Tour de France winner applauds cycling for leading the way in anti-doping
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Chris Froome (Sky) has a laugh during today's press conference.(Image credit: Jonathan Devich)
Chris Froome (Team Sky) flanked by Peter Sagan and Rui Costa(Image credit: AFP)
No marginal gains would help Froome out today(Image credit: AFP)
Rui Costa (Movistar) leads Chris Froome (Sky) and Peter Sagan (Cannondale)(Image credit: AFP)
During a visit to Kenya Chris Froome backed the adoption of a tougher doping code by WADA. The world anti-doping agency will offer first time offenders a four year ban opposed to the current two year deal following a WADA conference last week.
The 2013 Tour de France champion believes the change will further clean up the sport.
"It is great that WADA plans to extend the ban from two to four years, and that cycling is being taken as leading the way in the fight in anti-doping," said Froome.
"You can only be a professional for 15 years. It is a harsh penalty and that's what we need to see in cycling."
Froome faced a barrage of accusations throughout July that he was doping. Froome was not as forthright as teammate Bradley Wiggins in 2012 when refuting questions over the validity of his win, understanding such questions were inevitable throughout the first Tour since Lance Armstong's confession in January.
"It was a very difficult time in the Tour De France. Everybody was asking me ... and people were saying to me you could be doping," said Froome.
"That hit me quite hard, but it was something I expected, because post-Lance Armstrong everyone was asking questions about it and I came to accept it, because I knew it came from the past and everyone putting on the yellow jersey could be asked about doping."
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Froome added that for cycling to move on from the Armstrong era there needs to be full disclosure on what doping practices occurred.
While in Kenya Froome also spoke of his desire to help African cyclists reach the highest levels of the sport by creating his own foundation within the next 18 months.
"What I would like to do is to see a project in Kenya and actually go places within Kenyan cycling," said Froome.
