Report: UCI may approve ketone use
After a multi-year study by the UCI of the controversial use of ketone supplements in pro cycling, the sport's governing body may vote this fall to approve their use, reports Cycling Weekly.
Ketones are made naturally in the human body in the liver as a byproduct of fat metabolism and can be used as an alternate fuel source, which preserves muscle glycogen stores. They are already used in the sport by some pro teams, including Visma-Lease a Bike and Soudal-Quick Step, but there is disagreement over whether they should be allowed in the sport. Those concerns stem both from questions about performance enhancement and side effects (high levels of ketones can be harmful). The Movement Pour un Cyclisme Credible, an association of teams and riders that campaigns against doping in the sport and which counts seven WorldTeams among its members, is opposed to their use.
But numerous studies have produced conflicting verdicts on whether they improve performance, and the UCI's study, originally set to last two years, instead took four. Its results have not yet been released. According to Cycling Weekly, the report showed a "positive outcome" that suggests ketone use could be approved. The UCI's Pro Cycling Council and its Management Council will be shown the report this fall at the World Road Championships in Rwanda and vote on whether to allow the substance's use. [Cycling Weekly]
