ilpirata said:
It is true. But I wouldn’t get hung up on it too much. There is a certain level of doping that is throughout the peleton, in my opinion. A truly clean rider can not compete for wins. The ability to catch the CERA epo shows that there is the anti-doping has some teeth. Not so good for the ones who got caught. Now the bigger fish are probably still using homologous blood transfusions of which there is no detection. They may even add a slightist dash of epo, that stays below the detection limits and keeps hematocrit and hemoglobin in range. For someone to get caught for use of testosterone they really have to mess up.
Interesting was Kloden’s pointing the finger at CSF Navigar. Saying that they do not have the same internal controls as his team. Indeed I believe it to be true. But more honestly Astana as a big team has more resources, and can be cutting edge with their science, leaving nothing to chance. In other words yes they are limited in their doping, but they will not test positive because they have precise doping and precise internal testing. As we know Astana is trying to remake their image after last year. They cannot afford to fail controls.
Everyone here seems fixated on blood transfusions (70's technology) and EPO (circa 1990). The top pros are on stuff that isn't even being tested AFAIK. HCB's, Insulin... HGH....Hemopure... Hemassist... about 20 other non-tested dopes of which I can't remember the names. CERA was just a major fark-up. A so-called non-tested drug that they managed to come up with a surprise test for. If it were the UCI.... they probably would have sent a memo out to all the riders three months in advance, warning them before administering the test.
Read the list of drugs that Jesus Manzano said he was on way back (when was it... the early part of the decade?) when he was caught.
Actovegin (extract of calves blood which supposedly improves oxygen carrying capacity)
Albumina H. (protein in blood plasma)
Androgel (testosterone)
Aranesp (Darbepoetin alfa = super EPO)
Celestote (corticosteroid)
Eprex (EPO)
Genotorm (growth hormone)
Hemoce (plasma)
Deca durabolin (anabolic steroid)
Humatrope (growth hormone)
IgF1 (insulin growth factor 1)
Neofertinon (hormone to stimulate ovulation and estrogen production)
Neorecormon (hormone that regulates red blood cell production)
Norditropin (growth hormone)
Nuvacten (corticosteroid)
Trigon (asthma drug)
Urbason (corticosteroid)
Ventolin (bronchial dilator)
Oxandrolona (anabolic agent)
Vitamin B12 (essential B vitamin)
Triamcinolona (corticosteroid)
Testoviron (testosterone)
Aspirina (analgesic, anti-inflammatory)
Oxyglobin (artificial haemoglobin intended for anaemic dogs)
Hemopure (artificial haemoglobin)
Ferlixit (iron)
Caffeine (stimulant)
Hemassist (artificial haemoglobin)
Prozac (antidepressant)
In 2005, three years ago, this was the state of doping (I posted this post of smoothie's some time ago):
Before Epogen came around, guys were showing Hematorcrit levels between 40 to 44, then the EPO abuse started and guys were testing as high as 56% or more (Bjarne Riis)
Then the UCI put in the 50% cut off, and miraculously every one started coming in at 49% In the Pre race medical checks prior to the TdF, the average HCT is lower, around 44, but everyone knows these tests are coming, so getting the value down temporarily is easy. But HCT tests are outdated already, with the introduction of Hemoglobin based Oxygen Carriers. Or HBOC's
These latest doping methods no longer raise the hematocrit, but work by increasing the pace at which the blood releases the oxygen into the tissues. Actovegin was one of the first attempts at this, as was Pero fluro carbon or PFC (type Mauro Gianetti and PFC into google) Mauro was Director Sportiff at Saunier Duval by the way..
PFCs, are insoluble in water but can absorb huge quantities of gases--some products can dissolve more than 100 times more oxygen per volume than blood plasma, and are biologically inert.
The capability of PFCs as an oxygen transport medium were displayed when a study showed that a rat immersed in the solution could survive for hours--it literally breathed liquid. Becuase they are inert, they are expelled unaltered through the lungs in just a few hours..But there are no breathalyzers at the finish line...
Now they use Hemopure, Oxyglobin and Hemassist, These products actually lower the Hematocrit count, as the artifical hemoglobin augments the natural. They are also impossible to detect. It's engineered from Humans and won't show up in a blood test, and passes in the urine with no recognizable metabolites. There is currently no test for them.
HBOCs are excellent oxygen transporters; typically they have 2-4 times the oxygen transport capacity of normal human hemoglobin, but also do not have as strong a chemical bond, meaning the oxygen is released easier to muscle tissues. A 1995 study of Hemopure found greater oxygen uptake and lower lactate levels when compared to a control group using the autologous transfusions (blood re-injected in the donor) that the 1984 Olympic team used.
And while EPO must be taken two weeks or more out from competition to have an appreciable effect, an HBOC is effective within minutes of injection. The only good news is that they only last about 2 days, hence the police raids on the team cars from time to time, as you would need a steady supply for a week race, or really just a a couple of bags for the hard stages.
The really sobering part of all this, is the information above is already out, so its probably outdated. I can only imagine what the current and future methods are like. The European peleton has been doped for over 100 years, I don't think thats going to change anytime soon. Clean Pro sports is a myth.