Tour de France organisers today announced a ten-step programme of initiatives designed to reduce the use of performance-enhancing drugs in cycling’s premier event. Race organiser Jean Marie Leblanc and Patrice Clerc, the president of the Amaury Sport Organisation, presented the list of measures which they hope will lead to the cleanest Tour yet.
Chief of these measures will be the urine-based test for EPO which was launched by the UCI one week ago which, when combined with random blood screening, is believed will all but eradicate the use of the banned hormone. A programme of medical screening will be carried out prior to the start of the three-week event on 7 July, with any riders suspected of doping use to be barred from the race. Ten riders per day will also be subjected to urine analysis, including the stage winner and the top three riders overall in the race standings.
Other measures include a requirement for teams and riders to sign an agreement undertaking to compete without doping, plus the necessity for riders to receive signed permission before using medical products containing restricted substances. There will also be a pre-race ‘session of awareness’ to educate riders about the risks of drug use.
The Société du Tour de France has also entered into a three-year research partnership with several French laboratories to undertake a study into the physical and mental consequences of both high-intensity sport, and doping. The measures are the latest of a series introduced by the Tour authorities who are endeavouring to banish the systematic drug abuse uncovered during the ill-fated 1998 edition of the race.
Filed by Shane Stokes
