On January 1, 2019, the international cycling federation added tramadol to its list of banned substances in the sport. In 2017, WADA’s monitoring program found that 61% of the positive samples for tramadol among all sports occurred in cycling. “The UCI (ban) is strictly for medical reasons, to keep athletes in cycling healthy.”Tramadol acts on the same receptor in the central nervous system as morphine and fentanyl. “I have seen tramadol overdose (in cyclists),” says retired pro cyclist Ian Mullins, who says he supports the UCI ban. Despite its high usage amongst pro cyclists and its health risks, WADA has defended its decision not to ban tramadol.

Source: National Post January 02, 2019 18:33 UTC