“What an idiot I'd been. What a spoilt brat. What a bloody fool.”

“I'd just killed some of the best riders in the world - and I was clean. I'd taken nothing - no EPO, no cortisone, no testosterone, no painkillers, no caffeine. I had justified to myself that I was a great rider without drugs - yet perversely given myself the green light to dope again. I'd proved what I could do clean - how much more could I do if I was doped?”

“The manner in which one loses the battle can sometimes outshine the victory.”

“I didn't want to take it. I knew it was a powerful drug, but I also knew it was a catabolic drug that consumed the body.”

“The past is as important as the future, but we only live in the here and now.”

“The smallest issues can become the most important things in life and reality slips away.”

“I was awarded 'Most Aggressive Rider of the Day', generally given to the most spectacular loser of the day.”