From Classbrain.com

Political Cartoons
Tour de Farce: Doping Scandals in the Tour de France
By Cartoon: O'Farrell, The Illawarra Mercury, Australia
Project: Cynthia Kirkeby, ClassBrain
Aug 6, 2007, 03:12 PST

© O'Farrell, The Illawarra Mercury, Australia 2007


Tour de Farce

Once again the Tour de France is foundering under the weight of doping scandals. Italian rider Cristian Moreni was cited for doping. While Alexander Vinokourov was banned for two years for using a blood transfusion to enhance his performance. However, this is not a recent problem within the world of bike racing. According to Julian Savulescu of the Telegraph.uk.co, "[...] riders have used drugs to cope with the ordeal, resorting to alcohol, caffeine, cocaine, amphetamines, steroids, growth hormone, EPO and blood doping." The event is a grueling one, and it has traditionally had entrants who believed in better living through chemistry. Now it appears the Tour de France may find its appeal a bit lackluster when overshadowed by so different scandals involving drugs.

Questions to Ponder

  • Do you think the doping scandals have done irrevocable harm to the sport of cycling, or does the public not really care one way or the other?

  • Is it time to allow doping in cycling events?

  • Do you think the penalties have been harsh enough for those found guilty of doping?

  • Would going back to national based teams make a difference in how clean teams stay?

  • Should testing for cycling events be run across the board on everyone, every time? Do you think it would change the current trend?



Learning Links for Tour de France Doping Scandal