Oscar Speaks!

Oscar Pereiro spoke out to defend himself Thursday at a news conference in Vigo, Spain. He was responding to a story published in LeMonde alleging that Pereiro, the runner-up in the 2006 edition of the Tour de France, had two positive tests for salbutamol during the Tour.

(In a somewhat related note, RYHO had a visitor from Vigo, Spain yesterday after I’d posted Anarchy and Glass Houses. Could it have been one Mr. Pereiro Sio? Or a news reporter? Or just an interested local resident? Hmmm.)

According to Sportinglife UK:

Pereiro denies any doping allegations, and has vowed to clear his name.

“I’ll send a fax with the paperwork requested by the French anti-doping agency and then a certified letter,” he said at a press conference.

Well, Oscar, good luck. I seem to remember that there’s another rider who’s facing doping allegations who has also vowed to clear his name. Some guy named Floyd Landis, as I recall. If all it takes to clear your name is some paperwork, Mr. Pereiro, you’re going to get off relatively unscathed. Think about the ordeal your friend Floyd has been going through — and understand that the process may become as much of a nightmare for you, too.

According to the Associated Press (via the International Herald Tribune):

“We are waiting for the documents asked of Pereiro,” [Pierre Bordry, head of the AFLD] said.

Bordry added, however, that he expected to get a response because “the press is talking about it.”

Now that’s a novel thought: The AFLD is expecting a response not because a failure to do so could result in Pereiro being banned from competing in the next Tour, but rather because the press is saying the AFLD will be getting a response.

The AFLD wants Pereiro to provide documents justifying his therapeutic use expemption (TUE) to use salbutamol, the active ingredient in Ventolin, for which Pereiro claims to have a TUE. The story goes on to say:

Pereiro’s documents, when they come, “will be examined by the agency’s doctors,” who are due to present their findings Thursday, Bordry said.

The case will be pursued further “if the doctors have doubts,” but will be dropped if they are satisfied, he added.

Yes, even though the UCI found Pereiro’s request and accompanying documentation enough to grant the TUE, the AFLD is going to make its own determination as to whether Pereiro’s condition warrants treatment. Glad to know they’re looking out for Oscar’s health.

Pereiro’s allergist, Dr. Luis Arenas, also spoke at the news conference, saying that Pereiro suffers from “light to moderate” asthma, a “very common illness.” The IHT article continues, saying:

“With the dose recommended in his case, and in the manner it has been prescribed to him, it’s impossible that it could have given a positive reading,” Arenas said.

“The cyclist’s own record and a study made in March last year demonstrate that Oscar has a sensitivity in his bronchioles which is greater than that of the average of the population, and that causes him to have to take medication if he presents symptoms that might justify it.”

In addition, regular TBV correspondent Marc posted additional information that ran on the AFP wire, which didn’t make the IHT story. Pereiro, apparently, spoke in some detail about the alleged positive tests:

“I was authorized to use 1000 nanograms of salbutamol (per mml of blood), and my test result was 159,” said Pereiro, according to whom the limit for someone without authorization is 150 nanograms. “I believe that they [le Monde] have made a big mistake with me. I am super-calm, and I hope all this will be quickly resolved, ” added Pereiro. According to a local television station in Galicia, Pereiro was nonetheless very much affected by the revelations in the French daily.

It’s very interesting that he knows the results. Floyd Landis had to respond to the leaks about his test results before he’d even seen the complete documentation of the lab test results. Pereiro can quote his results, chapter and verse.

Also interesting to note is that, according to Pereiro, there is a level of salbutamol below which a person without a TUE would test negative. The standard, apparently, is not so strict that any presence results in a positive test. Pereiro’s result is only slightly above the cutoff. If the AFLD determines that his TUE shouldn’t have been issued, will he then argue that the margin of error is great enough that 159 ng/ml is not a clear positive? Or will he take the sanction without complaint? If I were a betting man, I’d bet on the former and not the latter.

Welcome to the world of doping allegations Oscar. It’s going to be a very tricky ride for you, unless the AFLD comes up satisfied with your TUE. Just on a hunch, I’m guessing the odds are against you on that. Too bad you have to be a pawn in the chess game between the UCI, WADA and the AFLD over who has the right to issue TUEs for competition at the Tour and other races in France.

To finish up, a number of publications have run this quote from Pereiro:

“Once this is cleared up, I’ll wait for whoever needs to to apologise to me.”

Don’t expect any apologies, Oscar. They won’t be forthcoming. But if they are, good on you. And if that does happen, I can only imagine the people who will be lining up to apologize to Floyd Landis once he’s exonerated.