Cycling group pushes for change, as Lance Armstrong speaks out

Updated January 18, 2013 08:49:00


Source: AM | Duration: 2min 50sec

Topics: doping-in-sports, cycling, australia


TONY EASTLEY: Later today Australian time, part one of Lance Armstrong's highly anticipated interview with talk show host Oprah Winfrey will go to air.

While it's anticipated he'll confess to taking the performance enhancing drugs, the major question remains whether he'll implicate top cycling officials.

Whatever Lance Armstrong says in his interview, some people associated with cycling says there needs to be a change at the very top.

An Australian businessman, Jaimie Fuller founded a compression sportswear company, Skins, several years ago.

Recently he also founded a group which wants to see the International Cycling Union reorganised.

Jaimie Fuller is speaking to AM's Tom Nightingale.

JAIMIE FULLER: I think you've got to split Lance Armstrong's confession into two. The first one being what he does with Oprah Winfrey and secondly what he does after that. I think primarily he's going to be about trying to show the American people that he's really not a bad guy.

What he does afterwards though, that's a different story and if there's any way that he can testify with either USADA (United States Anti-Doping Agency) or WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) then that would be far more interesting and have much greater implications for cycling in my opinion.

TOM NIGHTINGALE: And if he doesn't testify with USADA or WADA, with the US or world anti-doping agencies, is the chance to reform the sport then missed?

JAIMIE FULLER: No, no because Lance Armstrong is not the be all and end all when it comes to the truth about what's been going on in the cycling industry.

TOM NIGHTINGALE: He's a big component though, isn't he?

JAIMIE FULLER: So if Armstrong chose to tell the truth and reveal all then sure, it could be a big shortcut but if he chooses to keep his mouth shut, it is definitely not the end of the world because there are plenty of other people with lots of information willing to come forward but they've got to come forward under the right circumstances and as of now the circumstances are not correct and that's what chain cycling now, WADA, USAFA and the independent commission for the UCI (International Cycling Union) are trying to correct and the problem we've run into, there's a roadblock with the UCI themselves who are refusing to give the independent commission the tools they need to do their job.

TOM NIGHTINGALE: Do you think cycling, international cycling is clean now?

JAIMIE FULLER: Oh, look frankly, I don't think it is ever going to be clean if we were talking about complete eradication of doping. I think it's better than it was 10 years ago but I think we've go a long way to go and we've got to be really careful because I hear people saying all the time now that all the young guys coming through while they're not into doping and that problems gone away - no it hasn't.

There is still, there is still a lot of doping going on and as we relax the vigilance that we need to have, if we relax this vigilance it'll come back.

TONY EASTLEY: Australian businessman and cycle reformer Jaimie Fuller, speaking with AM's Tom Nightingale.