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“Without Dave B, there is no Team Sky” – Chris Froome finally comes out in support of Sir Dave Brailsford

Three-time Tour de France winner breaks his silence regarding beleaguered boss a week after failing to join other riders in tweeting their support

Chris Froome has publicly given his backing to Team Sky boss Sir Dave Brailsford, who last week said he would not resign despite the ongoing furore over issues including the mystery package delivered to former team doctor Richard Freeman at the 2011 Criterium du Dauphiné.

> Brailsford says he has no intention of resigning from Team Sky

A week ago, most of Team Sky’s riders – but not Froome – took to Twitter to express their support of Brailsford.

It was subsequently reported that initially, the team had planned to publish a letter signed by all riders pledging their backing of him, but had to rethink those plans since Froome would not be among them.

In a statement released today, however, Froome gave his unequivocal support to Brailsford, whom he said “has created one of the best sports teams in the world. Without Dave B, there is no Team Sky.”

He added: "I would like to apologise for this on behalf of myself and the other riders of Team Sky who feel passionately about our sport and winning clean."

In December, Brailsford told a House of Commons select committee that is investigating doping in sport that the mystery Dauphiné package contained the decongestant Fluimucil, which is not banned, destined for Sir Bradley Wiggins.

But his answer failed to satisfy MPs in the absence of a ‘paper trail’ with the select committee’s chair, Damian Collins, saying that Team Sky’s reputation had been “left in tatters.”

Earlier this month UK Anti-doping chief executive Nicole Sapstead, giving evidence as part of the same investigation, raised concerns about the amount of the corticosteroid triamcinolone ordered by Team Sky, which Wiggins took under a therapeutic use exemption ahead of major races including the 2012 Tour de France which he won, with Froome runner-up.

Sapstead said the quantity ordered could not be explained by the issue to a single rider of a TUE, which allows athletes to take drugs that would ordinarily be banned provided there is a genuine medical reason to do so.

Last week, Team Sky published a detailed response to the criticism, acknowledging that “mistakes were made” while insisting that the medicine in the Dauphiné package was Fluimucil and refuting Sapstead’s comments regarding the triamcinolone.

Team Sky chairman Graham McWilliam tweeted last week that both its board and its headline sponsor were “100 per cent” behind Brailsford.

> Team Sky chairman gives vote of confidence to Brailsford

Brailsford came under further pressure on Friday after it was reported that the independent review into British Cycling ordered by UK Sport and due to be published next month described him as “untouchable” when he was performance director of the Great Britain Cycling Team.

> British Cycling's leadership condemned by independent review

Froome’s statement is published in full below.

It disappoints me hugely to see the way in which Team Sky has been portrayed by the media recently. It does not reflect the support crew and the riders that I see around me.

At the same time, I completely understand why people feel let down by the way in which the situation has been handled, and going forward we need to do better.

I would like to apologise for this on behalf of myself and the other riders of Team Sky who feel passionately about our sport and winning clean. I believe in the people around me, and what we are doing.

With respect to Dave Brailsford, he has created one of the best sports teams in the world. Without Dave B, there is no Team Sky.

He has supported me throughout the last seven years of my career and I couldn't be more grateful for the opportunities and the experiences I've had. By his own admission, mistakes have been made, but protocols have been put in place to ensure that those same mistakes will not be made again.

I know it will take time for faith to be restored, but I will do my utmost to ensure that happens, along with everyone else at Team Sky.

It was published following a weekend in which Team Sky won Paris-Nice for the fifth time in six years after Sergio Henao held off a challenge from Alberto Contador on yesterday’s final stage, just as Geraint Thomas had done 12 months ago.

Sir Bradley Wiggins kicked off Team Sky’s run of success in the week-long French stage race in 2012, with Richie Porte taking the overall in 2013 and 2015.

Only Carlos Betancur has managed to break the British WorldTour team’s stranglehold on the race, the Colombian, now with Movistar, winning the 2014 edition when he was riding for AG2R-La Mondiale.

Froome, who lives in Monaco, a few kilometres east along the Cote d'Azur from Nice, saw some of yesterday's race first-hand while out on a training ride, posting a photo from the roadside to Twitter.

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.

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20 comments

Avatar
alansmurphy | 7 years ago
1 like

Yes, people fly in and out to do tests.

 

Avatar
alansmurphy | 7 years ago
0 likes

So they're breaking no rules.

 

What is it with you angry little people?

Avatar
Jimmy Ray Will | 7 years ago
1 like

Have you guys never heard of the whereabouts programme? 

I agree, you have a greater chance of being tested if you are winning / placing highly in races than you would training at home... however, if you simply don't post top 3 results your testing frequency would be no more than standard random testing...

Your argument doesn't work. 

 

Avatar
SingleSpeed replied to Jimmy Ray Will | 7 years ago
4 likes
Jimmy Ray Will wrote:

Have you guys never heard of the whereabouts programme? 

 

Lizzie Armistead hasn't

Avatar
Jackson replied to Jimmy Ray Will | 7 years ago
1 like
Jimmy Ray Will wrote:

Have you guys never heard of the whereabouts programme? 

I agree, you have a greater chance of being tested if you are winning / placing highly in races than you would training at home... however, if you simply don't post top 3 results your testing frequency would be no more than standard random testing...

Your argument doesn't work. 

Triamcinolone isn't banned out of competition 

Avatar
Leviathan | 7 years ago
4 likes

Uhhh, this is getting so boring. They found a loophole in the rules then doped Wiggins up with as much stuff as the  could get away with. They gamed the system and won. If there is a problem with TUEs, just change the rules and stop wining about it. End of story.

Avatar
Jackson | 7 years ago
2 likes

You can understand why Froome didn't jump to offer support.

If Froome is dirty then he wouldn't be wanting to lump himself in with Wiggins* and Dr Freeman and invite closer scrutiny.

If Froome is clean he's rightfully pissed off that Brailsford made him gift the 2012 TdF to a guy shot full of triamcinolone.

Avatar
ashliejay | 7 years ago
2 likes

Hope so, can't bloody stand team SKY, everyone involved with them seems extremely arrogant, and stuck up. their answer to pretty much anything is just throw money at it, and if that doesn't work throw more money at it.

Avatar
Russell Orgazoid replied to ashliejay | 7 years ago
2 likes
ashliejay wrote:

Hope so, can't bloody stand team SKY, everyone involved with them seems extremely arrogant, and stuck up. their answer to pretty much anything is just throw money at it, and if that doesn't work throw more money at it.

Do you ever complain about lack of funding?

Do you just want nice people to win?

Get a grip. Typical british loser attitude.

Avatar
ConcordeCX replied to Russell Orgazoid | 7 years ago
2 likes
Plasterer's Radio wrote:
ashliejay wrote:

Hope so, can't bloody stand team SKY, everyone involved with them seems extremely arrogant, and stuck up. their answer to pretty much anything is just throw money at it, and if that doesn't work throw more money at it.

Do you ever complain about lack of funding?

Do you just want nice people to win?

Get a grip. Typical british loser attitude.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corinthian_F.C.

 

 

Avatar
theloststarfighter | 7 years ago
0 likes

There's a right and a wrong with doping in sport and that's laid down by the governing bodies. Then there's a grey area of pushing rules, loop holes, TUE's and who knows what else to get an advantage.  Sometimes stepping into this grey area will make an individual or team look cynical or unethical in it's approach.  Lets hope for British cycling overall, whether you're a Sky supporter or not, that the team can move on with celebrating successes won in the spirit of fair competition.  Let's not be naive and think all the unethical activities of any UCI Pro team will just stop, especially where there's money involved.  You can understand that Froome is being politically judicous in his language, not wanting words said now to haunt him later.  Brailsford might be Ming the Merciless, I don't know the man but I do respect a lot of the athletes on team GB & Sky and wish them well.

and they all lived happily ever after...

Avatar
Carton replied to theloststarfighter | 7 years ago
4 likes
Quote:

Froome gave his equivocal support to Brailsford

FTFY.

Clearly he had to address the issue, and clearly he isn't happy about it. But just as clearly, despite Kimmage's fist shakes, he wasn't about to unload on his friend and mentor, particularly as he was about to ramp up his Tour training, and given the context of cycling where so many other issues are just as swiftly swept under the rug. 

But considering how tighly Brailsford holds the whip, I'm guessing he went just about as far as he could go without googling "how to draw up a resignation letter".

Avatar
Russell Orgazoid | 7 years ago
5 likes

It's about time people started to appeciate Brailsford, Wiggo and British Cycling instead of running them down.

Just look at what's been acheived in the last 15 years or so.

I'm proud of them all, warts and all.

Winners.

 

Avatar
MikeOnABike replied to Russell Orgazoid | 7 years ago
4 likes
Plasterer's Radio wrote:

It's about time people started to appeciate Brailsford, Wiggo and UK Cycling instead of running them down.

Just look at what's been acheived in the last 15 years or so.

I'm proud of them all, warts and all.

Winners.

 

 

I'm proud of them all, PEDS and all. 

  -Fixed that for you.

Avatar
Russell Orgazoid replied to MikeOnABike | 7 years ago
0 likes
MikeOnABike wrote:
Plasterer's Radio wrote:

It's about time people started to appeciate Brailsford, Wiggo and UK Cycling instead of running them down.

Just look at what's been acheived in the last 15 years or so.

I'm proud of them all, warts and all.

Winners.

 

 

I'm proud of them all, PEDS and all. 

  -Fixed that for you.

Yawn.....cyclesport and drugs? Who knew?

You are naive and a loser.

Avatar
zanf replied to Russell Orgazoid | 7 years ago
2 likes
Plasterer's Radio wrote:
MikeOnABike wrote:
Plasterer's Radio wrote:

It's about time people started to appeciate Brailsford, Wiggo and UK Cycling instead of running them down.

Just look at what's been acheived in the last 15 years or so.

I'm proud of them all, warts and all.

Winners.

I'm proud of them all, PEDS and all. 

  -Fixed that for you.

Yawn.....cyclesport and drugs? Who knew?

You are naive and a loser.

We can all play that game and get down to your level: "You are an ass hat."

//study.com/cimages/multimages/16/diagramargumentresponse.png)

Avatar
beezus fufoon replied to Russell Orgazoid | 7 years ago
1 like
Plasterer's Radio wrote:

It's about time people started to appeciate Brailsford, Wiggo and British Cycling instead of running them down.

Just look at what's been acheived in the last 15 years or so.

I'm proud of them all, warts and all.

Winners.

 

you're always after a happy ending!

Avatar
SingleSpeed replied to beezus fufoon | 7 years ago
4 likes
beezus fufoon wrote:

you're always after a happy ending!

 

Said the Soigneur.

Avatar
Alb | 7 years ago
3 likes

*gives support after it looks like it'll all blow over. Weak 

Avatar
tritecommentbot | 7 years ago
1 like

Finally got him to play ball! angel

 

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