When the inaugural Amgen Tour of California wrapped up last year, the organizers proudly announced that no riders tested positive for banned substances.
It turns out the cyclists weren't tested for one of the most dangerous of blood-doping agents — EPO, which is made by Tour sponsor Amgen. What a foul up! No wonder it's difficult for some people to take pro cycling seriously.
The New York Times reports that company officials were “angry and surprised” that the EPO tests weren't administered. Amgen's EPO has a very legitimate use to treat anemia in kidney dialysis and cancer patients, and Amgen aimed to inform about the drug's proper use with its sponsorship.
Where did the breakdown occur? The Times:
It is not clear who made the decision not to test riders for EPO during the Tour of California last year, or whether it was merely an oversight. Executives at AEG, the company that organizes the race, and officials at USA Cycling, the sport’s governing body in the United States, said in interviews this week that doping controls were the responsibility of the International Cycling Union, which sanctions major races and is known by its French abbreviation, U.C.I. …
Michael Roth, a spokesman at AEG (the tour owner), said the race organizers last year adopted the standards and protocol for drug testing prescribed by the U.C.I.
He said that AEG did not know that EPO was not part of the standard test, but that the company asked for it to be included this year.
Roth said that the organizers of the race would bear the cost of the extra test, about $400 for each urine sample, or $1,600 for each of the race’s eight days.
Amgen has made it clear that if it's to continue as a sponsor, EPO testing must be done this year.
Via Spinopsys, whose blogger wonders how often this type of thing happens
Recent Comments