Dave Brailsford has spoken publicly for the first time about the anti-doping case currently hanging over Chris Froome and Team Sky, defending the Tour de France champion and the team’s handling of the situation in the face of widespread criticism from the cycling community.
Brailsford’s input on Froome’s adverse analytical finding for salbutamol had thus far been limited to a few sentences across a pair of press releases – one when the news was first revealed in December, and the other on Monday when it was announced that Froome would return to racing this month at the Ruta del Sol.
On Tuesday, however, he addressed questions from the media in Palmira, Colombia, where he has flown out to spend the week with the Sky team at the Colombia Oro y Paz race.
“For me, there’s no question, he’s done nothing wrong – no question, no question, no question,” Brailsford said, in front of a huddle of Colombian broadcast microphones.
“This situation, it’s difficult – I’d be crazy if I didn’t say it was difficult. We want the UCI to lead the sport, we’ve got the WADA rules, then obviously we’ve got the team and the individual, and my role is to look after the team and the individual, but also I’ve got to think about the sport in general. But I believe he’s innocent.
“It should still be confidential – it should never have been made public at this point – and everyone is entitled to a fair process. That’s why I think, at the minute, the approach we’ve taken is to support him and make sure we do what we can to have a fair process, even though I do understand it’s a very difficult situation for everyone.”
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Froome and Team Sky have come under scrutiny in recent weeks over their handling of the case. As a specified substance, an AAF for salbutamol does not automatically trigger a suspension, but many riders, managers, race organisers, and even the UCI president see it as damaging to the sport’s credibility if Froome were to race ‘sub-judice’.
Monday’s announcement that Froome will ride the Ruta del Sol – with the Giro d’Italia and Tour de France presumably still on his schedule – therefore confirmed those fears, but Brailsford defended the decision in spite of its unpopularity.
“We’ve looked at it from the angle of the rider’s point of view, from the team’s point of view, from other teams’ point of view, from the fans’ point of view, from the organisers’ point of view, and it’s difficult for everyone. But, I believe in fairness, and I do believe that in this instance Chris has done nothing wrong and I think he should be given the opportunity to demonstrate that,” said Brailsford.
“The UCI have the rules and we’re abiding by the rules. They’ve decided how these situations should be managed. And while there’s a fair amount of discussion about this, we feel, on balance – on balance because there is good reason for a lot of discussion here, it’s not an easy one – but on balance I think it’s the right thing to do. For Chris to continue, and us to work in the background to support him and demonstrate there’s been no wrongdoing.”
Henao headache
Brailsford moved between groups of local Colombian reporters but refused to take questions from Cyclingnews. In between requests to talk about his impressions of the country and Sky’s young rider Egan Bernal, he was asked about Froome’s case in the light of another Colombian on the team, Sergio Henao.
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
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