Cycling body blameless in Armstrong scandal — Mcquaid

THE International Cycling Union (UCI) was fault-free in its handling of the Lance Armstrong doping affair that severely tarnished the sport’s reputation and triggered harsh criticism of the federation, UCI president Pat McQuaid has said.

Speaking to a small group of reporters at an international sports conference in Russia, McQuaid said the UCI had always been at the forefront in the battle against doping during the American’s years of domination, from the late-1990s to the mid-2000s.

“I do not think the UCI made mistakes,” said McQuaid, who took over as president in 2005, the year of Armstrong’s last Tour de France victory. “The statistics show the UCI was the most advanced in the fight against doping.”

Cancer survivor Armstrong was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles and banned for life from cycling in 2012, after a report by the US Antidoping Agency (USADA) accused him of doping for years.

In January, Armstrong admitted on television that he used banned substances in all his Tour victories.

“I was fooled,” McQuaid said. “I believed there was no way a man so close to death would go and start putting stuff into his body that could be dangerous. My experiences as a cyclist convinced me he was real.”

Critics accused the UCI of not doing enough to catch the American, who faced several years of doping accusations, while the USADA report also alleged that the body could have done more.

McQuaid, seeking a third term as UCI president, defended his organisation by saying the UCI had tested Armstrong 200 times between 1999 and 2005, while USADA had only conducted 12 tests.

The Irishman admitted, though, the tests were no match for the ad- vanced methods used by Armstrong. “There were no tests available for the products. Ten or 15 years ago the armoury (against doping) was weaker. The doping system was weak.”

Asked whether he considered resigning over the affair, the Irishman was defiant.

“No, because I firmly believe I am making a difference. I want to eradicate doping. I want to finish what I started,” he said.

McQuaid said cycling would move past the Armstrong affair as the sport continues to expand into new markets despite the whirlwind of negativity the incident brought.

“We will go beyond it. Cycling has got new champions and it is getting global. It is growing dramatically,” he said. “Africa, for example, has huge potential. It may not have a commercial potential but it has damned good athletes,” he said.

“There will be a black African athlete on the podium of a major tour within six years.” Reuters