Dr Richard Freeman has now been accused of obtaining testosterone for a non-athlete member of staff, while “knowing or believing it was to be administered to an athlete to improve their athletic performance.”
Former British Cycling and Team Sky doctor Freeman is facing a medical misconduct panel over allegations he ordered the banned substance to British Cycling headquarters in 2011 and lied in an attempt to cover it up.
The initial allegations for the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) misconduct hearing said that Dr Freeman ordered Testogel patches to administer to an athlete to improve their performance, however the allegations were altered after the tribunal started.
During the first day of the misconduct hearing, held in Manchester on Monday (October 29), Dr Freeman’s legal representative Mary O’Rourke QC said her client will admit to ordering the substance and to telling a lot of lies, but will deny acquiring the testosterone to improve an athlete’s performance.
Freeman has admitted 19 of the 22 GMC charges, denying that the 30 testosterone sachets were ordered for an athlete to dope.
According to The Times, Freeman will claim that he ordered the testosterone for former British Cycling technical director and former Team Sky head coach Shane Sutton.
Sutton denies this claim however, saying he knew nothing of the testosterone delivery until he was interviewed by UK Anti-Doping.
Dr Freeman’s new statement resulted in the General Medical Council, which investigated the case, applying to change the allegations.
After getting under way on Tuesday, October 29, the hearing was delayed while the tribunal decided on whether to allow the change of allegation, and on Thursday morning (November 7), the tribunal chair announced that the allegations could be changed.
The new allegation says: “You [Dr Freeman] placed the order and obtained the Testogel when you knew it was not clinically indicated for the non-athlete member of staff
“Knowing or believing it was to be administered to an athlete to improve their athletic performance.”
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Dr Freeman’s legal representative also made a successful application to the tribunal for him to be treated as a vulnerable witness, which means he will need additional breaks, will evidence for no more than three hours per day, he will be shielded from the public gallery when he gives evidence, and he will be shielded from Sutton when Sutton gives evidence.
The hearing is scheduled to run until December 20.
