Dr. Richard Freeman has been banned from all sports for four years for doping. Photo: PA/Eleanor Crooks.
Richard Freeman, a disgraced doctor at the center of British cycling's golden era, has been banned from all sports for four years for doping.
In a ruling that further casts a shadow over years of dominance by British Cycling and Team Sky, the independent British Anti-Doping Commission ruled that Freeman was in possession of a banned substance. The commission added that he also lied twice to Ukad investigators.
The key figure behind some of the UK's most treasured sporting victories in decades has already been expelled in 2021 for misconduct following hearings at the Practitioners' Tribunal. Service.
The sanction handed down to Freeman on Tuesday is the first sanction given to an employee linked to the dominance of British cycling in the previous decade. He was the doctor for the British cycling team in London 2012 and Rio 2016 and when Sir Bradley Wiggins took the Tour de France gold in the Olympic time trial. Wiggins is not charged with any wrongdoing.
After a medical tribunal, Freeman was charged with two violations by Ukad, and now an independent panel has found that he had a banned substance and partially tampered with a doping control. The ban was dated December 22, 2020, the date of his provisional suspension.
A medical tribunal has already found Freeman guilty of ordering performance-enhancing testosterone from the national velodrome in 2011, «knowing or believing it» . should have been administered to an athlete to improve his performance.”
As a result, Ukad launched two separate investigations against Freeman and was urged to retest all samples from his years with British Cycling.
In a 15-page Charles Flint KC decision, he wrote that the panel found on Tuesday that Freeman «committed a charge of possession of a prohibited substance in violation of section 2.6.3 of the 2009 ADR, and the first and second charges of falsification contrary to section 2.5 of the 2015 ADR» .
He wrote that the tampering charge «entails a four-year period of ineligibility» which «should be considered to have commenced on December 22, 2020, taking into account Dr. Freeman's suspension period which he has served to date in accordance with Article 10.11.3 of ADR 2015 and ends at 11:59 p.m. on December 21, 2024.»
A medical tribunal previously found Freeman guilty of ordering a shipment of Testogel to the velodrome in 2011, «knowing or believing that he should were introduced to the athlete to improve his athletic performance. He was also found guilty of «hiding» his behavior by orchestrating an elaborate cover-up.
The doctor claimed he was «bullied» by Shane Sutton, a former British Cycling head coach, forcing him to order medication. for the treatment of Australian suspected erectile dysfunction. Sutton vehemently denied ever suffering from the condition, and the tribunal found him a credible witness, calling Freeman's version of events «implausible». The Ukad Commission upheld this verdict.
Sutton had previously said in a statement that he was «saddened» by the case and disappointed that Freeman used him as a «scapegoat». “It caused a lot of pain to me and my family,” he said.
In recent months, Freeman has decided not to appear before the National Anti-Doping Commission in order to protect himself. Any party wishing to appeal the Commission's decision must do so within 21 days.
“The court was quite satisfied that Dr. Freeman “intended to provide one or more of his athletes with a prohibited substance delivered to the Manchester Velodrome,” Ukada said in a statement.
“While Dr. Freeman admitted that lied to Ukadu about returning the Testogel to the supplier, he claimed to have written to a non-racing employee asking him to waive patient confidentiality and that they refused to do so. An independent tribunal found that Ukad also proved a second violation against Dr. Freeman, whose «behavior violated the doping control.»
Jane Rumble, chief executive of Ukad, said: «This case sends a strong message to all athlete support personnel that the rules apply to them equally as they do to athletes and that they have a clear responsibility to uphold the values of integrity in sport.»
In response to the sanction, British Cycling Chairman Frank Slevin said: «We have previously stated that Richard Freeman's behavior during his time with British Cycling had nothing to do with the high ethical and professional standards that we rightly expect our contributors and partners.
“We also recognize that many, like ourselves, will understandably be disappointed that some of the issues arising from this and other cases remain unresolved. We once again want to take this opportunity to encourage people with relevant information to share it with the UK Anti-Doping Service.»
The governing body added: «We have made significant progress in strengthening our riders who compete for the UK National Team cycling.
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