Speaking just after he retired, Jean-Christophe Peraud says he firmly believes there is still doping in cycling. The Frenchman said that each season there were some performances which raised his eyebrows.

"Unfortunately, yes, and this is my first sorrow," he told Le Parisien when asked if he had questioned certain performances on the road. "Two or three times a year, some things shocked me. There, one thinks, that we had already lost. Early in my career, it gave me a lot to reflect on, but that was not the case in the end. I have been on the bike for 20 years and at a very good level; I almost got to the top. I beat guys who cheated, so it was a little less affected by it."

Peraud, who back in 1997 had an EPO level of over 50, said that he is all for anti-doping tests, but pointed to some rider show have been forced into provisional suspensions only to be proven innocent. It is his belief that he would rather see the innocent not be accused and allow cheaters to race.

"At the time, we had begun to search for EPO. There was a blood test for the whole peloton. I was over 50 per cent, and I was wrongly accused," he said. "It was the beginnings of the detection of EPO, and it gave rise to uncertainties. I'm all for the fight against doping, but I prefer to see cheaters race than seeing the innocent accused."