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Blood transfusions risk athletes' health

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Russell Langley 10 June 2003

Athletes who receive illegal blood transfusions from team-mates and coaches are risking premature death according to Michele Verroken, Director of Drug-Free Sport at UK Sport.

Verroken was speaking in response to a BBC investigation which suggests that an increasing number of athletes are using such methods in a bid to enhance their performance.

The investigation draws on evidence from Dr Jim Carrabre, the International Biathlon Union Medical Committee’s Chairman who, talking about the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake city, said: "Probably 40% of the people I saw were either transfusing saline or using a blood transfusion."

Such transfusions would work in a similar way to Erythropoietin (EPO), which forces the body to produce more red blood cells thereby increasing the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood. This improves the stamina of an athlete, particularly important for those involved in endurance events.

The presence of EPO can be detected using a standard blood or, as agreed by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) this weekend, urine test, which might explain the temptation to transfuse blood instead.

However, as Verroken explains, the potential impact on an athlete’s health cannot be underestimated: "This form of blood transfusion could be extremely dangerous for any athlete involved. By increasing the thickness of their blood they put extra pressures on the heart which, in the worst case scenario, could lead to premature death."

At present, there is no agreed testing system in place to detect blood transfusion as a doping method. However, scientists at the Royal Prince Albert Hospital in Sydney say they have developed a method of testing which can pick up as little as one teaspoon of someone else’s blood in the circulation of an athlete.

"As the organisation responsible for promoting ethically fair and drug-free sport in the UK, UK Sport is fully supportive of any work being done to catch cheats," Verroken added.

"What’s important now is that WADA looks further into this area, as it has done with EPO, and makes progress towards implementing a test which is comprehensive, fair and protects the rights of athletes who want to compete on a level playing field."

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