F1 ace Hamilton chimes in for Wiggins
British world champion defends TUEs after data hack as Wada issues new list of banned drugs
>> SEPANG: World champion Lewis Hamilton has waded into the Bradley Wiggins row by backing the use of controversial “Therapeutic Use Exemptions” (TUEs), providing they are administered properly.
Hamilton, who has suffered with severe pollen allergies in the past, said he didn’t have any TUEs at the moment but added the matter was “very personal stuff”.
British cycling great Wiggins was revealed by a doping data hacking group calling themselves “Fancy Bears” to have been granted a TUE to treat asthma.
The Olympic champion was allowed to have an injection of the powerful steroid triamcinolone just days before the 2012 Tour de France, which he won, as well as the 2011 Tour and the 2013 Giro d’Italia.
But Hamilton backed Wiggins. “It’s not an unfair thing, it’s a perfectly normal thing,” said the three-time Formula One world champion.
“I don’t know what the scenario is for him, but that’s what you have to go through. As long as they give you the exemption.
“It has to go through a controlled governing body to make sure you are not gaining an advantage over others who are not taking the same things.
“I guess [the controversy is] because there are benefits to taking these things. If you are a cyclist in which you have to use your lungs, there are lots of things you can inhale to enhance the performance of your lungs.”
TUEs allow banned substances to be taken for medical reasons and there is no suggestion that any athletes named by the hackers have broken any rules.
Hamilton, along with all drivers, is tested randomly under World AntiDoping Authority (Wada) rules. But he was less forthcoming when asked if he had ever requested TUEs. “That’s very personal stuff,” he said. “I don’t have any TUEs at the moment.”
He doubted there was anything that could be taken to make someone a better driver.
“I would imagine if you were to really look into it maybe there’s something that could speed up your reaction, but I don’t know how beneficial that would be,” he said.
Hamilton said the most onerous part of being subject to Wada testing was keeping the body informed of his movements at all times.
“We don’t get tested a lot, it’s random. But you have to give a location where you are going to be, every single day of your life for the whole year, which is quite intrusive.”
Meanwhile, Wada has released its 2017 list of prohibited substances for athletes, adding a drug used for treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and eating disorders to its catalogue of banned stimulants.
The substance, known chemically as lisdexamfetamine, is part of a family of drugs that stimulate the central nervous system.
Other substances used to treat ADHD, including methylphenidate, were already on Wada’s prohibited list as specified stimulants, meaning they can’t be used by athletes without a prior therapeutic use exemption.
Nicomorphine, an opioid analgesic drug available in parts of Europe and which is converted to morphine following administration, was added to the list of banned narcotics. Wada noted in the list it released yesterday that it was putting Codeine on its monitoring programme.
“All athletes around the world are held to these standards and there can be no tolerance for people who intentionally break the rules,” Wada president Craig Reedie said in a statement. “Updated annually, the list is released three months ahead of taking effect so that all stakeholders — in particular athletes and their entourage — have ample time to familiarise themselves with the list and its modifications.”