Michael Rasmussen mocks Team Sky for posing in front of pharmacy

Team Sky have been criticized for their use of pharmacological products to treat illness and potentially enhance performance in the past years. From the therapeutic use exemptions received by Bradley Wiggins and the mysterious jiffy bag from the 2011 Critérium du Dauphiné to Froome’s adverse analytical finding for salbutamol, the team’s relationship with pharmacological substances has been questioned. Calling the team out for taking a photo with a pharmacy in the background is next level scrutiny.

Giving the current situation regarding Froome and @TeamSky I would probably have chosen another background for the picture. #pharmacie https://t.co/0UnkJ074ny

— Michael Rasmussen (@MRasmussen1974) January 21, 2018

Michael Rasmussen, who in 2013 admitted to using doping products throughout his career, called out Team Sky for taking a picture in front of a pharmacy on a recent training ride in Mallorca where part of the team has gathered for a training camp.

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“Giving the current situation regarding Froome and Team Sky I would probably have chosen another background for the picture,” Rasmussen wrote replying to Wout Poels Tweet of a picture of the team eating pastries and having a coffee in a square on the Spanish island. In the background, a green sign indicates the presence of a pharmacy.

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Sky has so far avoided any reprimand for the use of medical products as it’s fallen in a grey area but not outside of the law according to officials. That may all change with Froome’s failed doping control. While the presence of elevated levels of salbutamol have not triggered an automatic suspension, Froome needs to present a convincing explanation to avoid a possible suspension and having his Vuelta a España title stripped.