The publication of the results of the Gendarmerie raid at the last Tour de France at Team Bahrein-Victorius made quite a lot of noise. According to French newspapers, an analysis of the hair of three team riders, carried out at the National Center for Biotechnology, showed the presence of tizanidine, a drug that is normally used for the treatment of multiple sclerosis.
It should be noted that this drug is not on the list of products banned by Wada (the international anti-doping agency) and considered doping. The French professor Jean Pierre de Mondenard, former doctor of the Tour and involved in the analyzes, stated that the drug is a muscle relaxant and could be used after the competition to soothe pain in the muscles. After intense and prolonged effort, in fact, the so-called muscle asphyxia occurs, with consequent severe leg pain due to the stiffening of the muscles. The drug limits this tension and its effects. However, Professor Mondenard also added that this molecule is very similar to those that stimulate growth hormones and he was bothered learning that it is used for sport.
The circumstance has boosted the detractors of Team Bahrein- Victorius who have raised doubts about the performance of its athletes after an exciting season: 30 victories including stages in the great laps and podiums at the Giro d'Italia, the Paris-Roubaix. Emerging young people such as Matej Mohoric, Mark Padun, Gino Mader; established athletes such as Domenico Caruso and Pello Bilbao; a finally matured Sonny Colbrelli have reached the top of the world. It must be said that they are all riders who have had a constant improvement in their careers and have shown talent since the lower categories, so they did not come out of nowhere. Far be it from us to overshadow spots or even less to talk about doping (which, moreover, is not configured for tizanidine as mentioned above).
All the insiders indeed agree on the fact that today's pro cycling is pretty clean, both for the reform of the bodies responsible for control and for the updating of the list of prohibited drugs. Also the acceptance by the athletes of the protocol that allows unscheduled checks and blood tests in every place, associated with the obligation to declare where you are on every day of the year have allowed serious checks strongly discouraging the doping. Last but not least, the transparency in publishing all the data relating to training and competitions which can be an alarm bell in the event of abnormal performances. Finally, a renewed ethics on the part of the teams, who immediately fired the athletes in the few cases in which they were found positive for the use of banned substances. The latest case dates back to 2017 with Ruffoni and Pirazzi, immediately resigned by Bardiani team.
Having said all this, a doubt remains. To shed light on that gray area that is medical-scientific, but even above all ethical, of the use in sport of drugs, even powerful ones, for purposes other than the treatment for which they are indicated. The thought cannot but go to Chris Froome and many others who abused anti-asthma drugs, or to the present story where it is difficult to demonstrate the need for a product against multiple sclerosis for an athlete in full shape. These are substances that perhaps do not increase performance, but there is a need for transparency on the part of teams and doctors: what is the real benefit? What effects do they have on the health of cyclists in the long term? What and how many other drugs are abused that are not on doping lists?
The team called into question defended itself by declaring: “Team Bahrain-Victorious and none of its riders have been officially or unofficially informed of any results found relating to tizanidine or other substances. The Team is keen to underline that the authors of the scientific article to which all the accusations refer have unequivocally underlined that tizanidine is not a banned substance in sport "
In addition, the team is consulting the lawyers to verify the method of publication that has had a negative impact on the image of the team "
We will see the developments: the hope is that the whole cycling movement that made so much effort to get out of the dark years of doping will not be tainted, but it will be an opportunity to improve research and the ethics of sport.
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