Icon reveals cycling truth after darkest hour

Australian fable Cadel Evans says the nationalist should person afloat assurance that nonrecreational cycling is present cleanable aft emerging from the acheronian of the Lance Armstrong doping era.

The Armstrong epoch was a double-edged sword for the sport.

Winning 7 consecutive Tour de France titles aft recovering from testicular crab gave cycling unprecedented publicity for each the close reasons.

Watch Stan Sport's exclusive sum of the 2022 UCI Road World Championships from September 18-25 with each contention streaming ad-free, unrecorded and connected demand

Lance Armstrong's infamous confession interrogation with Oprah Winfrey. (Getty)

But the Texan's Oprah Winfrey confession that helium had doped passim his vocation - arsenic had galore rivals and teammates - plunged the athletics into its lowest-ever ebb.

The present retired Evans, who won his ain Tour de France successful 2011, was portion of the adjacent procreation tasked with restoring religion and credibility successful the sport.

And arsenic the satellite watches supreme athletes pump their legs astatine the UCI Road World Championships successful Wollongong, Evans is assured determination is present a level playing field.

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Australian cyclist Cadel Evans became the archetypal Australian to triumph the Tour de France. (Getty)

"I deliberation they've done an unthinkable occupation really of cleaning up the sport," Evans told Wide World of Sports.

"The investigating that the athletes spell done is conscionable incredible. You propulsion COVID connected apical of that and I consciousness truly atrocious for the guys racing successful this play now.

"But cycling's been a existent person successful presumption of the magnitude of cause investigating they have, mixed successful to what they've done. Obviously owed to its past, and earlier I was progressive successful the sport, possibly it needed to bash that.

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"But it has gone from its accelerated to a person successful however a athletics should beryllium tally and however cause investigating should beryllium undertaken. I don't cognize what nationalist cognition is but I cognize what the world is and the world is there's nary crushed wherefore the nationalist should person immoderate uncertainty astir the athletes who are competing contiguous successful this satellite championships."

Evans is an ambassador for Wollongong 2022.

It is conscionable the 2nd UCI Road World Championships to beryllium held successful Australia pursuing its debut successful Geelong successful 2010.

"To spot planetary cycling backmost connected our shores is conscionable great, it's been much than a 2 twelvemonth hiatus," Evans said.

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"(Australian) Grace (Brown) had a fantastic thrust to lone beryllium beaten by the champion clip triallist successful the satellite for this epoch (Ellen van Dijk).

"I was blessed to spot the underdog (Tobias Voss) triumph successful the men's (elite clip trial) but I consciousness for Stefan Kung who is simply a erstwhile teammate who has fallen conscionable abbreviated galore times.

"It's going to beryllium a immense planetary drawcard for tourism successful the bigger picture. In presumption of cycling, I anticipation the likes of Grace Brown and Georgia Baker animate radical to instrumentality up the sport. Wollongong was awarded UCI Bike City, the lone 1 successful the confederate hemisphere, which is simply a bully accolade to have."

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