Tadej Pogacar responds to carbon monoxide investigation: "I don't know anything about it"
CyclingWednesday, 17 July 2024 at 10:50
This week in the Tour de France was marked by a history-changing climbing performance at Plateau de Beille from Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard, which coincidentally came just days after the release of an investigation from Escape Collective that warned to the possibility that riders in the peloton could be using carbon monoxide inhalation to improve performance. This topic was brought up to Pogacar after stage 16, but the Slovenian has shrugged off the idea.
Stage 16 promised to be a day where the wind would make the difference, but this turned out not to be the case. "I'm glad it wasn't as windy as expected. There were some crucial points where we wanted to be at the front, but overall it was a fairly easy stage. I'm glad this stage is behind us," Pogacar said in a post-race interview. "The stages for the sprinters in the Tour de France are unique in a way, because there is always some kind of danger that you have to watch out for. There are often still some tricky points, so you always have to stay focused if you want to stay out of trouble until the finish."
Pogacar arrived a few seconds after stage winner Jasper Philipsen, but because of Biniam Girmay's crash, there was no time loss or changes for the GC contenders. The yellow jersey has hence navigated the most dangerous days without losing time, even though UAE Team Emirates was nowhere near the support of Team Visma | Lease a Bike this Tuesday afternoon in the very nervous finale.
"So I'm glad the sprint stages are over. Even though there are still some tough days to come. Wednesday's stage for example, because it can be windy at the beginning and there are still some tough climbs to conquer at the end," he said of tomorrow's stage into Super-Devoluy where he may be tested by Jonas Vingegaard. "I think it's a stage for the breakaways, just like the day after. In the last three stages we will come out on top as GC riders".
Lastly in the press conference, as pointed out by former pro Michael Rasmussen, Pogacar was asked about the investigation which connected UAE Team Emirates and Team Visma | Lease a Bike as some of the teams that have access to technology that may be used to carbon monoxide inhalation. Israel - Premier Tech is another, but different teams gave different responses to their use of it, mostly agreeing on testing the riders' physiology. Pogacar's response to this topic being brought up is quite unusual however: "I don't know anything about it. I thought it was something coming out of the cars".
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- Like all of us, remembering his younger days and imagining he can still do the same ;-)Mistermaumau27-05-2025
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KerisVroom27-05-2025 - If there's anything that I learned from the Fast and Furious franchise, it's all about the family. Jonas is the embodiment of the F&F franchise.KerisVroom27-05-2025
- I don't buy that. Maybe the reason for being chased down was to control GC more than increase lead however Frigo was riding for Gee for a bit before UAE closed if back down. Frigo was literally born along the route. He spent tons of holidays there too. They just had to follow him if gets sketchy.HoopoeChai27-05-2025
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- It is certainly unbelievable that Merckx would ever have used doping. And this story is further proof that he is innocent.JoostMehrtens27-05-2025
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So the next day he says he knows about it. So lies on the first day and retract the lies on the next day.
"Yesterday, I didn't quite understand the question. It was not a question posed like this," Pogačar said when it was put to him that his UAE team had already confirmed their use of the equipment.
"It's a test in altitude camp to see how you respond to altitude. You need to do this test, it's like a two- or three-minute-long test. You breathe into a balloon for one minute and then you see the haemoglobin mass, and then you need to repeat it two weeks after.
"But I did just the first part of the test. I never did the second part because the girl who was supposed to come after two weeks didn't come. It's not like we're breathing exhaust pipes every day in the cars. It's just a pretty simple test to see how you respond to altitude training."
This seems like a misunderstanding... Unless a cyclist asks/is interested about how tests work and the science behind each diagnostic i doubt the teams spend time explaining the science. No surprise Tadej wouldn't know it was carbon monoxide used in the test
Yeah, right.
Is it carbon dioxide (CO2)?
No, it is carbon monoxide (CO).
Here is explanation quote from Escape Collective:
CO inhalation can itself provide similar effects to altitude training. By inducing hypoxia – a state of oxygen deprivation – CO inhalation can be used to prolong or even replace the performance-enhancing benefits of altitude training. It can also be used in conjunction with altitude training to maximise gains, as part of an approach called “super altitude.”
Thanks.
Carbon monoxide inhalation - what next, drugs...
Jonas gave a better answer to this.
He said that they used it when they arrived to altitude camp and the day they leave. He went through the process, and said that the test was like smoking a cigarette, and they only used it to test.
I just can't picture Jonas smoking a cigarette.
I doubt he ever has, hahaha, but he was told that was the comparison to the amount of carbon monoxide they were exposed to in order to get the test done.