“It was very quiet at the hotel, as if there had been a death in the family. When you have quit the Tour, nobody really knows what to say or do. (...) Everything I'd previously achieved meant nothing; all I was now was a pro rider who couldn't finish the Tour de France.”

“I had grown used to getting a pat on the back and being told after a good result: 'Well done, David - you should be happy, you're the first clean rider.”

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

“It seemed romantic but also tragic - people would be winning but then lose it all, or crash but fight on, break bones but get back on their bikes and try to finish. Just getting to the end was seen as an achievement in itself.”

“The first time I rode a bike I was four or five. I crashed into the back of a car.”

“People do make mistakes and I think they should be punished. But they should be forgiven and given the opportunity for a second chance. We are human beings.”

“One group of riders doped, the others alongside them racing clean. You can work out for yourselves which group was fastest.”

“I didn't care about goals or expectations any more, I was just determined to race my heart out.”

“If you're not at the front, you're not in the race.”

“I might have changed, but that did not mean the sport had.”

“This place has been my home. They liked me here. Not any more. Now they will look the other way. Now I don't belong.”