The BBC relentlessly hunted down Bradley Wiggins and all but called him a drug cheat despite there being no evidence of that whilst in contrast they gave Mo Farrah the all clear despite him missing two drug checks and his coach being investigated for alleged drugs infringements. Mo is black, an immigrant and Muslim, Wiggins is a successful white, working class British male….any reason the BBC chose to announce one as completely innocent of any wrong-doing whilst conducting a witch-hunt against the other? And of course Wiggins worked for Murdoch’s Sky team….no love lost there I expect….just as the BBC targets the Premier League’s funding for criticism…Sky again.
To be fair, Mark Daly, who investigated Salazar for Panorama, ended the programme with a warning that Farrah has been coached to world success by a man who has used banned methods, though there is no suggestion that Farrah is implicated…but…we were told…any athlete involved with Salazar should be seeking the assurances that they are not being put at risk in any way….so a suggestion that if they are taking drugs it might be without their knowledge, at least as to the legality of them….so a bit of a whitewashy, sitting on the fence comment. As usual though any such ‘controversial’ [in BBC terms] findings such as on specialist programmes such as Panorama don’t filter through to the troops on the ground at the BBC, the presenters and journalists on the everyday programmes who continue to push certain naratives regardless of facts often dug up by their own teams….we were repeatedly and loudly told Farrah was not implicated in the investigation when clearly he should have been part of it….how could he not be investigated, when as Daly said, he was coached by someone to ‘world success’ who used banned methods…is it likely just to be for a select few athletes on the same team?
But has the BBC now been forced to change tack? Is Mo being thrown to the wolves after more revelations in the Sunday Times? This line from the BBC might indicate change is in the wind….
The revelations will pile more pressure on Britain’s greatest ever endurance runner, who has steadfastly refused to end his association with Salazar.
It raises questions too for UKA, which gave the Briton the all-clear to continue working with Salazar after an inquiry was launched following the BBC Panorama programme.
Note how the BBC is now setting the UKA up for the fall…the BBC itself dodging any suggestion that it too whitewashed any thoughts that Mo might not be entirely clean….and the BBC is claiming the credit….and I’m guessing claiming a journalistic scoop trumps celebrating diversity…
Alberto Salazar has been under investigation since a BBC Panorama programme made allegations about drugs use at his US training base.
The BBC reports…
According to the Sunday Times, the leaked report claims that Salazar:
- used a banned method of infusing a legal supplement called L-carnitine;
- risked the health of his athletes, including Farah, by issuing potentially harmful prescription medicines to improve testosterone levels and boost recovery, despite no obvious medical need.
- The Sunday Times claims the Usada report also reveals:
- investigators have been impeded because Salazar and several athletes have “largely refused to permit Usada to review their medical records”;
- Farah received an infusion of the legal supplement L-carnitine in 2014, which Usada is continuing to investigate in case the method of infusion broke doping rules by going over the legal limit of 50ml.
It’s an interesting slant though…the coach ‘risked the health of his athletes’….as if the athletes were victims, possibly unaware of what was going on….isn’t it the athletes responsibility to know what they are taking?
And Farrah took prescription drugs, with no obvious medical need, to boost performance. When Wiggins legally took a drug for his asthma using the agreed procedures under the regulations this was denounced as ‘cheating’….even though he had a medical need for the drug….will there be so much ‘outrage’ over Farrah?
No drug which gives, as Salazar claimed, ‘incredible’ performance boosting effects can morally justifiable….might as well put the athlete on a motorbike…it’s not his own innate ability that would win the race….Wiggin’s asthma drug merely brought him back up to his normal level of performance as if he didn’t have asthma and so is not performance enhancing…as long as you actually have asthma.
I await the BBC’s developing reaction with interest. If he has taken drugs illegally will he be a victim, a fool or a cynical cheat? Will the BBC hunt him down as they hunted down Wiggins?
Mo had better watch out…nothing like a fallen hero, an icon of multiculturalism, to upset the BBC, its love and trust betrayed…..I’m guessing we won’t be hearing so much about Mo’s Muslim identity now if things turn out for the worse here.


