Professional cycling traces its roots back to the late 1800s when French and Belgian "classic" races like the Paris-Roubiax and Liege-Bastogne-Liege were staged. These races and the long-standing Tour de France, started in 1903, originally were designed with business interests in mind -- namely the sale of news publications. These days, professional cycling has bloomed into a highly competitive sport that feeds national pride. That makes ethics a key component for everyone involved in the sport, from competitors to coaches to those affiliated with the organizations that govern the sport.
Ethics Violation Penalties
USA Cycling, the governing body for the sport in the United States, does reserve the right to revoke a competitor, coach or staff member's membership or to deny membership in the organization if a person's conduct runs counter to the organization's code of ethics. Lesser penalties include being sanctioned under racing rules, being suspended, being fined or being placed on probation. A person who is suspected of violating the organization's code of conduct does have the right to a hearing.
Doping
The violation that gains the most attention is running counter to World Antidoping Agency, or WADA, standards. Indeed, debates over doping in cycling are frequent headline grabbers, notes Jesús Ilundáin-Agurruza, lead author for "Cycling---Philosophy for Everyone." The issue reached a tipping point about 2007 after several worldwide scandals. At that time, U.S. teams began investing in anti-doping programs to closely monitor their own cyclists. Such programs regularly monitor for physiological effects such as by examining athletes' blood and hormone values to determine whether there's an indication of performance-enhancing drug use. Such monitoring means athletes can be suspended from their teams without a formal "positive" result from a drug test, according to ESPN. In addition to facing sanctions for using banned substances, athletes, coaches and others in the cycling circuit also violate the code of conduct when they sell or distribute any substance that is on WADA's list of banned substances.
Other Violations
Other violations of the USA Cycling code of conduct include being convicted of a felony, sex crime or drug crime, inappropriate sexual advances by someone who is in a position of authority in the context of cycling, abusing someone physically, discrimination, administering any substance -- legal or illegal -- unless you are a licensed medical professional doing so for health reasons, giving tobacco or alcohol to an underage person and using alcohol in front of a person younger than 18. Damaging property, using threatening language or conduct, and acting dishonestly or committing fraud in connection with a USA Cycling activity are other violations. Allegations of violations are reported to the chief executive officer of USA Cycling. Witnessing a violation and failing to report it also is a violation of the code of conduct.
International Guidelines
International Cycling Union (UCI) members, including the organization's staff, technical delegates, commission members, Professional Cycling Council members and management committee members are also subject to a code of ethics. The code includes mandates of nondiscrimination, nonviolence, an emphasis on fair play, disallows acceptance of gifts other than those that are symbolic and disallows anyone affiliated with the UCI from accepting instructions from a third party on how to vote on any matter. The code also addresses conflict of interest and confidentiality issues. National federations adopt ethics codes that are based on the UCI's code. For example, USA Cycling requires those affiliated with the organization to sign a conflict of interest disclosure.
References
- USA Cycling: Code of Conduct for Athletes, Coaches and Staff
- USA Cycling: Governance Policy Manual
- International Cycling Union: Code of Ethics
- "International Cases in the Business of Sport"; Simon Chadwick and Dave Arthur; 2007
- "Cycling---Philosophy for Everyone"; Jesús Ilundáin-Agurruza et al.; 2010
- ESPN: After Two Years ACE Going Out of Business Immediately; Bonnie D. Ford; November 4, 2008
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