Russian hackers release medical data on British Olympic champion Mo Farah

RAFAEL NADAL, MO Farah and Justin Rose are among the latest Olympians whose confidential medical records were leaked by a Russian cyber espionage group today.

Farah is among 66 global athletes, including 17 from Team GB, who have had their TUEs published online by the so-called Fancy Bears, with 26 in Monday’s batch.

Fancy Bear has previously posted data for USA athletes Simone Biles, Elena Donne, and Serena and Venus Williams, as well as Tour de France-winning British cyclists Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome.

In Birmingham in 2015, in the immediate aftermath of strenuously denied allegations against Salazar, Farah was asked specifically whether he had ever applied for an exemption.

He received intravenous infusions of saline solution, morphine sulphate and vicodin administered orally during a period in hospital between July 3-5, 2014 when he had collapsed after a training run.

In a statement, Farah says he has “no problem” with the release of his records.

A total of 66 athletes have now had their TUEs leaked online, 17 of them British. He also won the men’s singles title at the 2008 Beijing Games but missed London 2012 due to a knee injury.

Alongside Farah and Rose, there were six other Team GB members in the fourth batch of hacked data: hockey’s Alex Danson, Crista Cullen and Samantha Quek, rowers Helen Glover and Peter Reed, and track cyclist Callum Skinner.

Farah and Nadal’s TUEs weren’t active for Rio, while Rose had authorisation for daily dosages of an anti-inflammatory drug between May and June this year.

There is no suggestion they are involved in any wrongdoing but the leaking of their records has reopened the debate about TUEs and in particular whether the system is open to abuse from competitors gaining an advantage by taking banned drugs.

Gymnast Laurie Hernandez and Connor Jaeger, who both medaled at Rio 2016, have also had their medical data released, as have their fellow Americans, athlete Ariana Washington and archer Brady Ellison.

TUEs can be issued to athletes who have an illness or condition that requires the use of normally prohibited medication.