UK Cycling to review medical practices

British Cycling has announced a review into its medical practices amid criticism as part of UK Anti-Doping's recent investigation.

The national governing body and Team Sky were criticised heavily for lax record-keeping as the investigation focused on the contents of a package, delivered to Team Sky in France at the end of the 2011 Criterium du Dauphine race.

Neither the team nor British Cycling was able to provide evidence of the package's contents and, earlier this year, UKAD chief Nicole Sapstead told MPs the governing body had no idea if the drugs in its medical store were intended for its riders or Team Sky's.

British Cycling has asked the English Institute for Sport's director of medical services Rod Jaques to conduct an independent review of its medical and physiotherapy teams' operational practices.

Doctor Jaques has already begun work, and will interview staff and appraise processes and policies on medical resourcing, management and record keeping. His report is expected in June.

"We are committed to providing the highest standards of medical support - that's why we've commissioned an external expert to scrutinise our existing processes and procedures and to make a series of recommendations on how we can improve," British Cycling's people director Michael Chivers said.

"We will not pre-judge what the recommendations might be, but we are keen to bring parity between performance and health and welfare, and to ensure we reduce the potential for conflicts of interest between a team's medical staff and its coaches."

UK Anti-Doping has been investigating allegations of wrongdoing affecting British Cycling and Team Sky.

Winners of four of the past five Tour de France events, Team Sky have been under scrutiny since October when it was revealed UKAD was looking into a claim former star rider Sir Bradley Wiggins was injected with triamcinolone - a powerful corticosteroid - at the end of the 2011 Dauphine event.

Via Fancy Bears computer hackers, it emerged last September that Wiggins was given permission for jabs of the otherwise-banned drug before his three biggest races in 2011, 2012 and 2013 - including his breakthrough Tour de France win in 2012. The now-retired rider, who has denied any wrongdoing, did not have permission to use it at the Dauphine, though.

Central to the investigation has been the contents of the package, hand-delivered by a British Cycling coach and sent from the National Cycling Centre in Manchester.

Dr Richard Freeman, former Team Sky medic, has said he cannot find any records to prove the package contained the legal decongestant called Fluimucil because he failed to follow team policy by sharing those records with colleagues. He then lost his laptop three years later on holiday.