Paris - Hein Verbruggen, the president of the International Cycling Union (UCI), has resigned from the world anti-doping agency (WADA) in protest at Dick Pound's leadership, he said on Monday.
The Dutchman, one of the agency's founding members, strongly criticised WADA and its Canadian president Pound for what he termed recent "irresponsible" statements.
Verbruggen said that in particular he was not satisfied with the handling of the case of Spanish rider Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano who tested positive while leading the Tour de France but was not punished because he suffers from asthma and had a prescription.
However Dr Alain Garnier, who heads the Lausanne bureau of WADA, claimed the rider's regular use of asthma medicine should not normally return as high a reading as was reported.
Gonzalez de Galdeano gave a reading of 1360 nanogrammes of salbutamol per millilitre of urine following the sixth stage.
"WADA, through Garnier and Pound, declared a rider positive and this based solely on a press article," claimed Verbruggen of the publicity surrounding the case.
"I find this an attitude of terrible irresponsibility which you don't expect from an authority like WADA.
"They were wrong, from both a legal and scientific point of view," said Verbruggen.
"Pound maybe thinks that he can run the WADA presidency like a sheriff in the Wild West, firing with a revolver at all targets," added the cycling chief.
Verbruggen said he had not appreciated the "sarcastic" statements by Pound concerning the Spanish rider's anti-asthmatic drugs.
"It's inappropriate," said Verbruggen, pointing out that the percentage of riders in the Tour de France suffering from asthma was below that of the population in general.
He added that he was outraged that "a rider and a sport could be blacklisted in this manner."
Verbruggen also denied claims that the UCI had not wanted independent observers to examine proceedings during this year's Tour.
"WADA requested nothing," said Verbruggen.
"UCI was a very loyal partner, putting all its experience at the disposal of WADA," he said, adding that it was "inacceptable the fashion in which UCI is in the process of being discredited."
Verbruggen, who is also president of the organising committee for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, said that he informed IOC president Jacques Rogge and Pound of his decision two months ago.
"What is particularly cutting is that not later than last week Pound called on me to stay because WADA needed Verbruggen and the UCI," added the Dutchman. - Sapa-AFP