Riders reflect on doping in Le Tour

By Brecht Decaluwé and John Trevorrow

A couple of riders commented to Cyclingnews about their opinions to the doping mess of the 94th Tour de France, highlighted by Rabobank sending home its captain, Michael Rasmussen, while the Dane was wearing yellow

Tom Boonen from the Belgian Quick.Step Innergetic team mentioned that "I was sad in the beginning. It's not right to be sad, it's better to be happy. The guys who cheat have to get out, that's easy. The controls are getting better and that's why they get caught. Now they [Tour organisers and UCI] know where and what to look for. It would be more worrying if they have no positive cases."

Runner-up Cadel Evans of Australia also thought that the news were better rather than bad, stating that "The cheats are getting caught obviously and you have to say that the UCI is doing a good job. Cycling is doing a much better job than any other sporting organisation."

The Predictor-Lotto captain does see some difficulty of proving things one way or the other. "We may never be really sure. That's the way the world is - unfortunately." But he is optimistic in that "Cycling is far more controlled than any other sport. Cycling is a beautiful sport and millions enjoy it and follow the Tour," leaving the 2007 edition with a good image for the future.