Pierre Bordry explains real reason behind his resignation
Pierre Bordry announced at the end of last week that he would be resigning from his post as the head of the French Anti-Doping Agency (AFLD), vaguely indicating that ongoing budgetary concerns had something to do with the decision.
On Tuesday, he came forward to explain that he resigned because he felt that there was no political will to support the fight against doping.
Bordry used a 2005 incident as an example. French sports daily L’Equipe announced that Lance Armstrong had tested positive for the use of EPO (erythropoietin) in the 1999 Tour de France, the first of his seven consecutive winning Tours. The drug
hadn’t been detectible by UCI-administered tests until 2001, but in 2005 the doping laboratory in Châtenay-Malabry tested the B-samples remaining from the 1999 Tour. Six samples taken from the American champion were found to contain EPO.
“At the time the Ministry for Sports was the patron of the laboratory and [the samples] were rejected [ for further testing],” said Bordry. “So I suggested to Lance Armstrong that he should analyse the tests again, but he told me that I’d had a bad idea.”
Armstrong was spared from being sanctioned for doping due to a technicality. The B-samples could not be admitted as evidence without the equivalent A-samples, which had been already been destroyed. The UCI appointed a lawyer who released a report recommending
that Armstrong be cleared of any suspicion. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) rejected that report, but no further action was taken.
Incidentally, Armstrong donated $100,000 to the UCI (International Cycling Union) during the controversy, which was not made public until this June, and Bordry was publicly critical of the implications.
"Bordry is clearly not in a position to criticize anyone else,” responded UCI president Pat McQuaid. “He should shut up and let cycling look after its anti-doping. He seems out to just damage the sport or is looking for publicity and funding."
Shortly before announcing his resignation, Bordry announced that he was cooperating with the American's federal investigation into the US Postal Service Team, which included Lance Armstrong, Floyd Landis and Johan Bruyneel, and has offered to hand over the
1999 Tour de France blood samples to the Americans.
“You can’t pay tribute to Lance Armstrong without acknowledging the doubts that hang over his performance,” said Bordry.
In response to Bordry's announcement of his resignation, Armstrong wrote 'Au revoir Pierre' on his Twitter page.
The former head of the French Anti-Doping Agency went on to criticise the relationship between French president Nicolas Sarkozy and the seven-time Tour winner. He suspects that this relationship has something to do with the AFLD’s 2011 budget reduction.
“This year, the budget does not provide for sustainable resources for the agency, when it needs additional funds, because the list of undetectable products is growing, and doping is much more widespread than we think,” said Bordry. “This makes me believe
that there is no political will to support the fight against doping.”
The UCI had refused the AFLD’s right to perform additional doping tests during the 2010 Tour de France, and WADA overturned that refusal. Bordry explained that the French Ministry of Sports did not support AFLD’s right to perform checks, and that Jean-François
Lamour, the former minister of Sports, asked Bordry not to become involved in the Landis/US Postal Service investigation.
Bordry explained that by appearing to be tough against doping without actually testing for it, the lack of any positive tests will make it look like the problem is actually being solved.
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