07/02/2024

Italy lifts ban on hypobaric chambers

The historic ban on the use of hypobaric chambers by Italian athletes, regulated by the criminal anti-doping law 376/2000, has recently been lifted, reveals La Gazzetta dello Sport.

The law states that "the use of the hypobaric chamber is not prohibited; the athlete who resorts to this practice must remain under the strict supervision of the sports doctor before and after using the hypobaric chamber".

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Wada (the world anti-doping agency) does not provide for a ban on hypobaric chambers, but Italy was the only country to ban their use. This meant that Italian athletes, both in Italy and abroad, who used an Italian sports license could not use a hypobaric tent or chamber.

The camera, equated with "doping instruments and practices", was liable to disqualification and even criminal prosecution. Foreign athletes who used this instrument on Italian territory also ran the risk of being punished, since the camera was prohibited not by a sports law, but by a criminal law.

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The chambers progressively reduce the amount of oxygen available in the blood, simulating high-altitude conditions. This forces the body to naturally produce more red blood cells, thus increasing the percentage of oxygen available for physical exertion. It takes at least two weeks at altitude or in a hypobaric chamber to see concrete benefits in blood oxygenation. Stefano Oldani, winner of a stage of the 2022 Giro d'Italia, spoke on the subject at the time: "My teammates prepared for the Tour de France in Spain in hypobaric chambers. I had to go and train at altitude in Teide, in the Canary Islands."