Tour de France Dope Tests Easy to Fool: Agency

The Tour de France doesn't start until tomorrow but the doping drama has already begun. The French anti-doping agency AFLD says that the "biological passport" testing regime the International Cyclists Union (UCI) plans to use is deeply flawed and easy to fool, the BBC reports. The AFLD has been barred from taking part in this year's testing program.

The biological passport program establishes a biological profile of riders through blood and urine samples taken several times a year, a method AFLD chief Pierre Bordry charges is easy for riders to rig by staying doped all year round. Bourdry says his agency's targeted testing program—based on information from French customs—is much more effective. The UCI defends the passport program and says the decision to exclude the French agency was made by the World Anti-Doping Federation.