Froome: Impossible to say if Wiggins operated in a grey area

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Chris Froome has told Cyclingnews that it "is impossible to say if Bradley Wiggins was operating in a grey area" after the revelations surrounding Wiggins' use of the powerful corticosteroid triamcinolone acetonide before the 2011 and 2012 Tours de France, and the 2013 Giro d'Italia. Wiggins won the Tour in 2012, becoming the first British rider to do so. According to the rider, he was prescribed the substance to treat allergies, and the UCI signed off on his TUE requests. No rules were broken, but Team Sky and Wiggins have faced questions over why such a powerful drug was needed and the timing of the administration.

Answering questions via email, Froome told Cyclingnews that, 'Yes I was surprised, it was the first that I had heard of them. Without knowing the exact details of his medical condition, it's impossible to say if he was operating in a grey area.

For more on this subject...

• Tour de France winners Froome and Wiggins named in confirmed 'Fancy Bear' WADA hack
• Bradley Wiggins explains TUE use, asthma and allergies
• Froome has 'no issues' with leaked TUE data from WADA hack
• Wiggins and Team Sky under fresh scrutiny over medical package delivery
• UKAD pushing for blanket ban on drug used by Wiggins
• Brailsford refuses to clarify contents of Team Sky's medical package

"With regards to Wiggins' TUE's, questions remain over his symptoms, the choice of treatment and the related performance benefits from that treatment."

In light of the revelations, Froome added, however, that the rules surrounding TUEs needed to be tightened and urged WADA and the UCI to work together over the matter. When asked if Team Sky should join the MPCC, he wrote that it would not solve the wider issue of equality.

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