Support road.cc

Like this site? Help us to make it better.

news

Sergio Henao back racing after tests - can he make Sky's Tour de France team?

Colombian climber has undergone 10-week assessment on effect of being born and raised at altitude

Team Sky have confirmed that Colombian climber Sergio Henao, taken off its racing roster in March while tests were conducted into the effect of his being born and raised at altitide will be back racing at the weekend in the Tour de Suisse – raising the prospect he could ride in the Tour de France.

The 26-year-old, who finished ninth overall in the 2012 Giro d’Italia, has been undergoing an independent testing programme over the past 10 weeks due to concerns over values registered in WADA-accredited tests while he was in Colombia during the close season.

On its website, Team Sky said that the independent tests, carried out by a team from the University of Sheffield assisted by the Colombian anti-doping authorities, had “given the highest level of confidence in Sergio’s previous data and profiles, and offers valuable new insights into the physiology of ‘altitude natives’ such as Colombian climbers.”

The testing programme began in France on 31 March, with Henoa moving to Colombia a fortnight later for a further six-week block of testing, returning to Nice for a week of base level testing in late May and early June.

Sky says that the results of the tests have been given to WADA, the UCI and the CADF, and that details of urine tests are in Henao’s biological passport. It adds that the team who conducted the tests plan to publish a full scientific research paper about the exercise.

Team principal Sir Dave Brailsford, who has said he will wait until after the Tour de Suisse to decide on Sky’s line-up for the Tour de France, said: “By taking this structured, scientific approach, we’ve gained a better understanding of his readings and specific physiology and valuable insights into the effects of altitude.

“We’re very pleased to welcome Sergio back to racing and are looking forward to having him at the Tour de Suisse.

“Our approach has been fair to both the rider and the team, and whilst it was our decision to take him out of racing, it is also ours that he returns with our full backing.

“He’s done everything that’s been asked of him, kept his focus and fully deserves to be racing,” Brailsford added.

In April, Henao said that he hoped to make his Tour de France debut this year. “It’s what both I and the team hope for,” he said. “Hopefully I can be in the best condition to make my case to be named in Sky’s line-up. We’ll see about that in the Tour de Suisse, but I am absolutely sure that I’ll be at a high level since I’m living every day with the hope of riding the Tour [de France].

Team Sky employee Oli Cookson, son of UCI president Brian and a fluent Spanish speaker, was in Colombia with Henao, who said that among other things, he would be assisting him with securing a UK visa for the Grand Départ of the Tour de France.

That's a signal that he has at least a good chance of being named in the nine-man line-up, which has been the subject of intense speculation in recent days after Sir Bradley Wiggins said on Friday that barring injury to Chris Froome, he wouldn't be taking part, while Brailsford has insisted no decision has yet been made on the team.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

Add new comment

39 comments

Avatar
fukawitribe replied to Colin Peyresourde | 9 years ago
0 likes
Colin Peyresourde wrote:

The point about the Sky team is that they are supposed to be the team you can trust, the whiter than white team. So all this releasing of information that they want you to know is to strengthen our belief in that and support them, buy their merchandise and watch them on telly....so it's a commercial thing. Why do you think they do it?

I didn't think I was going to have to teach you to suck eggs on that one....anyway you seem to want to believe in the PR so fine. I don't think you are going to change our opinions and we are not going to change yours.

You don't have to teach me to suck eggs. I'm not taken in by anything that would effect my purchasing or viewing preferences - as i've already said on here - nor do I believe they are perfectly clean - which i've also mentioned. I've also had previous commercial contact with parts of the Murdoch empire before and am well aware of some of the things they are capable of...

Also my opinions will change based on the evidence I see so no, nothing is set in stone. You seem to be deliberately ignoring that.. as you have also ignored all the times i've asked you what you would do in various stituations, including the one in which the initial result and subsequent research were valid.

Colin Peyresourde wrote:

My view point is that it's easy to suck up these messages and not question them: why does a successful bike team want to/need to show us this information?

Really ? Really ? FFS - OK, again I ask, what would you have them do if the anomalous result actually occured ? If you think it didn't, please enlighten as to what the plan was, and what the risk-benefit analysis might have been ? (don't forget to include the fact that Sky have been without a tidy rider for nearly 3 months). Of course they want to make the most of a (potentially) bad thing, no-one here appears to be saying otherwise, but that doesn't mean the whole thing is made-up and it doesn't mean everyone is suddenly going to think of Sky as angels... however, as someone quite nicely put on here, some folk will find evidence of doping in their own shadow.

Colin Peyresourde wrote:

If this has happened to Henao why not Nairo Quitana? Or Uran Uran?

Good question and - who knows ? Henao and Uran are from relatively nearby areas of Colombia I believe, I think Quintana is from a higher and more southern area - plus they are individuals and follow different off season training (location and type)... be interesting to see their data.

Colin Peyresourde wrote:

Do you suspect them any more or less than Sky's Henao?

Not particularly, no. You ?

Colin Peyresourde wrote:

If they are competing on a level playing field what does that mean if one of them is caught doping?

What does that mean ?

Colin Peyresourde wrote:

Why has this ground breaking research only just been done now when it has such positive ramifications for Columbian athletes.

Altitude adaptation research has been done before - there is a fair bit of it about. This seems to be a much more specific analysis (from what has been released in the media and some reading between the lines) - we'll hopefully know more when it's published.

Colin Peyresourde wrote:

Why has this not formed a more serious part of a more serious paper?

Eh ? It was a particular piece of research which is begin put forward for publication, as far as we know. I'm not sure what you think is not 'serious' about it, care to expand on that ?

Colin Peyresourde wrote:

It sounds as if they are trying to use the veil of authority to avert our gaze.

From what ?

Colin Peyresourde wrote:

Lots of questions, but no real answers. I just know that just because you can't see a crime happening doesn't mean it hasn't happened. And that you should he wary of anything processed by a PR team.

I am wary, i'm just not so obsessed with some opinion on the degree of doping in the pro-peloton that I won't consider all aspects of the case - yes, even ones that imply that Skys every single move may not actually have been hatched in from the deepest depths of Hell itself.

Colin Peyresourde wrote:

I wonder why you want to believe it all so much.

I don't - however the scenario on the face of it seems reasonable, far more so than the most of the lurid alternatives that seem to be bandied around, and that's what we were discussing. I am, however, waiting for the data to be released before drawing much more from the episode than that. I've said this over and over here, i'm not sure what you're reading but either it's not what I wrote or (beginning to sound more likely) you just want to persist with some straw man about Sky not doping rather than what we were originally talking about.

Avatar
fukawitribe replied to daddyELVIS | 9 years ago
0 likes
daddyELVIS wrote:
fukawitribe wrote:

Mea culpa - you're right. One pertinent definition of 'conclusion' is "a reasoned deduction or inference" - whereas you actually know its bollocks, based on ... what, magic ?

based on the fact I'm not gullible - or magic, if you like!

I'm not gullible but I actually don't know that all of this is bollocks because I don't have all the data - tell me your secret that gives you that omnipotence ? I could guess, or have an opinion, but I fear I will never reach the level of certainty you have about this.

Avatar
daddyELVIS replied to fukawitribe | 9 years ago
0 likes
fukawitribe wrote:

I could...have an opinion....

Hurrah - you've, hit the nail on the head - I'm sharing my OPINION (that something smells fishy about this).

I suppose that in time we'll find out if I was right or wrong to hold this opinion.

Avatar
fukawitribe replied to daddyELVIS | 9 years ago
0 likes
daddyELVIS wrote:
fukawitribe wrote:

I could...have an opinion....

Hurrah - you've, hit the nail on the head - I'm sharing my OPINION (that something smells fishy about this).

I suppose that in time we'll find out if I was right or wrong to hold this opinion.

Yeah - opinion, not a fact as you tried to make out.

Avatar
daddyELVIS replied to fukawitribe | 9 years ago
0 likes
fukawitribe wrote:

Yeah - opinion, not a fact as you tried to make out.

Not sure what your point is!? My opinion is that Sky's official story stinks of BS. I'm not claiming any facts. What is your point exactly?

Avatar
fukawitribe replied to daddyELVIS | 9 years ago
0 likes
daddyELVIS wrote:
fukawitribe wrote:

Yeah - opinion, not a fact as you tried to make out.

Not sure what your point is!? My opinion is that Sky's official story stinks of BS. I'm not claiming any facts. What is your point exactly?

My point is you said you knew it was bullshit.... perhaps you meant 'I think' or 'it seems' even ''stinks of' (which I personally disagree with, not important but would be interested to know why you think that and what they'd have to do to make it less 'stinky').

Next time you mean it's your opinion why not just say so, there's no be issue there, and maybe you won't have people taking you to task for stating it as fact ("But, I do know BS when I smell it!").

Avatar
daddyELVIS replied to fukawitribe | 9 years ago
0 likes
fukawitribe wrote:

Next time you mean it's your opinion why not just say so, there's no be issue there, and maybe you won't have people taking you to task for stating it as fact ("But, I do know BS when I smell it!").

Blimey, it's a saying, a turn of phrase - hardly a scientific statement of hard facts! Plus, I was taken to task before I stated that, being told I'd jumped to forgone conclusions. Oh well, let's chill.

Avatar
Colin Peyresourde replied to daddyELVIS | 9 years ago
0 likes
daddyELVIS wrote:
fukawitribe wrote:

Next time you mean it's your opinion why not just say so, there's no be issue there, and maybe you won't have people taking you to task for stating it as fact ("But, I do know BS when I smell it!").

Blimey, it's a saying, a turn of phrase - hardly a scientific statement of hard facts! Plus, I was taken to task before I stated that, being told I'd jumped to forgone conclusions. Oh well, let's chill.

Yeah, I think 'fukawitribe' is being picky there. It seems he is actively and wilfully suspending his disbelief, because on one had he understands what a PR release is, but on the other chooses to believe what he is told…..and that is the difference between us. A hairs breadth between us.

It's interesting that he chooses to quote so much, and that he so passionately wants to decry anyone who posits an opposing opinion to Sky's PR machine. You don't have to agree with us, but trying to wear us down is equally pointless - our opinions are as valid as yours. The quality of the paper will determine who is right and who is wrong…..or it may just tell us nothing at all - which I think is most likely. Part of the point we are making is that it is easy for people to make proclamations which are reported verbatim, like Armstrong's 'never taken drugs, never failed a test', but when you break it down it is rubbish. Without David Walsh saying 'Woah, there, that's a fat hill of lies' you'd still be lapping him up. Same with Tony Blair and his dossier - another example of using the authority of academics to make a lie stand…..so sorry if I'm cynical of this output.

Avatar
fukawitribe replied to Colin Peyresourde | 9 years ago
0 likes
Colin Peyresourde wrote:
daddyELVIS wrote:
fukawitribe wrote:

Next time you mean it's your opinion why not just say so, there's no be issue there, and maybe you won't have people taking you to task for stating it as fact ("But, I do know BS when I smell it!").

Blimey, it's a saying, a turn of phrase - hardly a scientific statement of hard facts! Plus, I was taken to task before I stated that, being told I'd jumped to forgone conclusions. Oh well, let's chill.

Yeah, I think 'fukawitribe' is being picky there.

Perhaps - it was the "I am right" attitude that seemed to me to come across in combination with the "I know" comment that rankled me. Anyway, now it's couched as an opinion daddyELVIS and I can just choose to agree to disagree and, as he said, just chill.

I'll ignore the rest of your rambling if you don't mind Colin, you're highly imaginative - especially with attributing beliefs and opinions to the others - but even I eventually stopped reading the drivel when I got to the Blair bit.

It's a beautiful day - i'm off for a ride.

Pages

Latest Comments