So who won the tour from 1999 to 2005

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larkim Mar 2018 1:31pm, 8 Mar 2018 4,114 posts	0 larkim If nothing else, the low volume of TUEs would suggest to me that each one would be fairly well known about and understood by those within the UCI concerned with anti-doping. You could probably reel off the list from memory of the riders with TUEs in operation at any one time.
Velociraptor Mar 2018 1:41pm, 8 Mar 2018 37,926 posts	0 Velociraptor I can totally see the appeal for a Grand Tour cyclist with hay fever having an injection of a long-acting corticosteroid before the start of an event, larkim, and I'm sure plenty of contenders would take it if offered. They're young men, they're elite athletes, they're indestructible, and they're only as good as their current season's results. If Team Sky had been transparent from the start about the TUE and the use of the drug for this indication, I might have thought it was risk-taking medical practice, but wouldn't have thought it was at all suspicious.
larkim Mar 2018 1:48pm, 8 Mar 2018 4,115 posts	0 larkim Fair enough - I suppose they would argue that they were transparent about it with the bodies that matter - i.e. the UCI, in that they logged the TUE. You can argue that they should go the extra mile and publish all TUEs as they apply for them, but that's not what the rules ask for, and that's not what other teams do either. But if you're suggesting that it is an at least justifiable treatment for an elite in that situation, that's interesting and reassuring to hear from those in the naive camp like me!!
The Teaboy Mar 2018 2:29pm, 8 Mar 2018 15,109 posts	0 The Teaboy Rasmussen suggested that the Wiggins steroid treatment was pretty much the standard thing for Grand Tour prep in his era. He should know - they had the same doctor...
Jason1969 Mar 2018 2:35pm, 8 Mar 2018 12,751 posts	0 Jason1969 Jumps in without bothering to read back Wiggins certainly hasn't broken the rules. But it's astonishing how many top athletes "have asthma" Chrisull: Caffeine used to be a banned substance. In an ironic twist, Armstrong is documented as telling one of his team off for drinking too many capuccino's at the cafe stop. Also, Lance was taking all sorts of stuff long before he got cancer.
Velociraptor Mar 2018 3:02pm, 8 Mar 2018 37,927 posts	0 Velociraptor We don't actually know the prevalence of asthma in elite athletes, do we? All we know is that some very talented athletes have asthma, which is also relatively common in the general population.
larkim Mar 2018 3:30pm, 8 Mar 2018 4,116 posts	0 larkim WHo estimates 235million people with asthma, that's about 3% of the world's population. It's no great surprise that a number of athletes have it. And no huge surprise that when you need great oxygen supply, otherwise mild cases of asthma are looked at as being more in need of resolution than they might be for the average office worker.
larkim Mar 2018 3:31pm, 8 Mar 2018 4,117 posts	0 larkim Some research referenced here. theguardian.com
Chrisull Mar 2018 3:52pm, 8 Mar 2018 12,347 posts	0 Chrisull Jason: I believe they're possibly considered banning caffeine again too: news.com.au Wouldn't surprise me. It works. Ok another from the endurance book (I will shut up about soon honest) I'm simplifying here for sake of brevity (the percentages are not accurate): Caffeine offers say a 1% improvement Beetroot juice offers a 1% improvement Shoes offer a 1% improvement Mental training offers a 1% improvement. Do all 4 and you get.... ? A 1% improvement. Not the expected 4. Go figure that one :-).
Derby Tup Mar 2018 5:24pm, 8 Mar 2018 25,268 posts	0 Derby Tup Hence the need for drugs. As The Verve might have sung, ‘The small improvements don’t work’