Chris Froome says his sample was less than 20 per cent over the legal limit. He was cleared of any wrongdoing in returning such a sample on the Vuelta last year, which he won.
Froome says he was less than 20 per cent over limit
Chris Froome has said he’s been exonerated and is now focussed on making more history by winning a fourth Grand Tour in a row.
“It’s been tough but I’ve never had thoughts of retiring, never thought, ‘This isn’t worth it’,” he said of the period since returning his adverse salbutamol test result last September.
“I go back to why I ride my bike. It’s for the sense of achievement, not popularity or other things that might motivate people.
“Winning grand tours; that’s my reason to get out of bed. I am so privileged to be in this position; the backing of an amazing team challenging for a fifth Tour win.
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“That is the stuff of history books. Four grand tours in a row, it’s a massive challenge.”
Froome was speaking to Matt Dickinson of The Times after being cleared of wrongdoing over his sample on last year’s Vuelta.
Chris Froome added lots of athletes were like him in returning adverse samples for the asthma inhaler drug.
But in their cases news of their processes did not leak out. It meant they were exonerated without the matter ever becoming public.
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Not only was his supposedly confidential test result leaked to the media, the assertion he was twice the legal limit for salbutamol was also wrong, he said.
WADA’s permitted limit is 1000ng/mL, with reports suggesting Froome was twice that. The situation is more complex in that Froome’s sample was adjusted, including for dehydration.
And in adverse tests a decision limit is 1200ng/mL. When all of the adjustments are taken into account, Froome was 19.05 per cent higher than the decision limit.
While neither WADA nor the UCI have set out these figures, Froome set out some of the data and concluded he was less than 20 per cent over.
He also said now that he has been cleared, the damage to his reputation is expunged.
But in other interviews he said he expected hostility from some at the roadside on the Tour. That appeared an acceptance that not everyone will see his being cleared as exoneration.
“These were severe allegations. For an athlete it doesn’t get much worse,” he told The Times.
“This was a nightmare scenario for any clean athlete. It was challenging to a level I’ve never experienced before.
“For any athlete, to go through something like this, it can define your career.
“If you’ve done something wrong, that stays with you forever. So it’s a huge weight off my shoulders.”
He also said reports he was set to accept a form of plea bargain were groundless. Having done nothing wrong, he said he would never have settled for anything short of being cleared.
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