McQuaid: Armstrong affair will not affect cycling

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The Lance Armstrong affair is over, it didn't have any affect on cycling, and besides it took place over a decade ago, UCI president Pat McQuaid has said.

“We have moved on from that controversy. It was not at all a blow to cycling and I don’t see it has left any negative impact on the sport,” McQuaid said, according to the Daily Pioneer newspaper in  India, where he is visiting in connection with the Asian Cycling Federation Congress.

“Sport moves on without caring anything about an individual who was caught taking dope. And I don’t think that issue would be a deterrent for young cyclists to come into cycling. They should view today’s icons. Nowadays also, we have many brilliant athletes - Mark Cavendish, Bradley Wiggins - who can be their role models.”

Things have improved since the Armstrong era, he claimed. “Look, first of all, doping is not confined to cycling only. See, Armstrong issue is a thing of 10 to 15 years back. The products that were used 15 years ago were undetectable. It was a difficult times for all of us.

“Now, we have upgraded our process and we are advancing day by day in that point. UCI is the only sporting federation in the world which has a fool-proof bio-passport programme. So, our doping controlling programme is currently equipped to control the menace.”