Paulo, thanks for that all important question!
From a sports management and sponsoring perspective there are many great learning’s for the sport of triathlon from professional road biking except ONE: how the increase of $$$ into the sport for the last 30 years has lead to the absurd situations in use of illegal substances of professional race at times.
So the coaching and management staff of teamTBB is crystal clear about doping and has a **ZERO **tolerance of the use of illegal drugs by any of our athletes or staff. We have a number of team values that every athlete as to sign for and while there are more details in each contract, one of these values is:
Our integrity is what keeps us together.
This means having respect for all partners of the team and to be able to trust each other under all circumstances. That implies honesty among all team members “on and off the pitch”. We will maintain the highest ethical standards.
Every athlete is aware and has signed that they will be removed from the team the same day they are caught cheating and will forfeit all sponsor money and outstanding amounts due.
To keep it simple: we do not ****accept cheats on this team in the interest of the team and the sport of triathlon!
The above is 100% clear for every teamTBB partner but also for Gerard when we signed this partnership deal last month.
Then the next issue of course is enforcements and controls.
At many IM races podium finishers are checked on illegal use immediately after the race. That’s where anti doping controls are being made on a first level.
teamTBB is in an early stage of its existence (< 6 months old) and is actively working on it’s sponsorships to increase financial means. It’s clear that the anti doping program that Team CSC has put in place comes at a hefty price and we do not have those means yet.
Team management has agreed internally and with sponsors that we will have an implemented an independent anti doping specialist / program in place (paid by a sponsor and not the team) by Q1 2008. Feel free to check with me when that time comes around.
Since this topic has been started I just like to clarify our teamTBB mission on this forum:
We aim to establish a professional organisation for triathlon and bike related sports in Asia by nurturing a unique culture that provides hope and opportunity for young athletes.
We will achieve our mission by:
- introducing the bike lifestyle to people and communities to improve their physical, emotional and social health
- providing role models (pros), education and information for every performance level from recreational up to high performance athletes.
Yours in sport
Alex Bok
Team Manager
alexbok@thebikeboutique.com
www.teamtbb.com