“The next step will be forcing riders to stay in a detention centre" - Lance Armstrong doesn't agree with night doping tests
Cycling
The controversy over pre-dawn anti-doping controls on Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard during the Tour de France 2026 continues to grow. After Remco Evenepoel’s criticism, Lance Armstrong has now weighed in on his podcast The Move, calling the situation a dangerous precedent and using an extreme comparison to illustrate how far such measures could go.
The American argued that if the goal is to tighten control over riders further and further, the next step would be to virtually deprive them of freedom.
“If that’s your fight and this is one of your solutions, and at some point you realise it’s not enough, I’ll tell you what comes next. It won’t be waking them at 1:00 or 3:30 in the morning anymore. The next step will be forcing riders to stay in a detention centre or even a local jail, monitored 24 hours a day. That would be 100% effective.”
Armstrong made clear this was a deliberate exaggeration to denounce what he sees as an excessive drift in anti-doping controls. “If everyone agrees with that, go ahead. But that’s the next step.”
A judge authorised the inspections
The show also discussed reports in the French press stating that the anti-doping agency needed authorisation from a French federal judge to carry out the night-time tests on Pogacar and Vingegaard.
Bradley Wiggins admitted he would like to know what arguments were presented to justify such an exceptional measure: “It would be interesting to know what evidence they presented to that judge.”
The debate then turned to how athletes are treated differently by sport. Spencer Martin noted that NBA players face very few tests each year and receive advance notice. Armstrong and Wiggins agreed it is hard to understand why cycling bears these measures while other major sports do not.
“If it’s done this way, it should be done across all sports, not just in cycling,” Wiggins argued.
For Armstrong, the fact it is only applied in this sport shows riders are an easy target: “Why only in cycling? Other sports would never accept something like this.”
Tadej Pogacar sets the tempo on stage 15
Armstrong won’t change his mind
The Texan insisted he will keep criticising controls he considers disproportionate and said the debate has already moved beyond the Tour de France itself.
“Most people, even within cycling, think this has crossed a line.”
The row remains open and threatens to become one of the defining debates of the Tour de France 2026, after several figures in the peloton publicly questioned controls that, while legal, many consider excessively invasive during the race.
Gavin QuinnCycling Journalist
Gavin Quinn is a cycling journalist and ultra-distance cyclist with a BA in Journalism from Dublin City University. Formerly the Press & Communications Officer for Cycling Ireland, Gavin has worked inside the national team at the World Championships and has reported for the Irish Mirror, Mirror UK, and The42.
His expertise is backed by elite-level access, having interviewed stars like Sam Bennett and Ben Healy, as well as immense personal endurance. In 2025, he completed a 12,000km solo cycle from Ireland to Vietnam, following a 4,600km tour across Europe. From the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix to the gradients of the Tourmalet, Gavin’s writing focuses on the "romance and brutality" of the sport. Having visited 50+ countries, he brings a global, cultural perspective to his coverage of the pro peloton for CyclingUpToDate.
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- A busy boy!Lozza03-11-2026
- I hope 2027 is his year.mij03-11-2026
- why does he have to? many GT riders from Froome to Contador to Indurain didn't do them.mij03-11-2026
- I think Jonas would have lost the TDF by 4+ minutes (at the least) and might not have even been in the top 3. Too much talent in the younger riders to say anyone not named Pogačar would have been top 3md197503-11-2026
- this is just stupid. you already have 23%, gravel is over the topabstractengineer03-11-2026
- There was once a time when Lance was supremely popular and he used his artificial "It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life" persona to lead his mob in going after Greg. There was no one Lance did not abuse in protecting his phony hero image. Lance promoted himself as a divine megastar and he let down millions of cancer victims and gullible devotees who clung far too long to the charade. Lance is the epitome of a corrupt person and because of his power, many around him, including business enterprises, succumbed to the evil. All who got in Armstrong's way were mercilessly attacked by him and his minions. This remarkably continues today with a new generation. LeMond was a number one enemy and paid a huge price. Who do you think slandered who?Yepperoni03-11-2026
- You despise him because he calls out the truth....OK clown !frieders303-11-2026
- JV is really slighting himself with not doing the 1 dayers.. 🤷
leedorney02-11-2026 - Watch the interview on youtube. I don't speak French. I do speak English and Spanish and you can hear it in his voice. Years ago LeMond had real personal problems I imagine in no small part because of Armstrong. then Armstrong goes round "full blast" re: LeMond having drinking and drug problems. The same way Andreu was expelled from mainstream cycling so was LeMond. On the positive side the clips of the ride and chatting with old teammates and was good. To seemed like a fun day and experience and good reason brush up his French.atom02-11-2026
- and another no-news article around the ‚2 tokyo jogging rounds‘ headline, this time spiced with some days old ‚news‘ that the LA and japan vacation trips come during or after the tdf route release. i am getting more and more annoyed by this time-stealing no-news crap. but who am i to complain? nobody forces me to come back for more ‚news‘ day after day …Ketterechts02-11-2026
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