A three-man independent panel, 13 months and a 227-page report has told us that the sport of cycling is still riddled with drugs.
Up until yesterday, when the Cycling Independent Reform Commission (CIRC) was released, many involved in, and close to, the sport spoke proudly of a new, unsullied era.
We have heard of so many false dawns. Yesterday the sport was taken back to a moonless midnight.
The report, commissioned by current UCI President Brian Cookson, was published in its entirety – something that the likes of FIFA could learn from.
The commission, headed by former Swiss state prosecutor Dick Marty, presented findings that will do little – or should that be nothing – to assuage those who believe the sport was still a hotbed of banned performance enhancement.
The review into the sport was in reaction to the Lance Armstrong saga, which went from vehement denial to an eventual mea culpa in which he admitted to a highly methodical, systematic and arrogant program that artificially fuelled his seven Tour de France victories.
Not surprisingly, the two immediate past-presidents of the UCI, Hein Verbruggen and Pat McQuaid, have not been painted in a good light.
The report chronicles serious acts of collusion between Armstrong and the two men who ruled the sport during his time in the saddle, including cover-ups with respect to positive tests returned by the Texan.
All of this has been previously mooted and reported, with both Verbruggen and McQuaid denying such activities in the strongest of terms – reminiscent of Armstrong himself before he fell on his own sword after more than a decade of strident denials and law suits.
While much of the report chronicles the blight that was the Armstrong era, it also throws a spotlight on the sport nowadays.
And those pages do not cast cycling in a favourable light. In fact, some of the paragraphs are incendiary for a sport that has, in recent years, stated that it has cleaned up its act.
“One respected cycling professional felt even today, 90 per cent of the peloton was doping,” it stated. “Another put it at around 20 per cent.”
In the end the CIRC states that as a result of the 174 face-to-face interviews conducted during the inquiry, “Probably three or four were clean, three or four were doping and the rest were a don’t know”.
In terms of a standard 21-team, 189-rider Tour de France peloton, that would amount to approximately 60-85 starters, excluding those in the ‘don’t know’ category, racing with the aid of banned substances – cleaner than the ‘bad old days’ but hardly numbers that the sport can gloat over.
Alarmingly, the report also questions the effectiveness of the biological passport, a program that was seen as a magic bullet in the fight against doping when introduced by the UCI in 2008.
The passport is an electronic record that profiles an athlete’s doping test results. Collated over a period of time it is used to detect notable changes in the athlete’s established permissible levels. As a result, the system can identify drug use without having to specifically identify the actual substance being used.
The report states that the levels recorded in the biological passport can be effectively manipulated by micro-dosing – a practice whereby regularly administered small doses of banned substances prevent a spike in the testing results.
The practice of micro-dosing can provide the same benefits as the traditional practice of administering single larger doses.
The report says riders are utilising the rule that precludes drug testing at night, saying many of them are “confident that they can take a micro-dose of EPO in the evening because it will not show up by the time the doping control officers could arrive to test at 6am”.
Getting around that problem is not an easy one given that athletes clearly need sufficient sleep during something as arduous as the Tour de France.
Armstrong infamously avoided a suspension during his career when he tested positive to a banned corticoid. After flying to Switzerland to speak to Verbruggen he was able to present a therapeutic use exemption (TUE) form to say that he had been administered the drug in a way of easing a saddle sore.
On that occasion the TUE was fraudulently backdated.
All TUEs are supposed to be filed in advance, prior to an athlete being administered the drug in question. While Armstrong was able to dodge a bullet, one current cyclist interviewed by the commission stated that 90 per cent of TUEs were presently used for performance-enhancing purposes.
The report also speaks of new practices such as the use of a drug called GW 1516 which has the ability to provide greater oxygen to the muscles and induces greater fat burning, although, according to the report, has not been “given clinical approval because it is thought to cause cancer”.
Another drug said to be popular within the professional peloton, AICAR, provides benefits akin to the previous staple, EPO.
Yet another technique employed nowadays is ‘ozone therapy’, which involves withdrawing blood, mixing with ozone, and re-injecting into the athlete to create a performance enhancement that is currently undetectable.
No doubt those at the UCI who commissioned this arm’s length investigation into doping in their sport were hoping for a far rosier outcome than found in the final report.
Sadly, for all the talk of a sport having changed its spots, it appears that the use of doping is still a major everyday occurrence.
Just how the UCI reacts to the latest revelations will once again be a major test for the sport’s hierarchy. In the past, successive UCI leaders have done little to truly clean up the sport.
As for whether the Cookson era will bring about positive change, only time will tell.
Sean Lee
Expert
Cheers Glenn. No arguments from me that cycling has been/still is in a mess. My point is though that doping is not just cycling specific. It is a massive issue for all sports whether the administrators or fans wish to admit it or not. Like it or not doping IS prevalent in all sports. Edwin Moses, Carl Lewis and Linford Christie were heroes of mine growing up. Lewis and Christie fell from grace and I was heartbroken. I'd cry even now if it came to light that Moses wasn't the genuine article. The stench surrounding that 1988 Olympic final (following on from the stench of east Geman athletes and similar previously) wafted right through to Flo-Jo's death, the Marion Jones revelations and Asafa Powell's doping positive just recently (another of my all time favourites). We just hold our collective breath that Usain Bolt remains unsullied. I would argue that other sports HAVE been beset with the doping issues cycling has - they have just not been made as public. This is not a defence of cycling, it deserves all the bad publicity it gets as it continually tries to self destruct. But it is not alone in having problems.
Rob Gremio
Roar Pro
delbeato, that Telegraph article comes as no surprise to me. However, it is pleasing to see these types of stories coming to light, in order to show that Cycling is not the only sport with a doping problem. However, on a more general level, it is sad to see how endemic doping is across sports. The transparency issue is key here, too. The fact that the UCI have released the report in full shows just how big a transition there has been from McQuaid to Cookson. If only FIFA could do the same... And on Operacion Puerto, it is insanely suspicious (to downplay it) that the judge in that case ordered the blood samples from other sports be destroyed. Almost impossibly so. Great article, Glenn.
delbeato
Roar Guru
I didn't mean to sound patronising. I'd be interested in your views on it. I know you wrote this article on cycling specifically, but my reading about Puerto is that it leaves some clues that the scourge of doping is not restricted to cycling. I just think there is a large imbalance in general media coverage of doping. It's like cycling offers everyone a free kick. Well deserved, I am sure, but let's cast our eyes further than just our favorite target.
Glenn Mitchell
Expert
Delbeato, I have read plenty on Operacion Puerto over the years.
Raytah
Guest
I think you'll find many cycling fans have looked quite deeply into the issue of doping in sport because of the effect it has had on 'our sport'. It was clear to most of us well before USADA's report on LA that doping was rife in the sport and LA was a major part of that. The issue was that there was a major conflict of interest for the UCI in exposing LA, one of their star athletes so they chose to be complicit. This issue is not a 'cycling specific' issue, governance structures in sport in general are riddled with conflicts of interest such as the risk of scandals on attracting sponsorship dollars. Not just the UCI but also the ITF, IAAF, FINA, FIFA and many others have come under fire for suspect treatment of certain issues. So, as a sports fan in general I would urge you to at least consider when dalbeato, myself and others highlight the importance of transparency. The UCI appears to be heading in the right direction but doping is a problem that isn't going to disappear anytime soon.
delbeato
Roar Guru
Simon, have a read of this: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/athletics/11285428/Revealed-how-Olympic-champions-three-Britons-and-39-countries-have-been-dragged-into-doping-scandal.html "The true scale of athletics’ alleged doping cover-up can be laid bare following detailed analysis of the list of competitors with “suspicious” blood values that has sent shockwaves through the sport." It boggles my mind why people think widespread doping is constrained only to cycling.
delbeato
Roar Guru
What we've learned from cycling is that positive doping tests are not a reliable indicator of the state of a sport, or an athlete's integrity. The real evidence is almost invariably uncovered in investigative work. USADA's 'witch hunt' of Lance Armstrong, Operacion Puerto (with some important caveats on that), the lifelong work of David Walsh and Paul Kimmage, the current CIRC report.. Those all have one thing in common - they uncovered doping in cycling. Where are the investigations into other sports? They may be relatively cleaner than cycling, but that's not saying much.
delbeato
Roar Guru
Transparency is crucial. If you don't have it, you don't know what is going on in your sport. Cycling fans know the sport has become a basket case, they're not all stupid. But it is making genuine gains. The fact it is starting from such a low base shouldn't obscure that fact.
delbeato
Roar Guru
Glenn, read up on Operacion Puerto. I actually penned a piece for this site that touched on it a while back, but there is heaps more on it. Basically they released the evidence of doping by Dr Fuentes on cyclists, and concealed the evidence of doping in other sports. Fuentes himself is publicly quoted as expressing his bewilderment at this. He was very clear that he doped elite athletes in other sports and gave the none-too-subtle hint that if he spoke up, Spain would lose its World Cup. The Spanish court responded by ordering the destruction of all residual blood bags they possessed. You don't need to be a conspiracy wacko to see what is going on there. They are protecting what is a form of organised doping. Now that was just in Spain, but it's an example of the forces that are applied to protect sporting heroes. The same forces that once allowed elite cyclists to dope with virtual impunity.
delbeato
Roar Guru
I think we all agree here the 3 strikes policy for illicit drugs is a good measure the AFL has taken to manage health risks of its players. I applaud them for that too. There is widespread misconception about the policy, mostly around confusing illicit and performance-enhancing drugs (bit of cross-over, but anyway). Back to doping. The AFL is nowhere near cycling in terms of anti-doping. Granted, the problem is unlikely to be as large. But we've seen recently that it's not as small as what many may choose to believe, either. The critical issue is that if you don't test frequently, you won't find a problem. This is what frustrates me about the 'reputation' enjoyed by so many sports that do so little to combat anti-doping. They just don't know what's really going on. It was in that sense that I meant the AFL was behind cycling.
Glenn Mitchell
Expert
I wholeheartedly agree Kev.
Raytah
Guest
Widespread perhaps not the best diction I don't mean implicate athletes or place on a level footing with cycling's culture of the 90's and 00's - maybe 'substantial' is more appropriate... Will keep it brief but regarding athletics, of the 3 Jamaicans in the final of the 100m sprint , 2 have tested positive for banned substances (Powell and Blake - and the issues with JADCO testing in the lead up to London have been well documented re. Bolt who also incidently trains with Blake), of the 3 USA sprinters in the final, 2 have tested positive (Gay and Gatlin (twice)). Okay that's obviously isolating the athletes who have tested positive who competed in the final of the 100m sprint but lets not kid ourselves in athletics it wouldn't be fanciful to suggest 'widespread' and there are various other athletes who tested positive and didn't make it to the olympics and others who did and have shady past records. With regard to swimming, Park Tae-Hwan, Efimova and the Sun Yang cases have been well publicised... then there is the Li Zhesi case (Chinese swimmer tested pos for EPO in the lead up to the games whilst training with infamous 'faster than lochte and phelps' swimmer Ye Shewin who went on to win gold. I also don't know much about weightlifting but am aware that they face similar problems to cycling in terms of endemic issues... was brought to my attention when the Azerbaijan federation doping case (including Hristov who won a medal in london) hit the headlines.
Glenn Mitchell
Expert
Sean, yes there were probably six of those finalists at one time caught for doping and suspended. However it bears little comparison to having entire teams of cyclists involved in orchestrated & systematic doping programs. Don't get me wrong, I am a huge fan if cycling having called it at four Olympic & Commonwealth Games & several World Championships I have a great passion for the sport but I am afraid in the past 25 years I doubt any sport has been beset with doping issues as much as cycling and that is sad.
Simon Smale
Roar Guru
Do you mind sharing this "significant evidence that points towards performance enhancement being widespread at the London olympics (certainly in athletics, swimming and weightlifting)." please? Seems like a pretty out there statement. I know of two doping cases in swimming off the top of my head, but I certainly wouldn't describe them as "widespread". Particularly the set of circumstances surrounding one of the cases. And as for Atheltics - yes potentially from one team - not necessarily everyone though. Weightlifting I don't know much about to be honest...
Raytah
Guest
First point on micro-dosing is spot on, it's not new news either (Thomas Frei case). It certainly doesn't enhance performance as much old school methods but is practically undetectable and must generate some superior performance or riders wouldn't still be using it. The riders and doctors know how to do it and are really only liable to be caught if they don't stick to the instructions. On your second point, I couldn't say with any degree of confidence that doping would be as rife in other sports as it was in cycling in the 90's 00's. However, there is significant evidence that points towards performance enhancement being widespread at the London olympics (certainly in athletics, swimming and weightlifting). I am also of the opinion that doping is a major issue in european football and tennis. I am quite sure that union, afl and league in Australia don't have doping issues on anywhere near the same scale as in the aforementioned sports for a number of sporting, cultural and financial reasons, but as a cycling and a sports fan am not ignorant enough to think that any sport is exempt. If spectators can take one lesson from the history of doping in Australia it would have to be that when athletes are not testing positive is often a sign that the methods are being used are undetectable, and authorities are either under resourced, complicit or incompetent. When Armstrong won his first tour the test for EPO wasn't used, When Usain Bolt was training was training for the London Games, the Jamaican anti-doping agency was barely testing any of their athletes and when a number of players in the tennis locker room start to speak out on doping in tennis, the ITF is quick to defend their PR position and sweep the issue away from media scrutiny.
Sean Lee
Expert
Oh, I don't know Glenn. How many of the eight finalists in the 1988 Olympic 100m turned out to be clean?
Glenn Mitchell
Expert
Well said AR.
AR
Guest
The AFL is a signatory to the WADA code...a punitive instrument...as we're all about the find out. However, what WADA *doesn't* do, is test for recreational drugs outside of season. Accordingly, the AFL implemented its own drug policy and testing regime, formulated with the advice of health care and drug experts, that includes testing inside and outside the season. This is beyond what the AFL is required to do. And whilst it has the infamous 3 strike policy (something it didn't just make up, it was, again, taken from the best available health and drug advice), the AFL actually publishes the results of all its own testing, albeit anonymously - again, because it has a health care / support focus, rather than a punitive focus. What does all this mean? It means that the AFL is the only sporting body in the country which a) implements its own drug testing regime; and b) actually makes public the findings (anonymously). I understand that the AFL is an easy and popular target, but to claim that the AFL is now where cycling was 20 years ago is just laughable.
Glenn Mitchell
Expert
No apology needed. Delbeato, in the words of the Commission, micro-dosing is the "biggest concern" when it comes to present day doping. With respect to other sports I don't believe any have, in the last two decades, had such an endemic doping culture. If other sports were found to be as bad as cycling has shown itself to be I am sure there would have been widespread media investigations. Also, if it were the case, the sprots themselves would have undertaken the steps that cycling currently is.
pjm
Roar Rookie
I think you can tell how screwed up cycling fans have become after decades of doping when a report states there doping is still rampant and all they go on about is the transparency.