Froome and asthma: Sky money could win.

Cyclisme : ce qu’il faut retenir du contrôle antidopage “anormal” de Chris Froome.

An anti-doping  drug test carried out on Chris Froome during the Vuelta in Spain on the 7th Sept revealed a concentration of twice the allowable level. He says it was for his asthma!

Le cycliste britannique a fait l’objet d’un contrôle antidopage, le 7 septembre, qui a révélé une concentration de salbutamol deux fois supérieure au seuil autorisé. Il se défend en affirmant qu’il a pris un médicament contre l’asthme.

Christopher Froome sur la douzième étape du Tour de France, le 14 juillet 2016. 
Christopher Froome sur la douzième étape du Tour de France, le 14 juillet 2016.  (LIONEL BONAVENTURE / AFP)

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Dopage ou médication ? Le cycliste britannique Christopher Froome, quadruple vainqueur du Tour de France, a fait l’objet d’un contrôle antidopage “anormal” lors de la 18e étape du Tour d’Espagne 2017, une course qu’il a remporté en septembre dernier. C’est la première fois que le champion, qui pourrait perdre son titre de vainqueur de la Vuelta, est cité dans une affaire de soupçons de dopage médical. En revanche, il avait déjà dû faire face aux soupçons de dopage technologique après sa démonstration dans la montée de La Pierre-Saint-Martin, deux ans après un numéro comparable au mont Ventoux.

Enhanced performance drug or for medication? The British cyclist, Chris Froome, four times winner of the Tour de France, showed ‘abnormal’ levels of salbutamol (Ventolin) during the 18th stage of the Tour of Spain 2017, which he won eventually. It is the first time that the champion, who could lose his title as winner of the Vuelta, was cited for suspicion of medical doping. None the less, previously and recently he faced suspicions of technological doping after amazing climbing ability on La Pierre-Saint-Martin, two years after a comparable climb on mont Ventoux in the Alps. 

Christopher Froome doit maintenant expliquer ce résultat anormal devant les officiels de l’antidopage, après avoir expliqué qu’il était la conséquence de l’utilisation d’un produit contre l’asthme, dont il souffre depuis l’enfance.

His excuse is that he observed doctor’s advice in the use of the inhaler which is for his asthma, which he’s had since childhood.

(Opinion: I know guys who also used inhalers all their sporting (sic) life, and especially when they played rugby).

What will happen now? Will WADA backslide because it is Froome and Sky who are now under suspicion?

In 2007 Alessandro Petachi got a one year ban for a similar amount of salbutamol found in a sample.

In 2006 Floyd Landis was banned and stripped of the the Tour for an excessive level of testosterone found in a sample (The same level was permitted in recent and previous tours).

In 2010 Alberto Contador was stripped of the Tour for clenbuterol being found in a sample. He was tested after the Pyrenees climb Tourmalet (which I witnessed in person). He made the mistake of saying he must have picked up the chemical in ‘Jambon de Bayonne’. A big mistake. He was in the backyard of the Basque region when he accused the local farmers of using contaminated meat! Bad move Al….

There are plenty of precedents, but my guess is that Sky money will get Froome off the hook. We could be looking at another Lance Armstrong scandal. Watch out for Froome wearing a yellow wrist band… He rode in the Discovery team with Armstrong. He learned from the master… 

About bill

Worked in the technical / engineering area as a Science Laboratory Technician and as an Aeronautics Engineer. The artistic side involves writing under the nom de plume of Billy Olsenn, his recently written play 'A Case of Wine' was staged by the players group Straight Make-Up at the 2012 Birr one act drama festival. It's next staging was in the one act circuit is in Cavan, at Maudebawn on Sat 10 Nov 2012. Then it was performed in the Bray, Co.Wicklow at the very popular one act festival in January 2013. Next play is FEAR. A dark tale about revenge on the cruel death of two pensioners by young thugs. Neighbours hatch a devious and dangerous plan to exact old-style revenge. Bill is a member of the Drama League of Ireland and his plays have been critically vetted and certified as original pieces of work by the DLI. Another literary project is that of commemoration of an aircraft crash on Djouce mountain in Wicklow in 1946. Bill wrote articles for the 50th, 60th and most recently the 70th anniversary, (12 Aug 2016) all were published in the Wicklow Times and ensured the survivors of the crash, all French Girl Guides, were not forgotten. Articles reproduced on this website. But mostly this site gives a more general European and specific French slant on popular and not so popular articles of French news, translated to English by the author. Each article is translated on a paragraph by paragraph basis so easy to read in either language and even possible to improve either language by comparison of the short English and French paragraphs. Amusez vous bien. The author is currently writing an easy to read technical aviation book centered around the Fokker 50. Another interest is that dealt with in another of Bill's websites www.realnamara.net, a Statue of the mother of God, Mary. It was erected in 1972 in Dublin, at the end of the Bull Wall near Clontarf, and my grandfather William Nelson, was the main instigator of that project. I give talks on the history of the statue and my grandfather's adventurous and dangerous life at sea. Technical assistance with each website is by J O'N.
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