Ban the syringe

On stage 12 of the 2008 Tour de France, Leonardo Piepoli and Riccardo Riccò tested positive for CERA. Both riders were racing for the Saunier Duval (GM) team.  They were not the first, nor to be the last riders testing positive for doping within the team, in its subsequent guises of Scott-American Beef and Fuji-Servetto. With each positive returned from the team’s riders, sponsors ran. Saunier and Scott obviously thought cheating riders stealing victories were not the best representative of their brand.

Driven by either financial need or reform the 2010 guise of the GM team was a young team, presented with eye catching black and gold kit and a new ethos. Footon-Servetto-Fuji wanted to be trusted. They realized that only if they embraced the new movement in cycle sport- without drugs and the associated scandals; could they survive. One key element in the team’s rebirth was the dumping of the use of syringes within their team along with the old corrupt medical staff.

To those unfamiliar with professional sport, Syringes are commonly used daily for vitamins, painkillers, anti-inflammatory, glucose drips and other legal medication.

To the normal person, a syringe is an item of specific medical use and would wince at the thought of its use. In professional sport, the athlete is the product and it is key to keep the athlete racing at their best performance…. and that means doing what is necessary to keep the rider racing effectively.

In the past decades this meant drugs. GM recognized syringes as a key component of  the past drug culture. If an athlete becomes familiar to injecting them selves or being injected with assistant substances, the positive effects and mental attachment is only a small further step to the use of banned PED’s

In banning syringes from their team they took a massive step forward. The case study at season end proves it is possible.

  Team doctors are present and advisable to monitor athletes who push their bodies to extremes on a daily bases but bikepure are pressing for medication to be taken orally, or administered by an independent or central race doctor. Footon’ rebirth has illustrated that it is possible to break the reliance on drugs. Their efforts are a step in the right direction, the direction the majority of our sport seems to be moving . 10/10 for effort GM.