Chris Froome in dock for overdose of asthma drug

PARIS: Four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome had twice the permissible amount of asthma medication in his system during the Vuelta race in September, the UCI and his team revealed on Wednesday.

Cycling’s governing body said an anti-doping test that the British Team Sky rider took in Spain on September 7 showed more than the allowable level of 1,000 ng/ml of the drug Salbutamol in his body.

Team Sky gave more information, saying the test showed the presence of 2,000 ng/ml but said Froome had taken the medicine because he had suffered from asthma towards the end of the race, which he went on to win. The team insisted however that Froome had taken no more than the amount allowed.

The UCI has asked Froome to provide more information but in line with World Anti-doping Agency guidelines has not suspended him.

Team Sky said in a statement: “During the final week of the Vuelta, Chris experienced acute asthma symptoms. On the advice of the Team Sky doctor, he used an increased dosage of Salbutamol (still within the permissible doses) in the run-up to the 7 September urine test.”

Froome himself said the UCI was “absolutely right” to scrutinise the test results.

He said that during the Vuelta

he had “followed the team doctor’s advice to increase my Salbutamol dosage. As always, I took the greatest care to ensure that I did not use more than the permissible dose,” he said.

“Together with the team, I will provide whatever information (the UCI) requires,” he added.

Froome was notified of the test on September 20, the day he finished third in the world time-trial championship in Bergen, Norway. He has not competed since then, but has announced his intention to try to win at least two of the three big tours, in France and in Italy, in 2018.