Bassons recalls his days as a cyclist and says the psychological pressure on runners is “monstrous” these days.
• Photo: Favebook/Christophe Bassons
Former French cyclist Christophe Basson, whose career ended in 2001 after he spoke openly about doping at the Tour de France, has again turned to the use of banned substances in cycling.
Now 48-year-old Bassons, who was a contemporary of Lance Armstrong in the international peloton, among other riders, says that “everyone continues to live the big lie.” “Currently, medical support is much more extensive and scares me almost more than doping,” he told sueddeutsche.de.
“Between a small therapeutic dose of EPO or 20 or 30 energy bars a day for running, consider for a moment which is more dangerous. once and every day,” Bassons stressed, adding that these days the psychological pressure on cyclists is “monstrous”.
Bassons, who made his career in the 1990s representing Force Sud, Festina, Française des Jeux and Jean Delatour, revealed how doping even affected contract negotiations with teams. He recalls that he was even offered two contracts: one if he stays clean, and the other if he agrees to doping, with a salary 10 times higher.
“I didn’t talk to anyone on the team for many years, not even those who were my teammates. They even offered me 40,000 euros if I doped EPO, 10 times what I was earning, but they couldn’t convince me. .”
He explains that the pressure took many forms, even against prostitutes. “Women took me to a hotel so that I would betray my wife. They tried to force me to do forbidden things, but I didn’t give up. They wanted to blame me, but they couldn’t,” explains the former cyclist, stating that little has changed in the sport during this time.
Bassons was a Festina cyclist when the 1998 Tour de France was hit by a doping scandal within the team. The newspaper France Soir published statements made to the police and two runners, Armin Meyer and Christophe Moreau, told the authorities that Bassons was the only cyclist on the team who did not dope.
Jean-Luc Gatelier, doctor at Festina, told L’Équipe: “It’s true, he refused to ‘load the gun.’ [usar doping] in recent years. Christophe Basson does not belong to a family of swindlers and debauchees.”
