Shane Sutton, former head coach of Team Sky and British Cycling, will not face further questioning in the medical court investigating Dr. Richard Freeman's order for test-gel testosterone.
Sutton left court Tuesday afternoon after Freeman's attorney, Mary O'Rourke, accused him of "doping" and being a "serial liar."
He lashed out during the hearing when O'Rourke suggested in a statement to the General Medical Council that he speculated that there was not just one box of test gels ordered in 2011.
"I don't need to be dragged into this stupid fight that this individual is trying to bring on me," Sutton replied, according to The Guardian.
"I was asked to come in here and answer whether I ordered the test gel. I did not."
Sutton hinted to the media that he would not be returning outside the Manchester court building.
"I would like to step away and reflect on what has been said and consider coming back on Thursday to defend myself against any allegations in this case," he said.
"I am quite disappointed in the way I have been singled out and feel I am being put on trial. I need to talk to my family and consider whether I want to give any further evidence."
On Wednesday afternoon, MPTS confirmed that Sutton would not return but that Peters would be the next witness called by the GMC.
Sutton, Freeman, and Peters were all senior managers at British Cycling and Team Sky when in May 2011, sachets of Testogel Testosterone were sent to the Manchester stadium where British Cycling and Team Sky were based. The team's success and process came under scrutiny after it was discovered
that the team's success was due to the fact that the team had been in the process of being renamed "Team Sky".
Freeman has already admitted to 18 of the 22 charges, including ordering 30 bags of Testogel and lying to UK Anti-Doping in an attempt to cover it up.
He has also been accused of ordering Testogel knowing it was for an unnamed athlete to take a small amount of testosterone, which could spark further investigations into doping in Team Sky (now Team Ineos) and British Cycling, and UK General Medical The company denies formal accusations by the Council of General Medical Councils that it knowingly ordered Testogel to take trace amounts of testosterone.
Freeman's lawyers claim that the test gel was for Sutton, who allegedly bullied Freeman into ordering it for personal use to treat erectile dysfunction. Sutton denies having erectile dysfunction.
"Our allegation about Mr. Sutton is that he is a habitual and serial liar," O'Rourke said, justifying why she felt direct cross-examination of Sutton was necessary, according to the Guardian and other media reports. He is an addict to doping."
Sutton quickly fired back when O'Rourke also claimed that an anonymous witness told her that small bottles of testosterone were stored in Sutton's home refrigerator in the late 1990s. Sutton denied all accusations.
"You call me a liar, but you don't even know me. I just think you are completely out of line. You don't know me, so there should be an apology," Sutton said at the hearing.
When O'Rourke told Sutton that he instructed Freeman to order the test gel, Sutton said: "Who is lying? I am sorry, but you are lying through your teeth. I can look you in the eye and swear on my three-year-old daughter's life.After nearly two hours of intense questioning and an equally intense response from Sutton, he abandoned the courtroom and warned that he might never return.
Despite Sutton's absence, the hearing will continue on Thursday.
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