FA to quiz England doctor over thyroid drug claims
British runner turned down UKA’s offer as it was a ‘grey area’
THE FA are planning talks with England team doctor Rob Chakraverty following allegations that in his previous job at UK Athletics he mishandled thyroid medication given to a Team GB athlete. Former middle-distance runner Emma Jackson claimed in the Mail On
Sunday that the matter caused her health problems and brought a premature end to her career. The FA refused to confirm to
Sportsmail last night that Chakraverty’s position as the senior medic to the England squad is secure ahead of this summer’s European Championship and said they would speak to him about the allegations, stopping some way short of giving him their full backing. ‘We are aware of the allegations and will work with the relevant parties to
DISTANCE runner Andy Vernon, twice a European medallist for Britain, has revealed he rejected a thyroid screening after an approach by a UK Athletics doctor because he felt it was a ‘grey area’ and unwarranted.
The claim follows the report in
yesterday’s Mail On Sunday that Emma Jackson, a former international 800metres runner, said she had her thyroid treatment mishandled by Dr Rob Chakraverty when he was UKA’s medical chief.
Sportsmail revealed last November the concerns of other
British athletes that legal thyroid medications were being targeted by UKA for a marginal performance gain.
In response to Jackson’s belief that those treatments were detrimental to her health and career, Dr Chakraverty, now doctor to the England football team, insisted he has only ever acted in a patient’s interests.
Vernon told Sportsmail that he saw a UKA doctor in 2014 after an illness and claims a screening was offered to him, a prospect he dismissed as he didn’t want to be ‘ tarnished’ by using the legal medication.
‘I said no because I didn’t feel there was anything wrong with me in terms of thyroid and I’d been running well,’ Vernon said.
Vernon, who went on to win silver and bronze medals in the 10,000m and 5,000m at the European Championships in 2014, added: ‘ To be honest I didn’t want to take it and be tarnished with it. I didn’t want people thinking I had been running well because I was on thyroid medication.
‘It’s a grey area in elite sport and it’s not something I wanted to get involved with.’
UKA did not comment yesterday on Vernon’s revelations, in which he did not name the doctor involved. The national governing body have previously insisted that thyroid treatments — which are not banned — have only been recommended when medically necessary and that screenings suggested only as a routine precaution.
There is no suggestion they have been used to enhance performance.
UKA are under increased scrutiny in part due to their previous support of Sir Mo Farah’s former coach Alberto Salazar, who was their consultant between 2013 and 2017. Salazar is appealing against a four-year ban from the sport.
When Salazar worked for UKA his main point of contact was Barry Fudge, the head of endurance. Salazar has faced recurring allegations about his use of thyroid medications. There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by Fudge.
UKA have repeatedly defended the use of thyroid medications, saying they developed guidelines after a meeting with the English Institute of Sport in 2014.
Sportsmail has obtained the minutes of that meeting, which took place on February 12, around a month before Vernon says he was asked about a screening.
It was attended by Dr Chakraverty, as well as current UKA medical head Noel Pollock, and officials from EIS, UK AntiDoping and an endocrinologist.
Under one section, titled ‘Academic Considerations’, the minutes read: ‘It was agreed that there was academic and PR merit in the publication of elements of the guidelines for the treatment of subclinical hypothyroidism in elite athletes.
‘As with any treatment interventions from an elite sports medicine team this must be balanced with the importance of controlling knowledge regarding potential performance gains through good medical or science management.’
The EIS told Sportsmail that ‘controlling knowledge’ did not amount to an attempt to keep information about potential performance gains from the public.
An EIS spokesperson said: ‘We believed there may be some misinformation within sport at the time that thyroid medication could provide a performance advantage, and we wanted to ensure there was sufficient knowledge and transparency around this subject.’
‘I said no because I didn’t feel there was anything wrong with me in terms of thyroid’