Brailsford insists he never crossed the line in terms of cheating but a series of events led some people to doubt that
As moments in advertising folklore go, it was not quite Don Draper pitching to Kodak or Lucky Strikes in between old fashioneds and extramarital shenanigans, but when Team Sky unveiled their signature look in 2010, cycling’s mad men were impressed. The main colour was black but there was a light blue line that ran up the back of the riders’ jerseys and over their helmets. It was also on the bonnets and roofs of the team’s vehicles, too.
was investigating was that the Jiffy bag contained a dose of triamcinolone that would not have been covered by Wiggins’ TUE. If true, this would have been an anti-doping violation. Two months later, Brailsford told a panel of MPs on the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport select committee that he had been able to find out that the drug was Fluimucil, a legal decongestant available over the counter in France for the bargain price of about £7 .
that he did so because he was treating Sutton for erectile dysfunction, a story he repeated at a medical tribunal in 2019 when he was charged with the intention to dope an athlete and trying to cover that up. That case lasted for two years, as Freeman’s failing health caused several delays, but ended with him being permanently struck off the medical register.