No plan to ban cycling, says IOC chief Rogge

BELGRADE, July 27 (Reuters) Banning cycling from the Olympic Games is not being considered as a response to the doping scandals shaking the sport in the Tour de France, International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Jacques Rogge said today.

''To exclude the sport from the Olympic Games is not a solution,'' he told reporters during a visit to Belgrade which is currently hosting the Youth Olympics.

''You have to put everything into perspective. What is happening now in the Tour de France is first of all a sign that the mentality of the athletes has changed drastically, and rapidly,'' Rogge said.

''Secondly it is also proof that the system is working well - because if people are caught positive it's that the testing is very accurate and the testing is very good.'' Rogge said the IOC planned to help the International Cycling Union (UCI) ''as a trusted partner'' to improve the sport.

''It is not the UCI that is cheating. It is the riders who are cheating,'' he added.

Some companies sponsoring Tour de France teams, such as Rabobank and France's Cofidis, are reconsidering their involvement in the sport because of doping scandals plaguing the world's greatest cycling race.

REUTERS TB RN1816