It may seem cruel of officials to snatch the young woman’s dreams away on a mechanical technicality but not so much if you sweat blood each day atop your Astana Trek Madone racing bike bought with monies meant for your college education. Despite it being a male-dominated sport, bicycle racing is your dream, what you wake up for. Now, after a decade of grueling competitions and self-imposed tortures of training you make it to the Cyclo-Cross world championships. You’re on. You’re ready. You can feel victory coursing through your veins, but somehow that relatively frail, skinny girl from some Eastern Bloc city you can barely pronounce blows by you as though you’re sporting training wheels on a Western Flyer. “It’s like there’s a motor in her bike,” you swear to yourself in anguish.
Hold on, our imaginary racer may be right about that motor. Cycling authorities finally caught a Belgian cyclist riding a motorized bicycle in the world cyclocross championship in Zolder, Belgium. “It’s absolutely clear that there was technological fraud,” said Bryan Cookson, the president of the International Cycling Union (UCI). “There was a concealed motor. I don’t think there are any secrets about that.”
Who doesn’t remember seven time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong peddling his way to stardom only to be rejected for doping? The sweat, blood, and hard fought victories all for nothing as the world turned on the champ while chanting “of cheat, cheat, cheat.” In Van den Driessche’s case, the rising star fairly certainly ended her career Saturday when she took to the track on a motorized bike, which is called “bike doping.” It’s the cardinal sin in the world of bicycle racing if there ever was one.
However the Belgian bullet is not fessing up even though the motor was found on her bike during the race. “It’s not fun when you are accused of something. But I would never cheat. I really like cycling and I love my sport, but I realize that I now have a very big problem,” she said. Officials found a motor mounted inside the bike with cables and housing installed under the bike’s seat. Van den Driessche who was a favorite in the race, claims she had no idea the motor was inside her bike, and insists she bought the compromised race bike as is from a friend.
The AP reports that Italian manufacturer of her racing bike, Wilier Triestina, announced it would sue Van den Driessche who infamously made history Saturday since hers is the first official case of “mechanical doping” or “bike doping” at cycling’s highest level. Experts say even a small motor can provide a burst of power and speed at a crucial time in race. Pro cyclists laughed off rumors of motorized racing bikes six months ago after a video emerged of an official at the Giro d’Italia race thoroughly inspecting eventual race winner Alberto Contador’s bike.
