Pound takes last stab at cycling

World Anti-Doping Agency president Dick Pound will step down from his post at the end of November, but took the opportunity of one of his final public appearances to take a parting shot at the UCI for this year's multiple doping positives which became public during the Tour de France.

"They let it get out of control," he said, according to Reuters. "Maybe they thought that the Tour de France was bigger than the sport. This year was a disaster and when television, written press and commercial backers start bailing out they must have known they were looking into the abyss."

German television broadcasters pulled their coverage of the Tour de France after the doping positive of Patrik Sinkewitz was announced. Private broadcasters stepped in at the last minute to pick up coverage.

Pound also insinuated that the UCI had been guilty of looking the other way when it came to doping in the past, and blamed this lack of action for the sport's current problems. "Letting doping into a sport is much easier than getting it out. They are reaping what they sowed."