Vinokourov's positive dope test a blot on Tour

Vinokourov tested positive for a banned blood transfusion after winning last weekend's time trial.

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New Delhi: Two years ago he was being touted as a natural heir to the legendary Lance Armstrong. But now Alexander Vinokourov has joined a growing list of cyclists to have been caught doping. The Tour de France is over for him and his Astana team but can the tour retain its credibility?

The Tour is the greatest cycling race in the world but now it is increasingly becoming a stage where dope cheats rule the roost.

It has been hit hard by doping and the latest one concerns Kazakh Alexander Vinokourov who was being tipped as a future tour winner but he has now tested positive after failing a blood test.

"The amount of haemoglobin and the variation between the young red blood cells and the old red blood cells found in Vinokourov's blood indicated that there had been a transfusion. With this evidence, we have immediately suspended Vinokourov and we have sent him home," Marc Biver, General Manager of the Astana team, said.

Vinokourav's team has also withdrawn from the race after his suspension. Ironically Vinokourav has been a vocal critic of current tour leader Michael Rasmussen after the Danish cyclist missed two out of competition tests earlier this year.

"I would like to say that the people who are taking these risks don't understand that they are playing Russian roulette. They are playing Russian roulette. They play it inside their minds. If they are still cheating and discredit this sport, they do not understand our complete determination in stopping cheating," Patrice Clerc, President of the Amaury Sports Organisation which owns the Tour, said.

Last year's tour winner Floyd Landis is currently battling in court to clear his name after he tested positive and former champion Jan Ulrich was suspended before the start of last years Tour along with some other big names.

Indeed there are testing times for the sport of cycling.