Brailsford calls on Cookson to implement data release system

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Team Sky principal Dave Brailsford has said he would be open to releasing more data from his riders in the future, and has made a personal plea to UCI President Brian Cookson to implement a wider system of data collection.

Chris Froome earned the British team a third Tour de France victory in four years in 2015, and such was the level of speculation he was forced to stomach, Sky took the step of releasing – mid-race – power data from the Pierre Saint Martin climb, where he had taken a stranglehold on the yellow jersey. Froome then took the extra step of subjecting himself to independent physiological testing after the race, the results of which were made public in December.

Speaking to Cyclingnews and a small gathering of journalists at Team Sky’s training camp in Mallorca, Brailsford told of how he recently wrote to Cookson asking him to lead the way in encouraging teams to release power numbers and other data in a clear and structured manner.

The ill feeling directed at Froome and the team at the 2015 Tour was more intense than ever, and they faced a barrage of questions, along with a headache over how best to calm things down and engage with the speculative voices.