British cyclists were given ketones and warned they could trigger doping violations as part of tests conducted by UK Sport for the London 2012 Olympics. An investigation by the Mail on Sunday (opens in new tab) revealed that the government agency that funds Olympic and Paralympic sports in the UK had spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on a secret project to test the effects of the controversial substance. The project was run with the apparent involvement of Research and Innovation Manager Scott Drower, who went on to work for Team Ineos (then Team Sky) from 2016 to 2018. Drower declined to comment to the Mail on Sunday, and Team Ineos told Cycling News that it never used DeltaG, a brand of ketone drink. Ketones, a synthetic form of energy produced during fasting, are not banned under anti-doping rules but are believed to have performance-enhancing effects, raising ethical concerns and health concerns due to potential side effects.

According to the Mail on Sunday, 91 athletes in eight sports participated in trials in 2011 and 2012 for the purpose of using ketones during Olympic build-up events and competitions. At the time, UK Sport called the project a "research trial" because ketones were being developed with the US Special Forces and were not commercially available.

The athletes had to sign a waiver accepting full responsibility for the risks involved and sign a confidentiality agreement to keep everything private. To combat the "negative perception and reputation" arising from potential leaks, UK Sport was to launch a PR plan focused on Team GB being "ahead of its competitors."

As part of the information sheet, UK Sport warned athletes of the potential complications of anti-doping and even encouraged that the use of ketones was "difficult to prove."

"UK Sport does not warrant, promise, affirm, or represent that the use of ketone esters will absolutely comply with the World Anti-Doping Code and therefore excludes all liability for the use of ketone esters," the document said.

"WADA may exercise its right to regulate, take blood samples and retrospectively test old samples. This could occur if the concept is leaked or if there is media pressure. However, ...... ketosis is a temporary physiological condition that would be difficult to prove or test in a post-event sample.

British Cycling confirmed that it was involved in the trials, saying that ketones were administered to "some cyclists," although it did not specify which disciplines.At the 2012 Olympics, Great Britain dominated cycling, winning seven of the ten gold medals in track won.

The Mail on Sunday reported that 40% of athletes who participated in the trail reported side effects such as vomiting and stomach problems, with 28 of them abstaining as a result. An additional 24 stopped taking ketones because they did not feel any benefit.

"It is horrifying that (UK Sports) would test an unknown substance on our athletes. Not only that, but they have their athletes sign waivers and confidentiality agreements so that they can never speak out or complain if something goes wrong," runner Emma Jackson told the Mail on Sunday. 'They are playing with people's lives. Failing a drug test could end a person's career. I am also totally surprised that some of the players have agreed to these conditions."

UK Sport claimed that the testing was conducted to high ethical standards and that it consulted UK Anti-Doping and the World Anti-Doping Agency before commencing.

"As the national high performance sports agency, UK Sport invests in specialist institutions that deliver research and innovation projects to support the success of national sports teams. These projects range from designing world-class technical equipment for athletes to supporting athlete health and performance," the statement said.

"These research and innovation projects will be conducted within the rules of international sport, in accordance with the highest ethical standards, and evaluated by an expert, independent research advisory group. Consultations will be held with UKAD and WADA as necessary to ensure that the projects comply with international anti-doping regulations.

"The ketone ester project received independent ethical approval from the Research Advisory Group in January 2012. In addition, UK Anti-Doping, after seeking clarification from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), confirmed in writing that WADA "has no reason to consider such substances as prohibited substances in the 2011 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods."