In an interview with Le Monde this Saturday, Jonas Vingegaard wanted the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to ban carbon monoxide, used by several Cycling teams including his own.
Jonas Vingegaard is campaigning for a ban on carbon monoxide. Last December, the International Cycling Union (UCI) indicated its desire, by the end of January through its steering committee, to ban “for medical reasons” the inhalation of this toxic gas. In November, the body had already asked the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to “take a position” on this legal, but potentially controversial, technique.
Questioned by Le Monde, Jonas Vingegaard admitted that Visma-Lease a Bike, his team, “uses carbon monoxide to measure blood volume and total hemoglobin mass”. “We inhale the monoxide a first time, before carrying out an altitude training course. At the end of it, we repeat the operation to calculate our maximum oxygen absorption capacity”, indicated the Dane on the method used by his training.
“It's not fair”
On the sidelines of the last Tour de France, the specialized site Escape collective revealed that at least three teams – UAE Emirates, Visma-Lease a Bike and Israel – Premier Tech – had resorted to carbon monoxide inhalation. “But some teams divert its use by regularly inhaling low doses of carbon monoxide, which causes a significant gain in the performance of their riders,” pointed out Vingegaard. “It’s not fair and the World Anti-Doping Agency should ban it.”
-If the UCI management committee succeeds in banning carbon monoxide, however, this would not constitute a violation of WADA's set anti-doping rules. This gas would find itself in a situation similar to tramadol, banned by the UCI but not by the AMA. Testing positive for this product at the 2022 Tour de France, the Colombian Nairo Quintana was, for example, disqualified from the race but he was not suspended.
“Since my fall, I have reduced my risk-taking”
Second in the last Grande Boucle, Jonas Vingegaard managed to get on the podium more than three months after his serious fall in the Tour of the Basque Country. “Many runners plead to take less risks, but in reality, no one does it,” Vingegaard said. “We must understand that we are taking far too many risks. We must not blame the organizers and the road… We too, the runners, play a role in safety. It is a central issue in our professional life.”
“Since my fall, I have reduced my risk-taking, especially on descents and turns,” said Jonas Vingegaard, who “thought he would die” last April when he fell. In 2025, the Visma-Lease a Bike leader will aim for a third final victory in the Tour de France. The climber will also participate in the Tour of Spain after the Grande Boucle.
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