Joe Waugh here! I can remember watching the opening ceremony to the Olympic Games when I was eight years old. I think it must have been in my blood because I went on to compete in the Games twice. One issue which tarnishes many major sports events is that of performance enhancing drugs.

My initial thoughts when it comes to drugs in sport are, is it cheating and why do they do it? In the days when I was competing, I believed in the Olympic ideal, but many people didn’t. One of the main reasons I never went professional was the underworld of drugs.

Ironically, my hero was Tommy Simpson who died in July 1967 on the Mont Ventoux and was one of the first high profile casualties of drugs in sport. In a book that his nephew wrote he said that although he did take drugs, he wasn’t a cheat. He claimed everybody else in the race was also on some form of drugs and he was merely levelling the field. I guess he was saying, drugs don’t make a greyhound out of a cart horse.

When I participated, many of the competitors, including me, were amateurs. Now, there is a lot of money to be made in advertising and sponsorships and people will do whatever they can to accommodate this and earn the most. This can bring up the question, what is cheating? If the athlete who uses performance enhancing drugs is a cheat, is the athlete who has the money to spend millions on his bike and equipment to enhance his performance also a cheat? Conversely, if someone is born with better attributes, should they be put up on a pedestal above someone who dedicates themselves but falls short? The truth is - I don’t know the answer.

I applaud athletes who are dedicated, who train hard and perform to the best of their abilities whether they come first or last. I have as much admiration for the men and women who compete in tournaments the world over who put their all into it as I do the people who cycle the coast to coast or do a few miles with their mates on a weekend as a social event. It seems so much more honest to me.

The prevalence of drugs doesn’t affect my enjoyment of sports. As I always do, I’ll be watching the Beijing Olympics with a keen eye. It does, however, raise a few concerns. As a father and a former competitive sportsman, I wonder whether I would want my children chasing a dream in a place where drugs can be so rife. Another thing that bothers me is that whenever there is a great performance nowadays, you start to wonder if they’re taking something. It’s a really sad state of affairs as it could well be that there it was simply a fantastic performance.

Saying this, I still believe in the Olympics ideal. Watching the Games really brings back memories. They showed the dining hall for the competitors on the television the other day and reminded me of the dining halls in Montreal and Moscow when I competed. Even though there were hundreds of competitors of all various disciplines from all over the world, at that point no one person was more important than another. To me, that is what the Olympics should be about. What do you think? Let me know at shop@msteelcycles.co.uk.

In other news, we’re really looking forward to moving M Steel Cycles to its new premises next month. It’s been really busy but it’s starting to take shape and we can’t wait to move in. Until then, we’re selling off all the old stock at our current shop, so come have a look and have a chat! Check out our blog at www.msteelcycles.co.uk!

Until next month, happy and safe riding!