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David Millar on the Cote de Harwood Dale (Alex Whitehead).jpgDrug used by Bradley Wiggins should be banned – David Millar
David Millar says that triamcinolone, a drug that was used by Sir Bradley Wiggins under a therapeutic use exemption (TUE), should be banned during races. The ex-pro, who has been a high profile anti-doping campaigner since being banned from the sport in 2004, also believes there should be full public disclosure of all TUEs.
Wiggins’ use of triamcinolone was revealed when the Fancy Bears hackers published medical data stored by the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) on their site last week.
The rider received several intramuscular injections of the substance as a treatment for asthma shortly before the Tour de France in 2011 and 2012 and before the Giro d’Italia in 2013. Following the publication of the details, he felt it necessary to issue a clarification relating to comments he had made in his autobiography regarding the use of needles.
Millar also used Kenacort – a trade name for triamcinolone – during his career. He told The Telegraph that he didn’t understand how a doctor could prescribe the drug to a rider about to compete in a race.
“As I said in my book, I took EPO and testosterone patches, and they obviously produce huge differences in your blood and you felt at your top level … Kenacort, though, was the only one you took and three days later you looked different.”
Millar also said Kenacort was a factor in his taking sleeping pills because it put him “on this weird high.”
Speaking about the effects, he described the drug as ‘scary’.
“You would do all the training but my weight would stick. But if I took Kenacort, 1.5-2kgs would drop off in like a week. And not only would the weight drop off I would feel stronger.
“If you are non-asthmatic and you take Ventolin it’s not going to give you any advantage. But if you take Kenacort it’s not only going to make a sick person better, it’s going to make a sick person better than a healthy person. That’s a very grey area.”
Millar suggests that there are other forms of cortisone which could be used to treat allergies instead of triamcinolone. “We [athletes] shouldn’t have to face this. If it’s that strong we shouldn’t be allowed to take it unless there is a serious issue. And if we’re suffering from that serious an issue, we shouldn’t be racing. I don’t know how a doctor could prescribe it [before a race]. I can’t fathom it.”
Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.
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I think there needs to a lot more oversight from governing bodies here. It's ridiculous that an asthma treatment that also peps you up and helps you burn fat is (or was)an allowed option when there are others that treat the problem with less dubious side effects.
On the plus side I'm going to try and track some of that stuff down! Got about 2kg I can't shift!
Might be worth reading the previous posts properly if you want to keep your muscles...
Miller isn't that expert:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/cycling/2016/09/20/sir-bradley-wigginss-last-...
To summarize:
Said medical expert said that the drugs Wiggins took under TUE were pretty dangerous for an allergy treatment.
However they were of the view that they were not performance enhancing, if anything they would stand a good chance of damaging performance.
Miller was able to use them to cut weight and retain power by combining with EPO and anabloic steroids, without those you would just lose muscle mass.
There is no TUE for anything which would counter those effects and let's also pint out that Wiggins won several other world tour events in 2011 and 2012 before either of the TUE.
And. So. What? What does that prove?
To much guess work based on incomplete stolen information
Chris Boardman suffered bone loss because he never took drugs. His bone loss is a direct consequence of his training regime. A theraputic treatment of testostorone would have prevented the bone loss, but would have also banned him from competing. Ultimately Chris did end his competitive cycling career to undergo the treatment he needed.
The question is should it be necessary for athletes to suffer permanent damage in order to compete?
Hard question, but I'm not so quick to judge atheletes who are on theraputic treatment.
Boom. Hit. Nail. Head.
Essentially, yes.
Cutting through the vitriol and axe-grinding - there is a genuine long running discussion on wither the TUE process is robust, or open to exploitation.
The medication Wiggins took seems (from the outside) an odd choice - but there *may* be sound medical or practical reasons why this dug was prescribed at those times. Without knowing the exact medical situation, any allergies which may have been a consideration and the though process of the doctor... its all just a lot of wild speculation.
Are you in possession of his complete medical history or just guessing? How do you know there was no prior history for whatever problem he may or may not have been suffering?
Well according to the hacked data he never had the injections at Garmin.
I haven't a clue about his medical history or why he had the injections, which is why I included the next sentence in my post. If there was a valid reason for taking it he could very easily clear this up. If he doesn't want to clear it up then that's his right. Until then, it looks pretty bad, as even David Walsh of all people has conceded.
My american friends used to tell me that Armstrong was clean. He was a honest man, fighting cancer. His success had attracted a lot of people to cycling. etc. etc.
My UK friends tell me that Wiggins is a knight. He is a cool chap, talking straight, looking after his family. His success has attracted a lot of people to cycling.
Can I really believe that pro cyclists (more than 50%) are “clean”?
I have had asthma since I was a kid and it is controlled by ventolin and salnutamol. I am way past the age of racing but I totally disagree with you about barring asthmatics from competition. without my Meds I wouldn't have been able to finish the etape London or etape du tour.
I have a TUE to wear my 20 year old ASSOS clearance jacket while riding my steel framed bike.
I have one for flat pedals, apparently they aren't allowed on road bikes.
Everyone seems to be missing the really important bit of information.
"But if I took Kenacort, 1.5-2kgs would drop off in like a week. "
Think how much money you could make selling this to folk on a diet. You lose a load of weight and get fitter at same time. Result!
I should have gone to spec savers, I thought it said Kenco, and now is 3.30am and I can't sleep.
What is - in principle - a difference between TUE and allowing a motor compensating e.g. a broken leg?
Presumably the dose is quite important. You'd imagine the allowed dosage has no or relatively minor performance enhancing effects.
Direct from the WADA code:
I remember that salbutamol became more legal, but I don't remember when? The TUE makes it legitimate anyway.
This morning I drafted behind a crane and got a Strava KOM. I had taken 2 ibuprofen before I left. First steps to being a doper.
Are you sure it wasn't a heron?
Well, this is ironic for me. Having athsma if it starts getting really bad, ventolin gets less and less affective the more I take. The duration I get relief from it also decreases.
If I was to take too much all at once which I tried when I was a kid I'd feel light headed. The only thing I can do is go cycling to get relief.
I must go and see my doctor. Can't believe he was keeping the good stuff from me...I'll explain strava KOMs to him, I'm sure he'll understand .
The simple fact is He didn't break the rules.Those same TUE's were and are available to every other rider. AS mentioned above the only way to ensure no one is using would be to enforce a no racing ban on anyone recieving a TUE or stoppng theuse of them all together.
I see parallels between the Wiggins fanboys as from Armstrong fanboys 10 years ago, and criticisms brushed under the carpet by the argument 'he got loads of new fans into the sport'. OK what Wiggins has done is nowhere near as persistent and egregious as Armstrong, but it seems more likely than not he has played the system. And for me, I cycle because I love cycling, not because I think I'm a second Brad just because I have spent £1500 on carbon wheels and £400 to be kitted head to toe in Rapha, like some of the new breed of cycling fans radiate from their very being.
You love cycling but hate on cyclists who wear a different brand than you, or have wheels made from a different material than yours?
Rapha is stylish. People like it. Deal with it.
That's a predictable response. Hate is far too strong a word and I admire the aesthetics of Rapha and Mavic carbon wheels as much as the next man. I'm just saying cycling can be enjoyed beyond chasing Strava KOMs and getting dressed like a racer. My other point was that people, many of whom are the type of cyclists I just mentioned, turn a blind eye to Wiggins' misdemeanours just because he is a sporting hero, but that's exactly what Americans did with Armstrong, only to be stung heavily.
Seriously, the guy hating on Rapha, in a random unrelated thread, talking about 'being predictable'. Everything you said there is a copy and paste comment from countless threads on this site. Oh Strava, boohoo. Oh Rapha, boohoo.
Tell us oh cyclist, what exactly are people allowed to do or wear for your approval?
Cycling is amazing now compared to 10 or 20 years ago. Tech is better, clothes are better, bikes are better. You can train and compete without racing and the dangers of it.
Ridiculously good. And for guys like you, who want to wear baggy clothes and potter around, you can still do that.
Try not to get eaten up because the world is moving forward.
you shop in the sales too?
Wiggo played the rules and won. By the standards of pro-cycling he didn't break any rules and therefore he's legit.
Whether the rules are correct is a different issue one on which David Millar seems to have a good grasp.
If you have something wrong with you you shouldn't be allowed to race. Nil drugs.
Sport should be fair across the board.
David Miller has vast knowledge about this subject and should be listened to.
You clearly shouldn't be allowed to race.
I will rephrase my post
if you have something wrong with you which requires drugs you shouldn't be allowed to race. Nil drugs
I won't be racing anytime soon
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