For the Française des Jeux and BMC the verdict is clear: "The UCI regulation does not allow it to add elements that modify the fist of the cyclist; the Sky has clearly committed an infraction," they indicate. For them it is a case of Textile doping.
However, the president of the commissioners, Philippe Marien does not see it like this: "On the basis of the regulation I do not have legal certainties to prohibit this equipment. The results of the first stage are valid."
The Sky has also defended himself from the accusations, indicating that the vortex of the sleeves that took his runners "is not an addition to the clothes, but is integrated into the jersey." In fact, these jerseys were approved by the ICU at the beginning of the season and the British team used them in the Italian turn.
[embed] https://youtu.be/7_6ibzqimfk[/embed]
Despite BMC and Française complaints, the truth is that the use of more aerodynamic tissues has been common for years among the different teams of the platoon. For example, Movistar has a rubber fabric in its jerseys that offers lower wind resistance.
Cycling is a sport that is in a process of constant technological innovation, as long as the most important thing remains the legs of the corridor. Thus, for example, in 1989 Greg Lemond was the first cyclist to use triathlon couplings in a counterreloj. He ended up winning the Tour of France for 8 seconds after tracing a difference of 50 seconds in the last time trial to Laurent Fignon.
>>> The 10 innovations that have changed road cycling
Carbon bicycles, aerodynamic 'goats', such as Miguel Indurain's famous swords.
When we talk about doping, reference is usually made to the use of non -allowed substances that offer extra physical performance to the cyclist. In some cases with damage to your health. The world anti -doping agency is always alert to prevent some runners from playing with this advantage, adulterating the competition.
But there is another type of doping. Instead of providing a support point that goes beyond the physical capabilities of the cyclist, what it does is adulterate the equipment it uses. The most popular case is the so -called Technological doping, whose clearer example is that of alleged electric motors hidden in bicycles.
It is clear that consuming EPO or incorporating an engine into the bicycle pedalier are obvious cases of fraud. But is it also using a jersey with a more aerodynamic fabric than those of the rest of the runners?
The Française des Jeux de Pinot and BMC of Porte have denounced the use of maillots with vortex tissue by the Sky team before the Sky team. In his opinion, it is a case of textile doping, since this tissue favors aerodynamics and allows gain of power watts. This is how Chris Froome managed to put half a minute to his rivals in the barely 14 kilometers of the prologue stage of this tour.
Trap or simply innovation? The truth is that Sky is one of the great innovators of the platoon. It demonstrates it year after year by introducing new training methodologies and technologies that improve performance on the bicycle. Thus, for example, they were pioneers in the use of the potentiometer. This year his new as under the sleeve are the vortex jerseys.
Frederick Grappé, Development Director of the Française Des Jeux, says that the sleeves used by the Sky at this stage had an area similar to that of golf balls. This managed to improve air resistance by 5% and win 24 watts of power. Enough for Sky runners to be between 18 and 25 seconds faster than the rest, they denounce these teams.
For the Française des Jeux and BMC the verdict is clear: "The UCI regulation does not allow it to add elements that modify the fist of the cyclist; the Sky has clearly committed an infraction," they indicate. For them it is a case of Textile doping.
However, the president of the commissioners, Philippe Marien does not see it like this: "On the basis of the regulation I do not have legal certainties to prohibit this equipment. The results of the first stage are valid."
The Sky has also defended himself from the accusations, indicating that the vortex of the sleeves that took his runners "is not an addition to the clothes, but is integrated into the jersey." In fact, these jerseys were approved by the ICU at the beginning of the season and the British team used them in the Italian turn.
[embed] https://youtu.be/7_6ibzqimfk[/embed]
Despite BMC and Française complaints, the truth is that the use of more aerodynamic tissues has been common for years among the different teams of the platoon. For example, Movistar has a rubber fabric in its jerseys that offers lower wind resistance.
Cycling is a sport that is in a process of constant technological innovation, as long as the most important thing remains the legs of the corridor. Thus, for example, in 1989 Greg Lemond was the first cyclist to use triathlon couplings in a counterreloj. He ended up winning the Tour of France for 8 seconds after tracing a difference of 50 seconds in the last time trial to Laurent Fignon.
>>> The 10 innovations that have changed road cycling
Carbon bicycles, aerodynamic 'goats', such as Miguel Indurain's famous swords.
For the Française des Jeux and BMC the verdict is clear: "The UCI regulation does not allow it to add elements that modify the fist of the cyclist; the Sky has clearly committed an infraction," they indicate. For them it is a case of Textile doping.
However, the president of the commissioners, Philippe Marien does not see it like this: "On the basis of the regulation I do not have legal certainties to prohibit this equipment. The results of the first stage are valid."
The Sky has also defended himself from the accusations, indicating that the vortex of the sleeves that took his runners "is not an addition to the clothes, but is integrated into the jersey." In fact, these jerseys were approved by the ICU at the beginning of the season and the British team used them in the Italian turn.
[embed] https://youtu.be/7_6ibzqimfk[/embed]
Despite BMC and Française complaints, the truth is that the use of more aerodynamic tissues has been common for years among the different teams of the platoon. For example, Movistar has a rubber fabric in its jerseys that offers lower wind resistance.
Cycling is a sport that is in a process of constant technological innovation, as long as the most important thing remains the legs of the corridor. Thus, for example, in 1989 Greg Lemond was the first cyclist to use triathlon couplings in a counterreloj. He ended up winning the Tour of France for 8 seconds after tracing a difference of 50 seconds in the last time trial to Laurent Fignon.
>>> The 10 innovations that have changed road cycling
Carbon bicycles, aerodynamic 'goats', such as Miguel Indurain's famous swords.
