This section contains 1,921 words (approx. 7 pages at 300 words per page) |
The Tour de France is considered the world's most competitive bicycle race. Each summer top cycling teams from around the world compete in the three-week event, which sends riders on a grueling, multi-stage course through the mountainous countryside of Ireland, France, and Belgium. In 1998, the image of Tour de France cyclists as athletes at the peak of their natural abilities was tarnished by allegations of widespread performanceenhancing drug use among competitors. The "doping" scandal broke a few days prior to the start of the race when a masseuse for France's Festina team, Willy Voet, was arrested after police found large quantities of anabolic steroids and erythropoietin, or EPO, in his car as he crossed from Belgium into France. A subsequent police investigation uncovered a wellorganized system, orchestrated by the team's management and doctor, for supplying riders with illicit performance-enhancing drugs. The Festina team was suspended from...
This section contains 1,921 words (approx. 7 pages at 300 words per page) |