, isn't there no evidence that inhaled Salbutamol increases performance: http://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/latest-news/are-asthma-medicines-unoff...
So are people suggesting that he took it orally?
Who said that?
That's how I understood the following:
Just the race and not sport. Which does make sense. But as he said after the stage, he felt fine and definitely wasn't ill.
Which is strange...
The "it" in "pack it in" refers back to "an activity", i.e. competitive cycling. I took "and retire from the race" as being the explanation of the immediate consequence.
if I meant "retire from the sport" then that's what I would've written. Just to clarify.
This. If - allowing the cynical interpretation of marginal gains - you're trying to get the maximum permitted benefit from a medication, you at least make good and sure you stay under the limit!
Sky have played the medical necessity card already on Wiggins sketchy injections of steroids into his thighs.
Unfortunately even if this is more innocent the bleating about doctors and asthma again from Brailsford just sounds like the boy who cried wolf and won't be believed.
It's unlucky for Froome because any goodwill to believe Sky has already been cashed in.
It's not 'unlucky'. Unfortunate, perhaps. Unsurprising, definitely. But not unlucky. That suggests some degree of luck is involved.
I thought they established that asthma medication, well this type, didn't give any performance advantage?
As noted somewhere else. Doesn't it have masking qualities though?
Those aren't the rules though. Sky don't get to decide what is and isn't performance enhancing. Remember Contador got stripped of a Tour for clenbuterol, which certainly isn't.
And to the people attributing it to 3 puffs instead of 1 on an inhaler, come on...
They knew he would be tested Jackson, so if they were going to deliberately cheat would they not have found a better way? Medication doesn't work in a linear fashion especially when the body is under such physiological stress. Probably why there has not yet been a ban and investigations are happening.
I mean, conspiracy theory time. Maybe they got inhalers from a French pharmacist, would have been better getting them from a trusted source delivered in a jiffy bag... Oh the irony!
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