Individuals with details about potential motor doping in biking can now obtain a monetary reward from the UCI, after the world governing physique stepped up its efforts in combatting the danger that it described as posing “a big risk… to the integrity requirements of the game.”
Technological fraud, the act of propelling a motorcycle “by a system or methodology with electrical or different help”, has been a spectre hanging over biking for the previous 20 years, with the UCI’s president David Lappartient telling the Ghost within the Machine podcast earlier this 12 months that “if we’ve a case of dishonest with a motor in a motorcycle, it’ll destroy our sport.”
Belgian cyclocross rider Femke van den Driessche stays the solely rider to have ever been sanctioned for motor doping, however Biking Weekly understands that essentially the most senior figures on the UCI are deeply involved that the apply should still be ongoing. Lappartient vowed that “if we have to catch one of many prime riders on this planet, I’m not afraid of that.”
Efficient instantly, the Struggle in opposition to Technological Fraud Rewards Programme “goals to encourage people who could possess vital info however are reluctant to return ahead, thereby offering an extra software for the UCI to deal with critical makes an attempt to defraud the biking group,” a assertion from the Switzerland-based federation learn.
It’s hoped that the provide of a monetary reward will incentivise folks to present info who in any other case could not really feel snug doing so.
The UCI added that it’s going to examine present and historic circumstances. Most allegations surrounding motor doping relate to the early 2010s, however all riders accused have constantly denied that they ever used motor know-how.
At the moment, the UCI has a number of strategies to detect potential technological fraud, together with two sorts of X-ray machines and a magnetic iPad scanner. No case of motor doping has been discovered since Van den Driessche in 2016.
Setting out its tips within the programme that first got here to gentle firstly of the 2024 Tour de France, the UCI stated that “the programme goals at incentivising reporting by way of monetary rewards or different types of compensation by way of confidential channels.”
Any info supplied will probably be assessed by the UCI to find out its high quality and reliability, with focused testing and in-depth investigations to observe if required. Ought to the knowledge lead in direction of the detection or prevention of technological fraud, the informant will probably be entitled to both materials help, monetary help, or financial or worth reward.
In Could, the UCI appointed former felony investigator Nick Raudenski to supervise its division answerable for stopping motor doping, and the American instructed the Ghost within the Machine podcast of his concern that authorities are unaware of the potential strategies of hid motors.
“I feel the know-how is on the market,” he stated. “I feel it exists and I feel if there may be sufficient cash to throw at an issue or a state of affairs, then there may be sufficient cash to offer an answer that can doubtless not be really easy to detect.”
The UCI’s assertion echoed Raudenski’s fears, stating {that a} additional intention of this system is present them with the information and alternative “to detect, deter and examine potential circumstances of technological fraud or makes an attempt to defraud biking occasions by way of the usage of new and revolutionary – and exhausting to detect – know-how in bikes.”
Individuals can present info by way of the UCI’s confidential SpeakUp platform, and likewise to a devoted electronic mail: techfraud@uci.ch.
