CERA Blood Test

claudb
claudb Posts: 212
edited October 2008 in Pro race
More a question than anything else but, does anyone know whether this new blood test for CERA which apparently was not available at the time of Le Tour, was used at the Olympics ?? If not, then it is surely a pressing matter for the IOC to re-test all blood samples (they do take them at the Olympics don't they ?) with this new test. I mean of course across all endurance sports, not just Cycling.

Comments

  • skavanagh.bikeradar
    skavanagh.bikeradar Posts: 1,097
    Exactly what Pat McQuaid said in a press statement earlier today. Oh, nope, I imagined that 'cos he's been muter than mute person at a mute convention held in a monastry.
  • Monty Dog
    Monty Dog Posts: 20,614
    Perhaps he's taken Trappist orders?
    Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..
  • Birillo
    Birillo Posts: 417
    More a question than anything else but, does anyone know whether this new blood test for CERA which apparently was not available at the time of Le Tour, was used at the Olympics ?? If not, then it is surely a pressing matter for the IOC to re-test all blood samples (they do take them at the Olympics don't they ?) with this new test. I mean of course across all endurance sports, not just Cycling.

    Have they taken blood samples at the Olympics?
    Yes. "The tests include 1,720 urine and 483 blood tests. These tests cover the 18 day-period beginning 27 July 2008 until 13 August 2008".

    Have any athletes been declared positive for CERA?
    No

    Is that because there are no positives for Cera, or because they are not testing for Cera, or because they are keeping schtum?
    Let's put it this way. Stefan Schumacher rode, and they didn't catch him , did they?.
  • deal
    deal Posts: 857
    Birillo wrote:

    Is that because there are no positives for Cera, or because they are not testing for Cera, or because they are keeping schtum?
    Let's put it this way. Stefan Schumacher rode, and they didn't catch him , did they?.

    he also finished 13th :lol:

    see this thread just posted - http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtop ... t=12589556
    Sebastian Lang Team mate form Schumacher said - We were all on the team bus and celebrating that they had a brought out a new test for CERA all except Stefan ( Schumacher)
    who sat there quiet and withdrawn.
  • Birillo
    Birillo Posts: 417
    he also finished 13th Laughing

    And presumably not tested. I withdraw my comment.
  • claudb
    claudb Posts: 212
    [quote="Birillo
    Have they taken blood samples at the Olympics?
    Yes. "The tests include 1,720 urine and 483 blood tests. These tests cover the 18 day-period beginning 27 July 2008 until 13 August 2008".

    Have any athletes been declared positive for CERA?
    No

    Is that because there are no positives for Cera, or because they are not testing for Cera, or because they are keeping schtum?
    Let's put it this way. Stefan Schumacher rode, and they didn't catch him , did they?.[/quote]

    If, as it seems, that Cera is the fashion treatment for endurance sport performance enhancement this year then I really can't believe that there are not Cera positives amongst those 483 blood tests (and not just in cycling). As for the IOC keeping schtum, then there is certainly (allegedly) plenty of precedent going back to - at least - Los Angeles in 1984.
  • stagehopper
    stagehopper Posts: 1,593
    skavanagh.bikeradar wrote:
    Exactly what Pat McQuaid said in a press statement earlier today. Oh, nope, I imagined that 'cos he's been muter than mute person at a mute convention held in a monastry.

    UCI president Pat McQuaid has called Bach's suggestion "completely unacceptable" and reiterated that cycling was making headway in eliminating the scourge of drug cheats. He was unequivocal in saying that, "We are weeding out the bad apples, make no mistake about it. No one can say the UCI and cycling authorities are not doing their utmost to find cheats and get them out of the sport."

    He then fired a broadside at Bach. "It is completely unacceptable for Thomas Bach to be saying this. I don't like talking about other sports, but there are other sports with persistent problems. Instead of firing guns at cycling he should fire guns equally at them as well."

    ---

    Bach has also said:

    Bach suggested that samples taken from Olympic competition should be re-tested, given that the Schumacher and Piepoli positives came from an extensive testing process conducted well after the Tour de France had concluded. "They have to check what was the substance used in the Tour de France, and what was the method being applied to detect it. They then have to compare it with the testing in Beijing and decide whether it makes sense to open (the samples) now," said Bach.

    Whether he's suggesting the IOC do this or the UCI is unclear.
    @stagehopper
  • Kléber
    Kléber Posts: 6,842
    The IOC is now going to test Olympic samples for CERA :shock:
  • Tom Butcher
    Tom Butcher Posts: 3,830
    Well I suppose lots of us have been saying for years that cycling is no worse than some other sports - we just test more - now we are going to find out.
    it's a hard life if you don't weaken.
  • squired
    squired Posts: 1,153
    483 blood tests across the whole of the Olympics?! Is that it?
  • skavanagh.bikeradar
    skavanagh.bikeradar Posts: 1,097
    I take it back Pat, you are on the ball! Get your blazer sleeves rolled up and get in there.

    483 blood samples - not many, but you don't want too many scandals at an Olympics now do you?! Certainly the IOC and all it's blue chip sponsors don't that is for sure. They might get a few now though.

    Hopefully everyone will start taking blood samples a bit more regularly and taking a lot more of them so they can be used retrospectively in this way. As someone on here pointed out the idea that you might get caught by a better test in 2 years time or 2 weeks time or 2 months time might shift the goal posts away from doping.
  • andy_wrx
    andy_wrx Posts: 3,396
    Only 483 blood samples ?
    But how many seperate athletes is that ?

    Was it Bolt or Powell who was complaining that he'd had to give so many blood samples that it was going to affect his performance, he was going to end-up anaemic or something ?

    Answering my own question by Googling, it was Powell - looks like both he and Bolt were tested at least 3 times each but it was Powell who was kicking up the fuss
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2008/au ... ugsinsport

    But Bolt & Powell won't have been using EPO, if they were on something it would have been steroids or something.

    So it's 483 blood samples, but from how many different athletes, from endurance sports likely to have benefitted from EPO ?
    A rather smaller number...
  • deal
    deal Posts: 857
    andy_wrx wrote:
    Only 483 blood samples ?
    But how many seperate athletes is that ?

    Was it Bolt or Powell who was complaining that he'd had to give so many blood samples that it was going to affect his performance, he was going to end-up anaemic or something ?

    Answering my own question by Googling, it was Powell - looks like both he and Bolt were tested at least 3 times each but it was Powell who was kicking up the fuss
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2008/au ... ugsinsport

    But Bolt & Powell won't have been using EPO, if they were on something it would have been steroids or something.

    So it's 483 blood samples, but from how many different athletes, from endurance sports likely to have benefitted from EPO ?
    A rather smaller number...

    Dwayne Chambers and Marion Jones were both on EPO
  • jp1985
    jp1985 Posts: 434
    Dwayne Chambers and Marion Jones were both on EPO


    They were on tetrahydrogestrinone (THG)
  • Jez mon
    Jez mon Posts: 3,809
    Not just THG IIRC, they where on whole coctails of drugs. Once of which (again IIRC) was epo.
    You live and learn. At any rate, you live
  • slojo
    slojo Posts: 56
    Victor Conte's 'whole enchilada' as served to Chambers and Jones:

    THG, testosterone/epitestosterone cream, EPO (Procrit), HGH (Serostim), insulin (Humalog), modafinil (Provigil) and liothryonine, which is a synthetic form of the T3 thyroid hormone (Cytomel)
  • Kléber
    Kléber Posts: 6,842
    EPO I think allowed them to run more during their off-season training, which includes longer sessions, the oxygenation also helps muscles during weight training sessions a bit. If you're going to take a cocktail of stuff, you might as well add it. But it's unlikely it would be used during the games from sprinters. 400m runners and above, yes. Swimmers and others would use it too.
  • slojo
    slojo Posts: 56
    Marion Jones used EPO at the Sydney Olympics.
    But then she competed in 3 rounds of the 100m, 3 rounds of the 200, 2 rounds of the long jump and the finals of both relays.
    So, I guess a little extra endurance would have helped.
  • Monty Dog
    Monty Dog Posts: 20,614
    They said they were going to retain the right to retest the samples for the next 8 years too. I expect there's a few gold medal winners sleeping less comfortably tonight. The ITN news use gave it a postivie spin, saying it was the lead of pro cycling that was forcing the IOC to retrospectively retest for CERA
    Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..

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