'I want to measure myself, not cheat' - Reusser dismisses doping and enhanced games idea

"Not at all. Simply because I don't need it," Reusser said on the SRF Kultur Sternstunden when asked about doping temptation. "I play the cycling game - I want to measure myself and enjoy everything in it. If I won knowing I cheated, I wouldn't feel joy. A huge part of what I love would fall away."

The Olympic silver medallist and world champion expressed concern about the recently proposed "Enhanced Games," scheduled for May 2026, where athletes would be permitted to use performance-enhancing substances without restrictions.

"I'm extremely glad doping is banned for us - for good reasons," Reusser explained. "It's very unhealthy and risky; you can die or suffer serious damage. As an athlete I'm glad I don't have to."

Reusser highlighted that cyclists already face significant performance pressures through legal means, including altitude training that virtually all top competitors undertake.

"Without altitude training you can't compete at the top level. So we're constantly at altitude or in a tent at home," she revealed.

The 32-year-old confirmed she uses an oxygen tent in her apartment to simulate high-altitude conditions, a practice widely adopted throughout professional cycling.

"I have a tent at home and spend weeks in it. There's simply less oxygen - simulated altitude - and everyone does it," she said. "Sometimes I think if we all just agreed to put that aside, we could be at home normally. That would be wonderful."

Her primary objection to legalizing doping isn't about fairness but rather the pressure it would place on athletes to risk their health.

"If everyone doped, I'd have to as well just to compete, and I'd have to accept those harms. I don't want that," Reusser stated.

While acknowledging the dangers inherent in cycling - particularly high-speed descents - Reusser distinguishes between these accepted risks and those posed by performance-enhancing substances.

"I know I could die there [on descents]; I accept that. But if people, with clear information, choose to accept doping risks and are allowed to, who should forbid them?" she questioned, before concluding that while the Enhanced Games concept is "interesting," it remains "a very bold experiment."

Reusser also noted that while human doping is banned, equipment optimisation remains a central focus in professional cycling, with constant improvements to bikes, helmets, and other gear representing legal performance enhancements.