POSTED ON FACEBOOK TODAY. To all my friends: I would like to provide an explanation to shed light on the predicament in which I find myself. The penalty that I have received is for not seeking the necessary approval, prior to competition, for chronic blood pressure and oedema medication that had been prescribed for an existing medical condition. This medication is not performance enhancing. To the contrary it has a negative effect on performance and is not recommended for use by healthy individuals. ...The chronic medication was prescribed by a long-standing medical practioner,Dr D. Welgemoed, familiar with my medical history. He is aware that Adco-Retic has an overall negative effect on endurance athletes, however, the treatment selection was informed by my pre-existing medical condition. He did not consider the medication as a violation of cycling's drug list, as it has no performance enhancing effect. The mistake that I made was that I did not familiarize myself with the process of SAIDS and was not aware of the TUE process. Therefore, I did not submit the necessary request for use during competition to SAIDS for approval. I would like to make it clear that: * I always declared the use of Adco-Retic during drug tests, assuming that the declaration would be sufficient * I never avoided or missed a drug test * I have never being implicated in any drug violation- including blood testing * I immediately applied for the TUE after being made aware that it is required for the medication that I had been prescribed * I was open, honest and co-operative during the whole investigative process * I have abstained from taking part in events when I was aware that the TUE process had been violated * I now have sought medical advice and treatment in an attempt comply to SAIDS and WADA rules Yours sincerely Yolande de Villiers
