Europe 1 with AFP 00:45, January 17, 2023

Former Sky and UK cycling team doctor Richard Freeman lost his appeal on Monday against the decision to remove him from the UK medical register, taken after he was found guilty of ordering testosterone from doping purposes.

A call, in vain.

The High Court has decided not to change the original verdict of the former Sky cycling team doctor.

In March 2021, the latter was removed from the British medical register after being found guilty of ordering patches that increase testosterone levels, with the aim of doping a runner in 2011. 

The court had considered in 2021 that his behavior was "fundamentally incompatible with the pursuit of his registration" with the order of doctors.

His legal team immediately announced that an appeal would be lodged, but this failed as the High Court found nothing wrong with the initial verdict.

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The subject of two charges

"JMW Solicitors is disappointed with the High Court's judgment dismissing Dr Richard Freeman's appeal against the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service's decision to remove his name from the medical register," its legal team said in a statement.

Freeman was additionally facing two charges from the UK Anti-Doping Agency (UKAD): one for possession of a banned substance and the other for tampering or attempting to tamper with an item of doping control. .

Those proceedings were halted following his appeal, but UKAD issued a statement on Monday saying it intended to reopen the proceedings.

"UKAD's case before the National Independent Anti-Doping Panel (NADP) was suspended in June 2021 pending the conclusion of the appeal to the High Court," the agency's statement said.

"Following confirmation of the outcome of the High Court appeal today, UKAD will contact the NADP and representatives of Dr Freeman with a view to resuming their proceedings against him," the statement read.

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18 of 22 counts admitted

Freeman admitted 18 of the 22 charges against him, but denied the central charge relating to the subject of a 2011 order for Testogel, a hormone treatment used to treat symptoms related to testosterone deficiency. .

He claimed at the time that the testosterone had been ordered to treat former performance manager Shane Sutton's erection problems, which Sutton denied.

The case has cast a shadow over Britain's national cycling team, which has become a dominant force at the Olympics, and the former Sky team, which won the Tour de France on several occasions in the 2010s.

The now ex-doctor, who was simultaneously employed by the British team and Sky - now Ineos Grenadiers - between 2009 and 2015, resigned from British Cycling in 2017 on health grounds after leaving the Sky team two years earlier.