[stripykitteh]

True, in pro cycling over the last few decades it became almost mandatory (unless you were phenomenally gifted) to take PEDs in order to be able to compete.

The difference between being in a top team and a lower ranked team is measured in hundreds of thousands of dollars. Riders who spent 10-15 years of their childhood training to be a pro were faced with a difficult choice - cheat and realize your dream, or stay clean and walk away from the sport.