should riders be controlled at 3 am ?

[python]

a simple yes/no poll:

one of the wada io recommendations was to test riders at night.

wake’em up drag’em in a sanitized room, suck some blood, make’m pee in a bottle at 3 am and let’em have some legal sleeping pills if they whine.

do you agree ?

some call it a witch hunt, some call it insane.

some say ‘zero tolerance’ never sleeps.

 

[Barrus]

The problem with that proposition is that it would be detrimental to those riders that are tested compared to those that are not. This would especially be the case in a stage race. It therefore breeds even more chances for corruption, as the officials can indirectly influence the outcome of races. This leads me to vote no

 

[scribe]

Seems impractical. There have got to be other ways to get to the positive controls if they are to be had.

 

[python]

The problem with that proposition is that it would be detrimental to those riders that are tested compared to those that are not. This would especially be the case in a stage race. It therefore breeds even more chances for corruption, as the officials can indirectly influence the outcome of races. This leads me to vote no

i agree. tbh, just having the mind set for getting the riders up this early in the middle of a grand tour is not right.

current rules allow iirc knocking on the door between 6 am and 10 pm. the anti-doping bodies should imo put the onus on the test developers, not the riders.

if the current window of detectability is shorter than 8 hours, make it longer.

 

[Arnout]

The problem with that proposition is that it would be detrimental to those riders that are tested compared to those that are not. This would especially be the case in a stage race. It therefore breeds even more chances for corruption, as the officials can indirectly influence the outcome of races. This leads me to vote no

Exactly. It's the same as doping, only legally and the other way around.

Funny also that WADA talks about comfort. I bet none of this WADA officials ever slept in a less than 3 star hotel and none of them ever did a 3-week GT. Stupid *****. They should get up in the night and do the controls themselves.

 

[hrotha]

In special circumstances, aimed at a suspicious rider (a 10 in the biological passport or something) and trying to detect substances that wouldn't be detectable otherwise, I think I would support it.

 

[mtb Dad]

Why not? Sounds like they're up then anyway, reinfusing, diluting and microdosing. What's one more thing?

 

[Ferminal]

In special circumstances, aimed at a suspicious rider (a 10 in the biological passport or something) and trying to detect substances that wouldn't be detectable otherwise, I think I would support it.

Maybe it would be OK that way.

I think it's a bit much though - not the intrusion, but the disturbance to someone at that time of their sleep during the middle of a GT.

 

[python]

i just thought of another hurdle..iirc, one country's civil court in europe (spain ?) ruled it was against the human rights to bother people at night unless there was a criminal intent shown.

can someone with better legal connections check on what the eu law says about that ? it could be a non-strater anyway unless pt races are moved from europe to say africa or china.

 

[Benotti69]

If they don't like it, stop the doping..

 

[Altitude]

If they don't like it, stop the doping..

Don't be ridiculous

 

[Benotti69]

Don't be ridiculous

they are trying to catch dopers, let's wait till the dopers are ready?

the dopers are breaking the rules so they wanna do that? tough!

 

[Arnout]

they are trying to catch dopers, let's wait till the dopers are ready?

the dopers are breaking the rules so they wanna do that? tough!

So what if you're not a doper and you have to wake up at 5am (meaning you lose 3 hours of sleep) on a decisive day?

Is that fairer than your opponent doping? I doubt it.

 

[meandmygitane]

The problem with that proposition is that it would be detrimental to those riders that are tested compared to those that are not. This would especially be the case in a stage race. It therefore breeds even more chances for corruption, as the officials can indirectly influence the outcome of races. This leads me to vote no

You don't have to wake them up!

Just let the WADA guys tiptoe in, jab a thin needle into a buttock and then stalk out.

EDIT: Or they could limit it to people suspected to be doping by suspicious values in the blood passport...

 

[pedaling squares]

No. During competition you could wreck the following day's ride for the rider and a roommate. Out of competition you could get punched out by a wife or girlfriend. Or both. No win situation.

Where's blackcat? Didn't he have a thread on sequestering riders for a GT?

 

[JMBeaushrimp]

So what if you're not a doper and you have to wake up at 5am (meaning you lose 3 hours of sleep) on a decisive day?

Is that fairer than your opponent doping? I doubt it.

Wouldn't hurt to create a little internal tension and impetus within the peloton...

 

[Mich78BEL]

No, if they allow this it will be totally over the top.

 

[Barrus]

i just thought of another hurdle..iirc, one country's civil court in europe (spain ?) ruled it was against the human rights to bother people at night unless there was a criminal intent shown.

can someone with better legal connections check on what the eu law says about that ? it could be a non-strater anyway unless pt races are moved from europe to say africa or china.

Would probably be based on the right to privacy, however as far as I know no such case has been brought before the ECHR (European Court of Human Rights) only if such ruling was made would this be part of the legal interpretation of privacy (at least I presume it was based on this) in the entire of Europe + Russia and a few other countries. This is because I doubt the EU would do anything about this, and if they did I would argue that it is outside of the competencies

 

[jimmypop]

When EPO mega-dosing was in full effect, they'd hop out of bed at intervals anyway to keep the blood pumping.

 

[MacRoadie]

Point of clarification.

Does it actually state anywhere that they are recommending 3:00 am testing, or does it just say "night time" or "at night"?

 

[Oldman]

Point of clarification.

Does it actually state anywhere that they are recommending 3:00 am testing, or does it just say "night time" or "at night"?

The big problem, according to the WADA report of the Tour: riders with a risk rating of 10, the highest; weren't tested at all. Don't wake up the vast majority when you don't even test high-risk guys, some in contention for stages and the GC. Hopefully WADA will produce the list of non-testers by UCI including the risk ratings.

 

[Kodiak]

Chaperones for all. with as much money is coming around these days then the UCI/WADA should hire and put vetted personnel with the teams to monitor all travels and people coming and going from the team billeting.

 

[masking_agent]

its all a little too late.. 7 tours too late in fact

 

[Arnout]

Wouldn't hurt to create a little internal tension and impetus within the peloton...

What? That's like saying referee's should sometimes randomly give a team an extra goal, as it will create a bit of tension and excitement

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

I'm baffled 11 people voted yes.

I'm sorry but you must be either a complete moron without a brain, or a total nut who has never ridden a bike if you vote that.

You CANNOT disturb night rest, and certainly not during something as exhausting as a one-week or grand tour. It will make the competition unfair, something anti-doping controls should actually try to prevent.

If rider A gets a control at night, he is worthless the next day, while rider B had a good sleep and takes the advantage. It's really not hard to understand.
This should, never, ever, be allowed. Because it's way to cheat a competition, something doping controls should avoid, instead of do.

Worst idea in the history of WADA.