Forget about Barry Bonds' home run chase, Michael Vick's dog fighting empire and Tim Donaghy's gambling escapades - the most compelling (and controversial) event in sports right now is clearly the Tour de France. If you're not watching, you should be. Yesterday pre-Tour favorite Alexandre Vinokourov, suffering from injuries from a first week crash and over 1/2 hour behind the leaders, rose like a phoenix from the ashes to win the stage in a tremendous performance. Meanwhile, five minutes behind him on the mountain, the two titans of this Tour, Alberto Contador and Michael Rasmussen waged a battle for the ages. Time and time again Contador attacked. Each time Rasmussen dragged himself back onto Contador's wheel. It's impossible not to admire Vinokourov's bravery, Contador's aggressiveness and Rasmussen's grit. The problem, of course, is that we don't believe that these men naturally possess these attributes. The specter of doping is killing the sport.

Cycling is trying to reform itself and trying to get serious about doping. It's not working. Perhaps it's time for a new approach. Instead of trying to prevent doping, why not make it legal? Be transparent about it. Instead of being sponsored by telecoms, pro teams can be sponsored by drug companies. It'll be like auto racing. Just like Ferrari, Ford and Toyota use the racetracks to test and promote new technologies, companies like Merck, Novartis and Pfizer can use riders to test and demonstrate the latest drug advances.

Oh sure, we'll debate whether a rider is truly great or just has truly great drugs. But isn't that what happens now? Vino, Rasmussen & Contador have put on an incredible show, but Vino has links to dirty doctors, Rasmussen is under serious suspicion and Contador rides for those deans of doping, Discovery Channel. I'd rather know that someone won the Tour de France because of the combination of athletic ability, great bikes, excellent teamwork and tactics and really kickass drugs than endlessly wonder who cheats and who doesn't.