In October 2013, MPCC asked World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) to add tramadol to the banned substances list. At the same time, the MPCC teams’ doctors formally committed during a general meeting not to administer tramadol anymore. Two representatives for MPCC doctors: Gérard Guillaume (FDJ) and Jan Mathieu (Lotto-Soudal) continue to claim that “tramadol should have nothing to do with sports – particularly with cycling”. Gérard Guillaume expresses his views on this topic: “with the ever going races throughout the year, tramadol exposes the rider to health issues because of its side effects which include drowsiness and dizziness. From a medical point of view, it’s irresponsible to administer this medication to a cyclist in the context of a competition.”
Jan Mathieu regrets that not all of the team doctors feel that way: “This year, I went on Belgian TV with the intention to explain that.” He adds “the non-MPCC teams disagree on that point.” He believes in “a committee with many physicians who discuss on several matters. We must no longer work on our own.” Tramadol remains part of the monitoring program on the banned substances list, as well as on the methods of WADA – the agency has still taken no action to include this medication in it.