Pro cyclist: caught between a rock and a hard place....

Petacchi is suspended for using Slabutamol a drug used to treat bronchitis. My first gut reaction when I read the headline is that "here goes another doped up pro cyclist...." and "...when is all this catching/doping cycle going to end?...."

Then I gave Petacchi the benefit of the doubt and said "what if this guys is really sick and needs to get better so he can race the Giro and fulfill his duties as a professional athlete?"

I mean, I certainly have taken modern medicine to help me recover from illness so I can get to work, so why can't Petacchi or the thousands of other professional athletes?

But, where is the fine line between an athlete taking advantage of modern medicine to recover from an illness and those who abuse the system to gain training and/or racing advantage?

I supposed we rely on the medical industry--having doctors diagnose and vouch for ill athletes--to make sure athletes are taking medicine for the right reasons. But doctors have also been known to abuse the trust we give their station...the stories of team doctors "forcing" "vitamins" down the throats of pro athletes in a common one.

So, how do we connect the dots and clean things up? Or, can we? One thing's for sure...the cycle of mistrust is intricately wide and deep. It's hard to have hope for this sport with no real solutions in place. The war against drugs is rampant and if governments can't effectively gain ground against deeply entrenched drug circles, what chance do niche governing bodies have?

For one, I think this forces cyclist-enthusiasts to re-focus their love inward towards what they love about the sport for themselves and by themselves.



CAS suspends Petacchi

By Charles Pelkey
Posted May. 6, 2008


The International Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland, (CAS) ruled Tuesday that Italian sprint star Alessandro Petacchi will be ineligible to compete until August 31, because of a doping case stemming from last year's Giro d'Italia.

The 34-year-old Petacchi tested positive for the drug Salbutamol in May after one of his five wins in last year's Giro. The Milram sprinter was originally cleared of the charge by the Italian Cycling Federation (FCI) last July, which found that Petacchi overused his inhaler after the stage and may have accidentally swallowed some of the drug in the process. However, the the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) argued that since the level of the drug exceeded permitted levels, Petacchi should still be suspended and appealed the FCI ruling to CAS.

While noting that Petacchi may well have accidentally inhaled too much of the bronchodilator and bore "no significant fault or negligence," the CAS panel, nonetheless, suspended him for a year, but declined to impose a full two-year penalty.

"In order to establish no fault or negligence an athlete has to show that he used 'utmost caution,' the panel concluded. "Even on his own account, Mr. Petacchi took more than the authorized dose. He cannot establish that he used utmost caution."

"CAS has ruled that Alessandro Petacchi is ineligible to compete for a period of one year, less two months already served," the court noted in its decision. "Therefore, the period of ineligibility will run from 1 November, 2007, to 31 August, 2008."
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The court also ruled that all of Petacchi's results from the 2007 Giro should be scratched from the record books.

"All competitive results obtained by Alessandro Petacchi during the 2007 Giro d'Italia shall be disqualified with all of the resulting consequences including forfeiture of any medals, points and prizes," the court ruled. "Alessandro Petacchi can retain all other competitive results between 23 May 2007 and 31 October 2007, but all competitive results obtained after 31 October 2007, and during the period of ineligibility will be disqualified."

The ruling also negates the results of Petacchi's two stage victories at the recent Tour of Turkey.

Petacchi was accused of doping after a urine sample he gave at Pinerolo on May 23, 2007, the third of his five stage wins in last year's Giro, showed an unusually high level of Salbutamol, a substance primarily used to treat asthma.

Salbutamol is banned, but riders suffering from asthma are allowed restricted use of the drug if they have a medical certificate.

Petacchi has such a certificate ─ a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) ─ having suffered from asthma for many years. The World Anti-Doping Agency's prohibited list notes, however, that riders whose urine samples show a concentration of Salbutamol greater than 1000 nanograms per milliliter must prove that the elevated level is a result of normal therapeutic use. If a rider with a TUE produces a level lower than 1000 ng/mL the burden of proof falls to anti-doping authorities, if they wish to show a violation.

Studies have shown that in addition to aiding in the treatment of asthma, Salbutamol can be used to increase an athlete's anaerobic power. According to study results, peak power appeared significantly earlier and was noticeably increased after Salbutamol use.

Petacchi produced a level higher than the upper limit and was required to show that he did not take the drug orally or inject it and that his use of the inhaler was in keeping with its normal therapeutic use. Last year, the FCI ruled that Petacchi and his attorneys had met that standard of proof. A CAS panel, however, disagreed and ordered Petacchi’s suspension until August 31.

Despite the ruling, the panel did not accuse Petacchi of cheating.

"The panel is satisfied that Mr. Petacchi is not a cheat," the decision noted, "and that the adverse analytical finding in this case is the result of Mr. Petacchi simply, and possibly accidentally, taking too much Salbutamol on the day of the test, but that the overdose was not taken with the intention of enhancing his performance. Indeed, it would be an unusual way of attempting to enhance performance to take the prohibited substance after the particular event had concluded."

"In the circumstances, the panel is satisfied that Mr. Petacchi bears no significant fault or negligence ... therefore the panel can reduce the period of ineligibility."

The most significant impact of the ruling will come in July. Petacchi had already announced that he would not take part in this year’s Giro d’Italia, because he is suffering from bronchitis. He had, however, planned to participate in the Tour de France.

Since CAS is the sporting world’s highest court, Petacchi has no more options to appeal the decision.

Parents ban children from cycling on the road

Parents Ban Children From Cycling On The Road (from The Argus)

Parents ban children from cycling on the road
By Andy Chiles
Comment | Read Comments (4)

Tens of thousands of children are being banned from cycling because their parents are too worried to let them out on the road, a new survey has revealed.

The figures show that three-quarters of parents in the south of England will not let their children ride alone despite being aware of the health benefits.

Cycling England, which commissioned the report, said the state of heightened parental anxiety had caused a generational decline in cycling and the creation of what it called "cul-de-sac kids".
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The body's chairman Phillip Darnton said: "Somewhere along the line, our fears for our childrens safety have overtaken the reality of on-road accidents, which are in long term decline."

The figures have been released at the start of national Bike to School week, a time when it is hoped thousands more children will take to the saddle.

The statistics, based on a sample survey of 1,079 people, show that most parents now do not want their children cycling on the road until they are 12-years-old, compared to the previous average of ten.

Only 22 per cent of those surveyed said they let their children cycle to school, despite 44 per cent of them being allowed to do the same when they were younger.

Just five per cent of children did ride to school regularly despite 64 per cent living less than two miles away.

Cycling England said families had to overcome their own fears if they wanted their children, and future society, to enjoy the health and environmental benefits of using bicycles.

It said sending children on cycling courses like its Bikeability scheme was a good way of giving them and their parents the confidence needed for them to ride safely on the road.

Mr Darnton said: "Every parent will want to ensure their children are kept safe, but they can't live out their lives within the shadows of the cul-de-sac, never able to venture further away from home."

Interior designer Alison Mewett, of Kirby Drive in Telscombe Cliffs, near Brighton, said many parents felt drivers did not take enough care which made them more nervous about the safety of their children.

She said it was symptomatic of the generally over-protective nature of parents now.

Despite her concerns Mrs Mewett, who has become part of a national mums' panel promoting cycling, said her daughter Betsy-Blue, 12, would be riding to her school in Brighton as soon as work on a bike lane on the South Coast Road and Marine Drive was completed.

She said: "It's sad really that we worry about letting our children play outside and feel that we've got to watch them all of the time. I think we really need to let go, even if its a difficult thing to do.

"Of course it does worry me a bit when she's out cycling but she's 12 now and has been on the Bikeability level two course. I know she is quite confident on her bike so I feel a lot better about her riding."

12:01am Tuesday 6th May 2008

Chronic Fatigue part 3

The most challenging aspect of chronic fatigue for me surprisingly to most is not the actual fatigue. Rather, it's the side effects of fatigue that are causing me problems. Things such as losing my temper easily, being short with people, not having the ability to endure emotional discomfort and sort. This can and does cause havoc on my interpersonal relationships and to some degree I think it's led to unhappiness from my co-workers, which could be the reason why my boss has asked me to step down as VP of marketing.

I ended up going to "hot" Yoga on Friday and sweated my butt off. I felt the impact of being dehydrated throughout the weekend and am just starting to feel like I'm coming out of it. Follow the Yoga session with a 2 hour bike ride that dehydrated me further and it's a recipe for disaster. Sure enough I had a blow out with my significant other on Saturday night.

These are the toughest things for me with Chronic Fatigue....not the actual tiredness but the inability to take on life things that don't necessarily go my way.

For now, I've got a lot of water to drink to recover from the dehydration and am hoping this will aid my current tiredness.

Chronic Fatigue part 5: Epstein-Barr Virus

Epstein-Barr Virus: "Epstein-Barr Virus and Infectious Mononucleosis


DISEASE INFORMATION

Epstein-Barr virus, frequently referred to as EBV, is a member of the herpesvirus family and one of the most common human viruses. The virus occurs worldwide, and most people become infected with EBV sometime during their lives. In the United States, as many as 95% of adults between 35 and 40 years of age have been infected. Infants become susceptible to EBV as soon as maternal antibody protection (present at birth) disappears. Many children become infected with EBV, and these infections usually cause no symptoms or are indistinguishable from the other mild, brief illnesses of childhood. In the United States and in other developed countries, many persons are not infected with EBV in their childhood years. When infection with EBV occurs during adolescence or young adulthood, it causes infectious mononucleosis 35% to 50% of the time.

Symptoms of infectious mononucleosis are fever, sore throat, and swollen lymph glands. Sometimes, a swollen spleen or liver involvement may develop. Heart problems or involvement of the central nervous system occurs only rarely, and infectious mononucleosis is almost never fatal. There are no known associations between active EBV infection and problems during pregnancy, such as miscarriages or birth defects. Although the symptoms of infectious mononucleosis usually resolve in 1 or 2"

Chronic Fatigue part 3: more on Cytomegalovirus (CMV)

Cytomegalovirus (CMV): "Infection with cytomegalovirus (CMV), a member of the herpes virus family, is very common. Between 50% and 85% of people in the United States have had a CMV infection by the time they are 40 years old, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Children typically become infected with the virus in early childhood, especially those in child-care and preschool settings. CMV infections are rarely serious in otherwise healthy children and adults; they usually cause only mild symptoms, if any. When symptoms do appear, they are similar to those seen in mononucleosis ('mono') and only last a few weeks.

CMV is mainly a problem for certain high-risk groups, including:

* unborn babies whose mothers become infected with CMV during the pregnancy
* children or adults whose immune systems have been weakened by disease or drug treatment, such as organ transplant recipients or people infected with HIV

Once a person has had a CMV infection, the virus usually lies dormant (or inactive) in the body, but it can be reactivated. The virus is more likely to be reactivated – and cause serious illness – in people who have weakened immune systems due to illness.
Symptoms of CMV Infections

The symptoms of a CMV infection vary depending upon the age and health of the person who is infecte"

Chronic Fatigue Part2

I'm calling this part two because in yesterday's post I mentioned I have been diagnosed with EBV and CMV viruses, which are the precursors to chronic fatigue syndrome , also knows as Mono.

In a friend's Blog I mentioned that in my opinion, it's nearly impossible to soft-diagnose chronic fatigue in athletes because athletes are used to pushing themselves and have a high pain threshhold, which means they often associate complaining about aches, pains and fatigue as a potential sign of weakness, something you don't want to display to the competition or else they'll eat you up whole.


Athletes are used to being tired and fatigued....that's what training is all about....so to ask them how they're feeling, how they're recovering, how they're performing and/or other subjectively geared questions leaves room for error and athletes could be sick but not know it until it's way too late.

Such was the case with me; a lot of fatigue, a decrease in my recovery time , not necessarily a decline in my performance, but certainly an increase in the time I needed to recover (which I chalked up to getting older) and decline in my desire to work out. The biggest sign was my moodiness . Looking back, I became really short with people and lost my patience on several occasions. Again, I chalked it up to just being tired and stressed out from work, life, etc.

So, the question is how to you monitor the signs that could lead to the outbreak of chronic fatigue and the answer, in my opinion, is regular blood tests and a doctor who knows what to look for. If it wasn't for Dr. Harper's holistic knowledge of the human body, mixed with listening to me about what ails me, and him putting 2 and 2 together and ordering the right blood test, I would not have been diagnosed accurately.

And now, my course of remedy is taking it easy, eating well, hydrating and sleeping it off.

I should also mention that 90+% of the population have these viruses in our bodies. The EBV and CMV viruses in particular live in a dormant state in our livers. Only during times of stress, either physical, emotional or both, do they sense that the immune system is lowered and they come out to cause havoc in the body. This circles back to taking care of yourself, resting and recovering along with proper nutrition cannot be downplayed.

Finally, these viruses are passed along very easily through saliva and other body fluids; sharing a drink, using utensils, getting body liquids in your mouth, etc. People in day-cares and schools tend to get these viruses because kids tend to urinate a lot! and some times, as sick as this may sound, the urine ends up inside their mouths. The lesson here is not to sicken you but to share that these viruses are easily passed on, that the majority of us have them in our bodies and that if your immune system is functioning properly they'll remain dormant without causing too much trouble.

Rest, eat well, and drink plenty of good water!

Thanks for reading,
Kam

"We're putting the band back together"

John Belushi from the Blues Brother.

I am going to pull this Blog out of the depths of annonimity and begin contributing again. I'm not sure if there are any readers left! But I'm going to work on this Blog again and contribute knowledge for others to gain from. It's been since last August since I posted anything. A lot has happened since then and I'll go through the relevant items in quick-time format:

1. As most of you know, my mom was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of cancer in 2007. We decided best to move her to San Diego for us to manage her therapy. We are graetful for her health and pray for her continued recovery. Feel free to visit her Blog to find out how she's doing.
2. I took a job as VP of Marketing at IDEA Health & Fitness Association in August of 2007. IDEA has been a great experience for me and I got to work with some very passionate and dedicated people. Unfortunately I will not be continuing on with IDEA and am working on several options. More on this later.
3. We successfully put on the third of the Hoehn Motors Del Mar Criterium Series races in 2008. Although we only hosted 2 races this year (in 2006 we held 4 races, in 2007 we held 3), we believe this year to be our most successful year with over 700 racers and 2,000 spectators. Check out some of the video clips on the side of this Blog and/or visit the Del Mar Crit web site for pictures and video of the race.
4. I was recently diagnosed with a sever case of Ebstein Barr and Cytomaglo Viruses and have been recovering slowly. I simply pushed myself too hard physically and emotionally and my body gave out. I was constantly fatigued (very different than tired!!!) and not recovering from anything. All I wanted to do is sleep, but I was so distraught and stressed out with work and life that I couldn't sleep, which lent itself into a vicious cycle. Goes to show you that Chronic Fatigue can creep up on even the most knowing athletes and coaches!!!

That's it for now. More performance specific entries coming tomorrow.

Thanks for reading.

Kam