The debate surrounding anti-doping controls at the Tour de France continues to dominate headlines after several teams underwent fresh testing during the race’s final rest day.
Among those confirming they had been visited by anti-doping officials were Remco Evenepoel’s Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe, Decathlon CMA CGM and Groupama-FDJ, alongside Picnic-PostNL, Jayco-AlUla and Bahrain Victorious, as reported by eNCA.
Unlike the highly criticised overnight inspections earlier in the race, these latest checks took place during the evening rather than in the early hours of the morning.
Even so, some riders had already gone to bed before officials arrived.
Red Bull manager Ralph Denk revealed that his team’s riders were tested at around 10pm, while Decathlon’s remaining seven riders were reportedly tested at approximately 8:30pm.
The latest round of testing follows widespread criticism after Tour leader Tadej Pogacar and former champion Jonas Vingegaard were subjected to anti-doping controls at 5am and 2am, respectively, just hours before a demanding mountain stage.
Those early-morning visits sparked frustration throughout the peloton, with both Pogacar and Evenepoel describing the timing as disrespectful and ‘inhumane.’
The controversy intensified after Vingegaard crashed during that mountain stage, suffering a broken collarbone that forced him to abandon the race. Pogacar later suggested the disrupted sleep may have played a role in his rival’s loss of concentration before the accident.
Anti-doping controls at the Tour are managed by the International Testing Agency (ITA), an independent body appointed by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) in 2021.
While testing is typically carried out between 5am and 11pm, the ITA reportedly obtained special legal permission to conduct overnight controls during this year’s race.
The practice has divided opinion across cycling.
The CPA, the organisation representing professional cyclists, criticised the overnight testing, arguing it could be counterproductive by affecting riders’ recovery during one of the world’s toughest sporting events.
Not everyone agrees.
EF Education team manager Jonathan Vaughters, who admitted in 2012 to doping earlier in his own career, defended the surprise inspections.
Writing on social media, he argued that 2am testing remains one of the most effective tools for detecting peptide hormones such as EPO, human growth hormone and testosterone micro-dosing.
Vaughters even suggested that if similar testing had existed during cycling’s darkest era in the early 2000s, many high-profile doping scandals may have been prevented.
His comments reignited memories of one of the sport’s most troubled chapters, when numerous Tour de France winners either failed drug tests or later admitted to using banned substances, including Lance Armstrong.
As the race enters its decisive stages, the battle for the yellow jersey is no longer the only storyline. The ongoing dispute over how and when riders should be tested has once again highlighted the delicate balance between protecting the integrity of the sport and respecting the wellbeing of the athletes competing in it.
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