After urging the World Anti・Doping Agency (WADA) to take a stance on the use of carbon monoxide (CO) at the annual Uci Women's WorldTour And WorldTour Seminar on May 11, the uci took further action by calling for an official ban on its use.

Uci President David Lappartient shared the announcement on social media after joining WADA's board of Directors in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

"On behalf of @Uci_Cycling, we have formally requested WADA in writing to ban the use of carbon monoxide in the context of professional cycling following the annual UCI Women's World Tour and UCI World Tour," Lappartient told X (formerly Twitter).

The use of carbon monoxide (CO) was first revealed during the Tour de France when it was discovered that several teams were using carbon monoxide (CO) to enhance advanced training. First discovered by the Escape Collective, teams such as Visma-Lease A Bike, UAE Team Emirates and Israel-Premier Tech were found to be using CO rebreather to measure and optimize riders' altitude training.

Riders Tadej Pogañar and Jonas Vingegaard also confirmed that they were aware of the re-breathing apparatus and were using it at least partially. 

Initially, the Movement for Reliable Cycling (MPCC) strongly advised against the technology in May and suggested that it should eventually be banned after they said they had no plans to seek a ban on CO rebreathers.

Detalo Health, the company behind rebreathers, which is used by multiple WorldTour teams, told cyclingnews that it needs to be more specific on what the MPCC calls to be banned.

"The use of carbon monoxide as a medical diagnostic tool is, of course, not about improving performance, but with a completely different intent as a diagnostic tool. And it, of course, should not be banned, or should not be banned. Therefore, there needs to be a clear and clear treatment between the two," said Carsten Lundby, CEO of Detalo Health and professor at the University of Southern Denmark.

At the Annual UCI Seminar in Nice, France, participants were also up-to-date on their current knowledge of the performance effects of repeated inhalation of carbon monoxide (CO). The UCI asked riders and teams not to use "repeated inhalation" of deadly gases.