What chance of a clean Tour de France?

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Stefano Garzelli, winner of the race in 2000, was thrown out of the Giro after the banned diuretic probenecid was found in a urine sample.

And Gilberto Simoni, who tested positive for cocaine metabolites, was withdrawn from the 2002 Giro D'Italia after claiming victory in the 11th stage.

Cycling's reputation reached its lowest ebb with police raids at the 1998 Tour de France, scenes repeated during last year's Giro.

Is the sport now irredeemable?

The real question is not whether the sport is redeemable - it's whether there is any significant audience that cares at all.
Dave, USA

The general public seems to be uneducated and uninformed as to the extraordinary amount of testing done in pro cycling. Cycling is the most drug-tested sport in the world. Lance and the boys have never tested postive, ever! Can't say the same about the Frenchman who won the stage on Monday.

Did you know that there is no drug testing at all required for baseball players! What about football players?? Why all of the emphasis only on cyclists and not other sports??
Anita Smith, United States of America

I'm most frustrated by the continuing refusal of teams, nations, and governing bodies to mete out lasting punishment to offending cyclists. It was terrible to watch the culture of drug abuse come to light over the past few years, but it wasn't surpising - this is the most physically demanding sport in the world.

It was heartening to see the cycling world take strong measures to catch abusers. But the punishments given to those caught abusing drugs have been notoriously weak, even unenforceable due to differing international laws, and now we have convicted abusers rejoining teams (Virenque, VdB, Pantani, to name a few) after chiselling their sentences down to nearly nothing.

Neither the teams, the offenders, nor many cycling fans seem to think this is the slightest bit shameful. But for those of us who do find it shameful, it's difficult to stomach. Stiffen the punishments, and I, for one, will regain faith in the honour of the sport.
Tim Heffernan, USA

Why does everyone one make such a big deal about drugs in sport? People say they are not sure whether they are watching drug-fuelled robots or tremendous athletes. Well, the fact that they are competing in the Tour de France suggests to me that they are unbelievably talented athletes.

In every day life people do things and take things in order to help them out a bit and to give them an advantage, why should cycling be any different. People can take drugs and supplements (e.g. multi vitamins) in order to improve their diet and their quality of life. Why is it so wrong that an athlete who is pushing their body to the absolute limit takes something to help them through the rigours of training and competition?
Frank, Spain

It is true that there is a drugs problem in cycling, not only at the top level either. Although there are still some amazing riders who do not take enhancing drugs and are tarred with the same brush. This inequality will take a long time to disappear and the press do not help by suggesting that a good performance is down to drugs rather than hard work!

The media have a lot to answer for, they report on the drugs in cycling without giving a balanced argument. If the kinds of fierce policing of drugs that goes on in cycling starts to happen in other sports then I think we would see many more athletes face the consequences.
Heather, England

The widespread doping scandals that have plagued the sport for so many years, have already reduced cycle racing to one where it is unlikely ever to be regarded by the general public with little more than apathy and cynicism. The only way to improve the sport's image is with the eradication of illegal activities by vigilant testing and irreversible life bans. After all, what use is a cheat to any sport?
L. Taylor, UK

Cycling needs a complete culture change. I now feel that many great performances in professional cycling were done so with 'assistance'. To compete at the top a cyclist has a stark choice: either submit to the pressure to take drugs, accept the position of also-rans, or damage your health in pursuit of those not hamstrung by morals. I can think of one recently retired rider whose health would be in better shape and his achievements even more remarkable if he had not ridden for so long against 'assisted' riders.

The culture of cycling is drug-ridden. It is run by spurious scientists and immoral medical men. In the same way bicycle technology was increasing to absurd levels, so is the technology behind improving the riders' performances.

I was an avid follower. Now I don't know whether I am watching drug-fuelled robots or remarkable athletes.
Mick Clarke, Netherlands

The problem of drugs in cycling appears to be worse than in other sports because it has been more thoroughly policed and focused on. The deeper is dug, the more is uncovered. In professional baseball in the US., the taking of steroids is not even illegal! Revered home run records fall, players suddenly develop massive muscles, no one says a word; it's "good for the game." Would that these tainted sports have the guts to do what has been done in the Tour. With luck, cycling will survive and thrive in a cleaner atmosphere.
Richard, United States

I am getting heartily sick of the way the British press report the drugs scandals in cycling. Whilst the media have little or no coverage of normal racing they are more than happy to report drugs scandals in great detail.

Yes, cycling has a doping problem and, because of the scrutiny the legal authorities of France and Italy have placed on the sport, these problems are being very publicly aired. No other sport has suffered raids by police and such widespread drug-testing.

Therefore, it is easy for the British press to scapegoat cycling, after all it is a foreign sport and the behaviour of British sports stars will not be called into question. But this ignores the reality of the massive improvements in fitness and performamce displayed by, often ageing, British sports stars or the many rumours of doping which circulate through sports.

Few journalists have had the courage to delve into the murky waters of drug-taking in British sport and even when athletes have been caught the media has been largely supportive of the lame excuses provided by the allegedly guilty athlete. Journalists have a responsibility to report objectively, it is about time they started to do so in relation to cycling.
Chris, UK

Cycling has an awful drugs problem. But it always strikes me as odd that only minority sports have drug problems. There is more money in football, rugby, even golf than in cycling. And in all of these sports performance can be enhanced by chemical cheating.

Why are so few footballers caught taking EPO, which would give them extra staying power? Why is it rugby players are not caught taking HGH and why is it golfers are not caught taking Beta Blockers?

To say they do not take them would be naive beyond belief. It just seems to me to be nice and easy to target those silly little cyclists and let the big money sports pretend they do not have a problem.
Andrew Torrance, Wales , UK

It is not a case of whether professional cycling is irredeemable from the curse of drug-taking but if the major sponsors will continue to support a sport that is losing its image of a noble and fantastic spectacle.

The professionals must not forget how the greatest race on earth came about, by the major sponsors willing to contribute to making the Tour a marriage of sporting achievement and commercial enterprise.

This marriage is on rocky ground as one partner continues to cheat on the basic vows the Tour was based on. We have already seen several major sponsors of the Tour file their divorce papers after many years of a happy marriage.
Darryl Vaughan, England