Voigt's doping solution

By Susan Westemeyer

Jens Voigt knows how to improve cycling's tarnished image: "The easiest thing would be to have a year without one single positiive doping test. That would help." Speaking to www.sport.ard.de, the German rider further noted that Discovery Channel's signing of his former CSC teammate Ivan Basso is "not good for our image," especially in light of the ProTour teams' decision not to hire riders involved in the Operation Puerto doping scandal. "From the public perspective, it looks of course as if nothing had changed. But of the 20 ProTour teams, 19 of them have held to the agreement. Maybe those 19 should put some pressure on Discovery."

"Doping is not a trivial offense. I think that most cyclists understand that now," Voigt said. "We're all interested in improving our image. That means that we have to go further than other sports in fighting doping."

Voigt further noted that DNA samples. But DNA samples are not the answer to all of cycling's problems. "Right now the public seems to believe that DNA samples are the answer to everything. They think, when all riders make DNA tests, then that is the ultimate answer to doping. But a DNA sample can't replace any single test for testosterone, steroids or EPO. A DNA sample is only practical when, as in the Puerto affair, anonymous bags of blood are found, in order to identify them."