Tim Wellens (Lotto Soudal) has expressed his opposition to the use of salbutamol asthma inhalers in professional cycling, revealing that he has refused to use an inhaler despite being told that it could improve his breathing capacity by 7-8 per cent.
The Belgian made headlines during the 2017 Tour de France when he chose to abandon the race through illness rather than avail of a therapeutic use exemption (TUE) for a corticosteroid.
Wellens' comments come in the wake of Chris Froome's adverse analytical finding for salbutamol during the 2017 Vuelta a España. Froome's sample from stage 18 on September 7 showed twice the permitted 1,000ng/ml level of salbutamol. The four-time Tour de France winner has said that he uses an inhaler to treat asthma, and insisted that he did not exceed the permitted dosage on the day in question.
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As salbutamol is classed as a specified substance, Froome remains free to race until the case is resolved, though he risks a ban and the loss of his Vuelta a title. To avoid a sanction, Froome and his legal team must convince the anti-doping authorities that he did not exceed permitted dosage and that his sample was skewed by other factors, such as dehydration.
In an interview with RTBF, Wellens has reiterated that stance on TUEs and questioned the prevalence of inhaler use in cycling.
"As a professional rider, I have undergone several tests in hospital," Wellens told RTBF. "I sometimes feel some obstruction in my bronchi, and so I learned that with an inhaler, I could improve my breathing capacity by 7 or 8 per cent. The doctors told me that I could use an inhaler, without any certification.
Against obtaining a TUE, making choices in life
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