Dr Richard Freeman’s medical tribunal has been adjourned until Friday morning after his legal team requested a delay. While no reason was specified, such an adjournment can only be given for health reasons or in exceptional circumstances.
Freeman, who faces a series of serious allegations including that he ordered banned testosterone for an unnamed rider while working for Team Sky and British Cycling, was not present when proceedings began in Manchester on Wednesday morning.
However Freeman’s legal representative Mary O’Rourke, who acted for Dr Eva Carneiro in her claim for constructive dismissal against Chelsea Football Club, immediately requested an adjournment.
After a two-and-a-half-hour delay the tribunal chairman, Stephen Mooney, granted the adjournment – and warned that it was likely that another one would be sought on Friday morning.
“The reasons for the adjournment cannot be made public at this time,” he said. “But I can say this, there is likely to be a further application on Friday morning which will involve legal argument and it is very likely to be held in private as well.”
Earlier Mooney had opened the tribunal by saying: “There are parts of this process which, on occasion, will be confidential. They could relate to an individual’s health. This is such an application.”
Responding to the news, a British Cycling spokesman said: “It is in the public interest and in the best interests of the sport that the allegations against Dr Richard Freeman are heard and examined by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service. We continue to support the General Medical Council’s work as historic questions need to be resolved.”
Freeman is due to face an allegation that he ordered 30 sachets of Testogel, which is on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s prohibited list, in May 2011 to be sent to the Manchester velodrome to “administer to an athlete to improve their athletic performance”.
The 57-year-old is also accused of lying to other members of British Cycling about ordering the drug, saying it was a mistake by the Oldham-based supplier Fit4Sport. Then, five months later in October 2011, he is alleged to have asked Fit4Sport “for written confirmation that the testosterone had been sent in error, returned and would be destroyed, knowing that this had not taken place”.
It is said that when questioned by UK Anti-Doping in February 2017 Freeman changed his story to say that he had ordered Testogel for a non-athlete member of staff but later returned it. But it is alleged that he “made untrue statements” to Ukad when he made these claims, and that his conduct was “dishonest”.
The 57-year-old, who denies any wrongdoing, is also alleged to have provided inappropriate treatment to non-riding staff aknd of haphazard record keeping.