Richard Freeman claims he ‘would never put a rider in serious harm’s way’
Dr Richard Freeman, the previous British Cycling and Team Sky physician, claimed he had “never, ever taken any undue risks with a rider” and one had “never come across any harm” as a results of his care at his fitness-to-practice listening to.
Freeman has admitted 18 of the 22 fees in opposition to him, which embody ordering 30 sachets of testosterone gels to the Manchester Velodrome 9 years in the past and mendacity to British Cycling and UK Anti-Doping about it.
However, he denies the General Medical Council’s central cost of “knowing or believing” the Testogel was to be administered to a rider to help their efficiency.
While Freeman stated the character of elite sport means pushing the boundaries sometimes is a necessity, he informed a Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service listening to that a rider’s security was all the time of paramount significance to him.
“My job is to protect the health of the riders even against themselves,” he stated. “We do have to take risks because these are elite sportsmen, there’s no time to sit down if they have asthma or something. They all want to win but it’s not at all costs. You have to take a risk/benefit analysis, this is elite sport.
“I would never, ever take risks or put a rider at serious harm’s way and I have to be prepared to fall on my sword and if senior management sack me then so be it. I have never, ever taken any undue risks with a rider and they have never come across any harm because of my care. I will stand to that until my last breath.”
Freeman contends that he was bullied into ordering the Testogel by former British Cycling and Team Sky technical director Shane Sutton to deal with erectile disfunction, with each claims strenuously denied by the Australian.
Freeman reiterated that he finds Sutton “intimidating and frightening even now” as his cross-examination entered its seventh week, with the medic answering questions from his QC Mary O’Rourke for the primary time on Tuesday. Up till now, Freeman has been responding to the GMC’s QC Simon Jackson as a cross-examination that was anticipated to final 5 days was heard over six weeks.
“I’m here to assist the tribunal and tell the truth,” Freeman stated. “I was never told how long it was going to be. So many times I felt ambushed and unprepared. I have found that pressure very difficult. I’m not impatient but I have thought, ‘Let’s move on’. Sometimes I felt I could have done better [when responding to Mr Jackson]. But I was determined to finish.”
Asked whether or not he thought he may have supplied higher solutions if the cross-examination was throughout a shorter timeframe, he added: “I think I would have given much better evidence and it would have been a much fairer hearing.”
The tribunal continues on Wednesday.
