UCI enters doping fight

The initiative, which will be presented at a news conference in Paris, reflects the ruling body's will to defend the reputation of a sport tarnished by a series of scandals.

"UCI wishes this programme to be the most ambitious anti-doping project of all sports and to make the races more fair for all," read the document of which Reuters obtained a copy on Thursday.

"Its aims will be to detect doping activities and to recognise and celebrate the riders who demonstrate their commitment for a sport without doping."

Tour de France winner Floyd Landis tested positive for excessive levels of the male sex hormone testosterone during last year's race.

The sport has also been shaken by a Spanish probe into blood doping centred on cycling, known as Operacion Puerto.

The new programme, called "100 percent against doping", was presented and approved by the Pro-Tour teams and organisers of Pro-Tour events as well as by the executive committee of UCI, the document obtained by Reuters said.

"The UCI Pro-Tour has suffered last year from several doping cases," the document read.

"The Operacion Puerto and Landis cases have led to the press concentrating more on doping cases than on the sport itself.

"These doping cases, in particular those affecting the sport's elite, have hurt the public's trust in the sport and the sport's credibility.

"The future of our sport is at stake. The "100 percent against doping" programme will restore the trust of all those associated with the sport -- riders, teams, organisers, sponsors, media and supporters."

All the riders will now face having their urine tested without notice during training or even rest periods. Those tests will be aimed notably at detecting the blood-boosting drug erythropoietin (EPO).

There will also random blood tests designed to track down blood manipulation, such as transfusions. A blood profile will be established for every rider.

All the teams, in particular the members of the elite Pro-Tour, will have to pay for a part of the programme, whose cost is estimated at around one million euros.

Each of the 20 Pro-Tour teams will have to pay 30,000 euros each year to help finance the programme.

The riders must contribute to the development of new anti-doping tests and sign a document authorising DNA tests to help identify them when banned substances are found.

All teams will have to sign a code establishing tougher sanctions in case of doping offences.

A surveillance committee, whose members will be neither riders nor team officials, will supervise the way the programme is enforced.