Pedro Delgado is angry

By Antonio J. Salmerón

The Spaniard Pedro Delgado, who won the Tour de France in 1988, told national press agency Efe that the Vuelta a España and the Tour de France are wrong when they are "fighting more against doping than promoting the sporting aspects of the race."

Delgado, who is now a cycling commentator in the public national television TVE, considered that the grand three-week races will have to consider their attitudes, "because there are many sponsors that are leaving cycling."

After participating in a cyclo-tourist event in his honour, the ex-professional affirmed that these types of cycling events, open to anybody, "are something rewarding for cycling, because what it is happening in professional cycling is a pain and a small disaster.

"Nobody says that it is not necessary to fight against doping, but I do not believe it is the high-priority thing in this sport," he continued. Delgado declared that "doping must be fought without any publicity, because all of that hurts sponsorships."