Nicolas Portal has leapt to the defence of Bradley Wiggins and Dave Brailsford, insisting that Team Sky have not broken any rules and that the team's ethical standards are higher than those of the Movement for Credible Cycling (MPCC), but that cycling teams should work within the same guidelines.
Wiggins, Brailsford and Team Sky have come under fire in recent weeks with an UKAD investigation launched into allegations of wrongdoing surrounding the team and British Cycling.
This came after the Fancy Bears hacking group revealed that Wiggins had been granted three TUEs for triamcinolone acetonide before the 2011 and 2012 Tours de France, and the 2013 Giro d'Italia. Wiggins stated that the use of the drug was to deal with his allergies and, while no rules were broken, the episode raised questions over why such a powerful drug was needed and the timings of the administration.
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Brailsord has come under fire, too, for his recollection of the facts surrounding a British Cycling coach travelling to the 2011 Criterium du Dauphine to deliver a medical package to Team Sky’s doctor, Richard Freeman. It was originally claimed that the coach was meeting Emma Pooley near the race but she was hundreds of miles away at the time and competing in Spain. The coach has since told Cyclingnews that he was not aware of what was in the medical package and Brailsford has refused to confirm its contents.
“It’s been pretty tough, especially in the UK,” Portal, a directeur sportif at Sky, told Cyclingnews.
The Frenchman also suggested that cycling needs to look at its rules and that having one set of teams obey the WADA code and a second batch also voluntarily subjecting themselves to MPCC guidelines creates confusion. Team Sky is not part of the MPCC. Had they been, Wiggins, under MPCC rules, would not have been able to race straight after receiving his three TUEs.
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