Experts discuss the challenges of independent testing
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Chris Froome on the stage 12 podium.(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Chris Froome and Nairo Quintana finish stage 12.
Chris Froome follows Geraint Thomas during stage 12.(Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
It’s fair to say that if Chris Froome wasn’t currently leading the Tour de France after such a dominant performance on stage 10 the media storm surrounding his ride, and the innuendo and allegations that followed, would probably not have surfaced. At the very least they would have found their way to another team leader with a less expansive entourage of team buses.
However, just like in 2013 when the British rider was in similar form, the questions over his credibility have returned, such is the case to varying degrees for every maillot jaune holder in the post USADA-Armstrong era.
For Froome in particular, this race has been marked by the furore, first over the leaked or hacked videos and the oh-so-easy unfounded comparisons between Team Sky and US Postal. Throw in the fact that Lance Armstrong has turned up and you get a snapshot of the difficulties this sport faces when it comes to the restoring credibility.
Cyclingnews
“For me, the only independent agency that could do it is WADA but then they’d be encroaching on someone else’s jurisdiction. There would have to be agreement between the UCI and another agency, such as WADA and I’m not sure the UCI are in a business of having a private arrangement with a third party.”
“He can go down that route but he needs to ask permission to release all the Passport data. It wouldn’t be illegal to have independent testing but whether it means anything is another thing. It’s like when Lance Armstrong tried to get Don Catlin to do it.”
Cyclingnews
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Daniel Benson was the Editor in Chief at Cyclingnews.com between 2008 and 2022. Based in the UK, he joined the Cyclingnews team in 2008 as the site's first UK-based Managing Editor. In that time, he reported on over a dozen editions of the Tour de France, several World Championships, the Tour Down Under, Spring Classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. With the help of the excellent editorial team, he ran the coverage on Cyclingnews and has interviewed leading figures in the sport including UCI Presidents and Tour de France winners.
