Froome still 'in the dark' over details of Wiggins controversy

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Chris Froome has revealed he remains 'in the dark' over the details of the controversies that has enveloped Team Sky in recent months, and has argued that questions still hang over his former teammate Bradley Wiggins.

One of the questions on his lips concerns the contents of the mystery medical package couriered from the UK to France by a British Cycling employee on the final stage of the 2011 Critérium du Dauphiné.

That incident is currently being investigated by UK Anti Doping, and Team Sky have refused to shine any light on the matter until the investigation has concluded.

The silence, it appears, extends to the team's marquee rider and winner of three Tours de France – even if he has appealed for answers.

"I am completely in the dark on that," Froome said in an interview in Saturday's edition of The Times.

"I have asked the question. Hopefully we will find out at the end of the investigation."

The package is just one part of the controversy that has enveloped Wiggins in recent months, with the 2012 Tour de France winner facing scrutiny over his use of Therapeutic Use Exemptions (TUEs) to take the ordinarily-banned corticosteroid triamcinolone acetonide ahead of the 2011 and 2012 Tours de France and the 2013 Giro d'Italia. No anti-doping violations took place, and Wiggins has claimed the injections were necessary to treat asthma and allergies, but ethical concerns have arisen over the timing and his previous comments on needles.

More on this story:

• Froome calls on anti-doping authorities to 'urgently address' TUE system
• Cope: I don't know what was in the package for Team Sky
• Brailsford insists Team Sky is '100 per cent a clean operation'
• Pursuit of Tour de France glory costs Team Sky their idealism

Froome told Cyclingnews in October that it's 'impossible to say' if Wiggins was operating in a grey area, and he doesn't feel that the clouds of doubt have dissipated.

"Those are questions for Brad to answer about what happened back then," he said. "In terms of who did what at the time, I still don't know all the answers myself.

"I can only deal with what I do know. From what I have seen for myself [at Sky], it's been completely above board. It's been clean. I've laid all my cards on the table. Everything has been out there for a while in terms of my TUEs."

Wiggins currently finds himself in retirement limbo, and commented that he'd "given up caring" how people remember him when his wheels are finally hung up.

"People ask me, 'Do I think it's tarnished his image?'" added Froome. "I certainly think it's raised a few questions, that's for sure.

"A lot of people have said it's taken the shine off his performances back in 2012."

Despite the questions he has over the incidents that have courted controversy in recent months, Froome stands up for the team he's been with for the last seven years.

"We have worked really hard to try to show we are being as transparent as possible. I feel we have made a lot of headway this year, especially on the roads of the Tour. I felt a genuine change in mentality of the French fans, a much warmer reception than it has been in the past.

"I'm not expecting any difficulty going forward. Because nothing I've done is in question. I don't think people are questioning me."