UCI to discuss 'motorised doping' issue

The International Cycling Union said today that it will look into the much-discussed 'mechanical doping' issue in a routine meeting with industry representatives next week.

UCI president Pat McQuaid told AP that he did not think riders were actually using the device, which Italian journalist Davide Cassani demonstrated during the Giro d'Italia. The mechanical assist can be hidden inside the downtube of a bicycle frame and provide an estimated 50-100 watts of power.

"We want to make sure that, as batteries on bikes progress, the UCI is in a position to monitor completely any usage there might be in an unfair way," McQuaid said.

The videos of the assist bike spread around the internet like wildfire, McQuaid said, but insisted there "is no foundation for it".

He also did not believe the device could be hidden well enough to avoid detection. "They are still not invisible," he said. "All the evidence we're seeing . . . is that the battery is about the size of a bag of sugar."