UNTIL he is given the chance to defend himself against claims that he is a drug cheat, after failing an anti-doping test, we have to give South Africa’s leading cyclist Daryl Impey the benefit of the doubt.
Impey, the first South African to wear the yellow jersey during the Tour de France last year, has maintained his innocence and said that he had never knowingly taken the substance he had tested positive for.
Impey tested positive for Probenecid – a masking agent used to hide doping substances.
In a statement he released yesterday Impey said: “I am committed to drug-free sport and fully intend to take all the steps necessary to clear myself of any suspicion. The notification came as a complete shock to me just days before the start of the Tour de France, particularly since anti-doping tests conducted on me on 8 and 9 February, 2014 yielded no adverse results.”
The South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport (SAIDS) said Impey will be afforded an opportunity to defend himself before an independent tribunal panel.
Cycling, and in particular road cycling, is tainted thanks to the fall from grace of the world’s pre-eminent cyclist, Lance Armstrong. Impey was a member of one of Armstrong’s cycling teams and will know all about the scrutiny cyclists have been placed under.
In 2012, leading South African cyclist David George tested positive for the performance-enhancing drug EPO. George was banned from the sport for two years and lost all his sponsorship endorsements.
He vowed to help SAIDS to better understand how athletes in the sport went about doping in a bid to try to make amends.
Professional cyclists have entire teams looking after their well-being and it is plausible that Impey may have been given the masking agent without his knowledge. But ultimately, it is the responsibility of each athlete to keep it clean.
Armstrong, for many years, vehemently denied being a drug cheat. For the sake of South African cycling we hope in Impey’s case that giving him the benefit of the doubt is justified.