Get 40% Off
👀 👁 🧿 All eyes on Biogen, up +4,56% after posting earnings. Our AI picked it in March 2024.
Which stocks will surge next?
Unlock AI-picked Stocks

Farah coach used prohibited drug infusions, says newspaper

Published 02/26/2017, 05:17 PM
Updated 02/26/2017, 05:17 PM
© Reuters. File Photo: Alberto Salazar, coach to Mo Farah of Great Britain and Galen Rupp of the U.S.A. sits inside the Bird's Nest Stadium at the Wold Athletics Championships in Beijing

(Reuters) - Alberto Salazar, the coach of Britain's Olympic champion Mo Farah, has been accused of using prohibited infusions of supplements to improve the performance of his runners, the Sunday Times reported citing a leaked United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) report.

The British newspaper said the 2016 report also accused Salazar of abusing prescription medicines for his athletes at the Nike (NYSE:NKE) training center in Oregon.

Attempts by Reuters to reach Salazar for comment were unsuccessful. Salazar issued a lengthy and detailed denial of similar allegations in 2015.

Farah said in a statement on Sunday that he was "a clean athlete who has never broken the rules in regards to substances, methods or dosages."

Farah, who last year became only the second man to retain the Olympic 5,000 and 10,000-metre titles, accused the newspaper of using his profile to make "the story more interesting".

"If USADA or any other anti-doping body has evidence of wrongdoing they should publish it and take action rather than allow the media to be judge and jury," he added.

The Sunday Times said the USADA report had been leaked by the 'Fancy Bears' hacking group which has previously leaked medical and doping-related documents.

The newspaper said that Farah and other athletes coached by Salazar were given infusions of a research supplement based on the chemical L-carnitine and that one who was given a high dosage said that it was as effective as illegal blood doping.

It said Salazar also emailed disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong touting the benefits of L-carnitine.

3rd party Ad. Not an offer or recommendation by Investing.com. See disclosure here or remove ads .

L-carnitine is not a banned substance for athletes but infusions of more than 50ml in the space of six hours are prohibited, the newspaper added.

USADA on Saturday confirmed to Reuters the document cited by the Sunday Times appeared to have been leaked but would not comment on the report's conclusions or any accusations against Salazar.

"USADA can confirm that it has prepared a report in response to a subpoena from a state medical licensing body regarding care given by a physician to athletes associated with the Nike Oregon Project," USADA Communications Manager Ryan Madden said in an email to Reuters.

"It appears that a draft of this report was leaked to the Sunday Times by the Russian state-affiliated hacker group known as Fancy Bears.

"We understand that the licensing body is still deciding its case and as we continue to investigate whether anti-doping rules were broken, no further comment will be made at this time."

Salazar, a Cuban-born American marathon runner who has worked with Farah since 2011, was accused of violating anti-doping rules in a BBC documentary in 2015, including allegations he had given 2012 Olympic 10,000m silver medalist Galen Rupp the banned anabolic steroid testosterone.

Farah was exonerated by UK Athletics who found no impropriety on his part after receiving the initial findings of a review into his relationship with Salazar.

The latest Sunday Times article says that, according to the leaked document, Salazar took "egregious risks" and abused prescription rules by persuading Farah to take potentially dangerous doses of permitted vitamin D prescription drugs believing it would boost his performance through increased testosterone levels.

3rd party Ad. Not an offer or recommendation by Investing.com. See disclosure here or remove ads .

Farah's British doctors intervened because they were concerned about the effects on his health, the paper said, citing the leaked USADA report.

The Fancy Bear hackers have previously published data on athletes gained from the World Anti-Doping Agency administration and management system via an account for the Rio Games.

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.