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Femke Van den Driessche Image CC BY 2.0 by flowizm via FlickrMechanical doping at Cyclocross Worlds confirmed
Image: Femke van den Driessche (BEL) (CC BY 2.0 by flowizm via Flickr)
A concealed motor has been found during examination of Femke Van den Driessche’s bike, during the Cyclocross World Championships, it was revealed today.
At a press conference today UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) president, Brian Cookson, confirmed the bike the 19-year-old Belgian was riding, when she pulled out of the race with mechanical problems, was later found to contain a concealed motor.
Rumours have abounded over recent years of mechanical doping, but this is the first confirmed case in top-level competition.
UCI boss: Mechanical dopers will pay
"It's absolutely clear that there was technological fraud. There was a concealed motor. I don't think there are any secrets about that," Cookson said.
"Technological fraud is unacceptable.
"We want the minority who may consider cheating to know that, increasingly there is no place to hide, and sooner or later they will pay for the damage they’re causing to our sport."
The bike was seized on Saturday after Van den Driessche, who was competing in the under-23 race, was forced to pull out with mechanical difficulties. According to reports, when the saddle was removed electrical cables were found in the seat tube.
The allegedly motorized bike #CXzolder pic.twitter.com/W8M3z9EKr0
— José Been (@TourDeJose) January 30, 2016
Van den Driessche, who was among the favourites to win, denies knowledge of the motor, and says she has done nothing wrong.
A tearful Van den Driessche told Belgian TV channel, Sporza: “It wasn’t my bike, it was that of a friend and was identical to mine”.
“This friend went around the course Saturday before dropping off the bike in the truck. A mechanic, thinking it was my bike, cleaned it and prepared it for my race,”
She says she was “totally unaware” it was fitted with a hidden motor.
“I feel really terrible. I’m aware I have a big problem.
She added: "I have no fears of an inquiry into this. I have done nothing wrong”.
If found guilty of technological fraud a rider faces a minimum six-month suspension and a fine of between 20,000 (£13,700) to 200,000 Swiss francs (180,000 Euros).
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48 comments
I want one for those 'stubborn' KOM's ;0)
Dear UCI
Pic's or it never 'appened.
The Vivax site gives a min run time of 60 min, which you don't really need in a short CX event. You can go for a much smaller battery that is easily concealable, lighter, and still gives you 5-10 min of 200W of extra power. If the claims from Vivax is true, then that is a lot of extra power you can unleash at a critical moment in the race. IIRC Mark Cavendish claimed that his peak power in sprints is only a shade over 1600W.
CX'ers spend most of the race running around on foot so a motorised bike seems a bit pointless
Errrr .... no. No, they don't. Not even in a super mudder like last year's BK at Erpe Meer or 2014 Essen. In fact in some races there may be no need to dismount at all, at least for those riders who can bunny hop a 40cm board.
Wilier are now looking to sue the rider for dragging their name through the mud (no pun intended). The plot thickens...
I doubt that the plan would be to use it all the way around - but for key moments. If you see the youtube clip of her distancing the rest of the stellar field in another cross race from the gun - you get the idea. Or you're away in a break - an extra 50W would let you go away.
She's not going to be sitting there not pedalling for an hour...
I doubt the battery would have helped her in the Worlds massively - you needed to be a fantastic bike handler too - all the extra watts in the world wouldnt have helped me.....
Depends on how big her team is - if its just her Dad being mechanic - then it could be as low as the two of them. Buy the motor and a dremel and away you go. You'd have to make sure the bike got nicked before you were to return it to the sponsor though....
I really doubt anyone from Wilier would know anything of this.
At a press conference today UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) president, Brian Cookson, confirmed the bike the 19-year-old Belgian was riding, when she pulled out of the race with mechanical problems, was later found to contain a concealed motor. - See more at: http://road.cc/content/news/177183-mechanical-doping-cyclocross-worlds-c...
So it was the bike she actually rode - and not just her pals bike in the pits ?
And she didnt notice the bike wasn't HER race bike ? Even if her pals was similar surely it would have a different set up.
"And what's this new button here for ??....."
Whoooooooooooooooooooooshhhhh !
Hence the winking face. But well done.
Almost off-the shelf Willier with all the required trappings
https://www.salden.nl/en/wilier-triestina-e-cycl-ocrosser-met-traponders...
Absolutely correct. There is one circuit race I do that's 12 miles in length, with a 1 mile hill. I can produce 1,000 watts for 30 seconds, but don't have the power/ weight ratio to allow me to keep up with the front runners in this particular race. But if I could access even just an extra 100 watts going up that hill, I'd be able to sprint at the end against climbers. Easy peasy.
The rest of the course is downhill or flat, so the extra 3 pounds in weight would not be an issue.
Absolutely correct. There is one circuit race I do that's 12 miles in length, with a 1 mile hill. I can produce 1,000 watts for 30 seconds, but don't have the power/ weight ratio to allow me to keep up with the front runners in this particular race. But if I could access even just an extra 100 watts going up that hill, I'd be able to sprint at the end against climbers. Easy peasy.
The rest of the course is downhill or flat, so the extra 3 pounds in weight would not be an issue.
Its either that or your brothers EPO I guess.
Good job everyone is so busy having an opinion that they didn't read any of the details elsewhere. The bike was 'allegedly' sold by her to her friend at the end of last season so it was a close match on components. At least close enough that her national mechanic, not her team mechanic, didn't spot the differences. The friend is differently sized (and sexed), but since she never got on the bike she wouldn't have spotted the different geometry and again the not-her-normal-mechanic apparently didn't either.
Not that any of this matters under the rules. Having the bike available is a breach of rule 12.10.013 (?) and it is a strict liability rule.
Well done, Belgium. At least, this puts cycling back at the top of the doping stories.
Just makes me want to talk to my engineering friends and see if we can work something out to win a TDF without actually pedaling a single stroke...
Remember, if I can say "my friend did it", it's actually a valid excuse right?
Apparently you're a little behind on the whole "technology" thing. No, having no battery wouldn't slow her down. Those motors don't work like that.
But your point is good - once the bike was seized, surely it can't be that difficult to determine if there is a battery or not. If she was riding a bike with a battery hidden with a 30% charge or no battery at all, that might lend credence to her story.
However, the level of BS in her story definitely sounds non-zero.
Electronic controls, weigh-ins, mechanical checks... also, how long ago did the "mix-up" occur? She was bringing a friend's bike to a pro level race? Because her sponsor couldn't afford for her to have a second race bike?
Just none of it adds up sensibly.
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