Carbon monoxide method Banned by the World Cycling Union, allowed by the doping hunters

SDA

5.2.2025 - 04:00

Ernst König, Director of Swiss Sport Integrity, knows all about doping issues. However, the UCI's ban on the carbon monoxide method also raises questions for him
Ernst König, Director of Swiss Sport Integrity, knows all about doping issues. However, the UCI's ban on the carbon monoxide method also raises questions for him
Keystone

From next Monday, the World Cycling Union (UCI) will ban the carbon monoxide method outside of medical facilities.

Keystone-SDA

It is not (yet) possible to speak of combating doping, as the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is not on board.

It has been quiet for six months, but now a communiqué from the UCI has reignited the issue of carbon monoxide. The world governing body has done this with a media release that raises more questions than answers for the layman. Ernst König, Director of Swiss Sport Integrity and thus virtually the highest Swiss doping hunter, helps to classify the ban from the world of cycling.

"This has nothing to do with doping regulation. This is a matter of adapting the UCI's Medical Rules," König clarifies right at the start of the phone call with Keystone-SDA. In addition to the WADA doping regulations, each world sports federation can also draw up its own rules, but not under the title of "combating doping".

The use of large quantities of toxic carbon monoxide at last year's Tour de France caused controversy. Research by the web magazine "Escape Collective" revealed that some teams and riders use devices that measure haemoglobin concentration and blood volume. On the other hand, these carbon monoxide rebreathers also allow the gas to be inhaled in small quantities, which - and this has not been proven - can lead to an increase in performance.

Now the world federation decided at the weekend to ban rebreathing outside of medical facilities. However, use "in a medically supervised environment, by competent medical personnel and in strict connection with the determination of the total mass of haemoglobin" is still permitted.

The comparison with Stefan Luitz

König can only base his classification of this decision on the UCI communiqué. "Because it has nothing to do with us," he says, drawing a comparison with skier Stefan Luitz. The German had surprisingly won the giant slalom in Beaver Creak in December 2018, but was disqualified because he had been given oxygen before the start - which the FIS, but not WADA, had prohibited. Luitz and the German federation challenged the disqualification and were vindicated. The FIS's mistake: it allowed the whole thing to go ahead under the anti-doping regulations. Now the oxygen method is still banned, but is covered by the Medical Rules.

However, the UCI is not concerned with oxygen, but with carbon monoxide. The world governing body justifies the ban with the following words: "Our priority is to protect the health and safety of our athletes and today's decision is another important step in this direction." Repeated inhalation of carbon monoxide can "lead to acute and chronic health problems, such as headaches, lethargy, nausea, dizziness and confusion". Such symptoms could therefore "worsen at any time and lead to cardiac arrhythmia, seizures, paralysis and unconsciousness".

Is WADA following suit?

And at the end of the letter, the world federation officially calls on WADA to take a stand on the use of the carbon monoxide method both inside and outside of competitions.

König suspects a similar tactic behind this as with the drug tramadol, which is found in some painkillers. In 2019, the UCI added this drug to its internal list of banned substances, followed by WADA in 2024 - the substance tramadol is now banned within competitions under the doping regulations.

However, the head of the Swiss anti-doping organization points out: "I am not aware of any study that speaks of an increase in performance when inhaling carbon monoxide." Last summer, there was a lot of hype about this topic during the Tour de France, but since then it has been quiet again. "However, I and my colleagues don't want to rule out the possibility that the UCI has something up its sleeve." The ball is now in the court of sports science. "But that's just it: The method has been known for a long time and has never been a huge issue in the past."

How are controls and sanctions imposed?

The UCI has also not yet communicated how it intends to enforce the ban, let alone impose sanctions. The carbon monoxide rebreathing device can be used in a medical practice - this equipment can be used to measure the success of the camp very precisely after an altitude training camp.

What is a medical practice in a team that is accompanied by numerous doctors? Is the rebreather no longer allowed on the team bus or in the team hotel? Until when is it still a medical test and when is inhalation used to bring about the hoped-for improvement in performance? The UCI and its steering committee have yet to provide many answers.