The Jumbo-Visma team manager revealed to the Dutch magazine RIDE Magazine the details of the positive doping test of the German cyclist, Michel Hessmann. He explained, among other things, how the team approaches the issue of medication that athletes need to use.
“Wednesday, August 16, 2023, was a sad day for our team,” Plugge wrote in the Dutch publication. “For the first time in ten years, we received the message that a cyclist from our team, Michel Hessmann, had tested positive for doping. We have to look at ourselves in the mirror, are we doing everything right?”
“Germany has an anti-doping law in which the Public Prosecutor’s Office is involved. Criminal law presumes innocence, while sports law thinks the opposite. It is up to the athlete to prove they did nothing wrong. If the test is done correctly, there are two possibilities: it’s either conscious doping or contamination from a supplement or another medication,” explained Plugge.
“It is, therefore, mandatory within our team to use only supplements and medications that have been batch-tested for doping substances to minimize the risk of contamination. Many products contain traces of other substances.”
“Cyclists (winners or wearers of the leader’s jersey) are tested between thirty and 150 times a year. This is good and should continue. We advocate for a fair sport in which talents compete on equal terms,” Richard Plugge concluded.