Yes, we have made errors says Sir Dave
SIR Dave Brailsford has admitted that mistakes were made by Team Sky over anti-doping and medical procedures.
But yesterday Brailsford reiterated his belief that the team was not guilty of breaching anti-doping rules in a letter sent to to Damian Collins MP, chairman of the Culture, Media and Sport select committee.
The team remains embroiled in controversy relating to a mystery package which was delivered to then Team Sky doctor Richard Freeman at the 2011 Criterium du Dauphine – a race won by Sir Bradley Wiggins – and three therapeutic use exemptions (TUEs) granted to Wiggins in 2011, 2012 and 2013. Moments after the statement was published, Graham McWilliam, the chairman of the Team Sky board, used Twitter to say the board remained “100% behind the team and Sir Dave Brailsford” following suggestions that some riders might want the team principal to resign.
UK Anti-Doping is investigating whether the team and British Cycling violated anti-doping rules when the package, addressed to Freeman, was delivered to Team Sky at the end of the 2011 Criterium.
Brailsford says he was told the package contained the legal decongestant Fluimucil, but no documentary evidence has been produced.
It has been alleged the package instead contained banned corticosteroid triamcinolone, the drug for which Wiggins later received TUEs but which he would not have been permitted to use at the time. Team Sky have strenuously denied that.
Last week, UK Anti-Doping boss Nicole Sapstead told the Culture, Media and Sport committee that UKAD’s investigation had found the absence of documentary evidence was because Freeman had failed to follow the team’s record-keeping policy and had his laptop stolen in 2014.
In his letter, Brailsford wrote: “Self-evidently, the events of recent months have highlighted areas where mistakes were made by Team Sky.
“Some members of staff did not comply fully with the policies and procedures that existed at that time. Regrettably, those mistakes mean that we have not been able to provide the complete set of records that we should have around the specific race relevant to UKAD’s investigation. We accept full responsibility for this.
“However, many of the subsequent assumptions and assertions about the way Team Sky operates have been inaccurate or extended to implications that are simply untrue.
“There is a fundamental difference between process failures and wrongdoing.
“Our commitment to anti-doping has been a core principle of Team Sky since its inception. Our mission is to race and win clean, and we have done so for eight years.” ❑ THE FA have written to West Ham to ask for their observations after a fan ran on to the pitch during their 2-1 defeat by Chelsea.
Ian Crouch, 51, has been arrested on suspicion of pitch encroachment after Eden Hazard scored the opener.
He was one of three arrested at the game. West Ham have banned 97 fans after incidents at the London Stadium this season after repeated bouts of crowd trouble. under Jose Mourinho. Having been miles clear in the November, when they lost 5-3 at Tottenham on New Year’s Day they were level on top with Manchester City.
But the hiccup that year did not throw Mourinho’s team off course. They lost only one more league game, at West Brom in their penultimate match, when the title was already won.
Cahill is one of eight survivors from the team who lost at White Hart Lane back then and believes that experience, the streetwise know-how, is what is going to see them through these last 11 games.
“We have put ourselves in a good position,” said Cahill. “I’ve been there before, when we won the league we were eight points clear of Manchester City at one stage, and all of a sudden we were level on goal difference. I know the points can disappear. That’s why we need to keep focused. If everyone is aware of that and we keep the hunger that is in the team at the minute, then we will be OK. Monday was a fantastic result, another win chalked off. “Experience comes into play at this stage of the season. We know what we have to do. We’re focused. We’re working hard. “We have been doing the same things all season, so nothing should change. “Our mindset, our focus, the way we work – everything should be the same as it has been. The experience helps us to go to places like West Ham and just be patient.
“In the first half it could have been two or three – it wasn’t. We went in at half-time 1-0 up, but we were patient before we got the second goal that killed the game.”
With both City and Tottenham winning over the weekend, Chelsea’s lead before kick-off had been cut to seven points, so the Blues had to answer in kind.
Cahill said: “It was important we did respond. Sometimes this season we have played first and got a result, this time it was their turn.
“So the pressure was on us. I’m sure a lot of people were watching, hoping we’d lose. It could have been a sticky game for us, but we did enough to get a win.”
Chelsea now face Mourinho and his improving Manchester United team in the FA Cup quarter-final on Monday night but, with the international break looming, they have only one league game – away at Stoke – in the next 24 days before they meet Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge on April 1.
Cahill said: “This is a funny month. We have two important games to go into April in a healthy position. We’ve got the first one out of the way, now we’ve got a bit of time before the second.
“We’re focused, we’re not listening to any noise, we know what we’re doing and we’re fully ready to see this over the line.”