Jean-Marie Leblanc, Prudhomme’s predecessor, said in 1999 that after the Festina affair, “sporting morality, ethics and complete and utter transparency” were “now at the heart of the sport.”

Nearly a decade later, doping’s impact on cycling is as palpable as ever. And yet, cycling officials still complain that the sport is being unfairly targeted.

“Do you think there’s a hermetic wall in which only cyclists are doped, and other (athletes) are white as snow?” Prudhomme asked, before adding: “That doesn’t mean that we don’t have to work.”

McQuaid said he expects a ruling in the coming weeks by a U.S. arbitration panel on whether Landis can keep his title after testing positive for a high ratio of testosterone to epitestosterone, and for synthetic testosterone, after his dramatic and decisive win in the Tour’s 17th stage last year.

The Spanish doping investigation — known as Operation Puerto — could again exclude riders from the Tour. It centers on a doctor who allegedly helped athletes with blood doping, withdrawing their blood and reinjecting it when they needed extra pep for the pedal.

The investigation implicated 58 cyclists, led to five arrests and forced nine riders — including favorites Ullrich and Basso — out of the Tour last year. A sample of Ullrich’s DNA later was matched to one of the blood bags. He since has retired, but has denied any wrongdoing.

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Germany’s Erik Zabel, who is still riding, admitted recently that he took EPO in the 1996 Tour. A former teammate of Riis and Ullrich, Zabel won the green jersey as the Tour’s best sprinter a record seven times — and could be back on the three-week French circuit this year.

Even in its early days, riders juiced up on cocaine, wine, even strychnine, to get a lift in the nearly inhuman three-week race. And catching cheats never has been easy.

Manzano says that when he raced for the Kelme team, until 2003, corrupt drug testers would warn riders in advance of tests. He also said riders on the team paid $4,000 each into a fund that paid for the drugs that “the carrier pigeon” supplied. He said he did not know her real name.

“There is a cancer in cycling that needs eradicating,” Manzano said.

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