He’s been a biathlon front figure for ten years, earned six olympic gold medals and won the world championships eleven times. But despite Martin Fourcade’s success, there is a thorn in his side: doping. In this exclusive interview, the Frenchman opens up about the sense of betrayal and the loneliness at the anti-doping barricades.
– I don’t trust anyone who comes back after doping, he says to SVT Sport.
Martin Fourcade has been raising his voice against doping for many years. Other athletes have been supporting him in the background, but mostly he’s been alone in the limelight – answering questions from the media, engaging in discussions.
– I often felt lonely on this case.
As a boy, he admired cyclist Lance Armstrong who then won Tour de France seven years in a row. – I really believed he was clean. He was tested a lot. And when we knew that Armstrong used doping many years I felt betrayed as a kid, but also as an athlete. Until that, when people didn’t trust me, I would say that I was tested 30 times a year. But that is not an answer, for some people know that now you can cheat and be tested at the same time, Fourcade says.
”Speaking out was my defence”
The fight against doping became his way to rise above suspicion.
– For me, speaking loudly against doping was my defence. Because it was the only thing I could do to show that I am not using doping. If the tests were not enough to show my honesty, speaking out was the only option I had.
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