Femke Van den Driessche banned for having motor in bike

Belgian cyclist Femke Van den Driessche has been banned for six years in the first recorded case of 'mechanical doping'.

The former European under-23 cyclo-cross champion was found to have a concealed electric motor in one of her bikes at the world championships in January.

All her results from October last year have been annulled and she was ordered to return all prize money and medals.

The sport's governing body, Union Cycliste International (UCI), confirmed the 19-year-old has been banned for six years and fined around £14,000.

"Ms Femke Van den Driessche is found to have committed a violation of art. 1.3.010 in combination with art. 12.013bis (Technological fraud) of the UCI Regulations," the UCI said in a statement.

"Ms Femke Van den Driessche is suspended for a period of six years starting from and including October 11, 2015 and ending on October 10, 2021."

It is the first time an elite rider has been punished for so-called "mechanical doping". The UCI described the ban as "a major victory" in the fight against a form of cheating seen as a growing problem in the sport.

"The bike concerned was scanned using the new magnetic resonance testing deployed this year by the UCI. This detected the motor whilst the bike was in the rider's pit area," the statement said.

It said the Vivax motor was concealed along with a battery in the seat-tube, and was controlled by a Bluetooth switch installed underneath the handlebar tape.

Van den Driessche denied knowing that the bike broke the rules, and said it belonged to her friend. But she later decided not to contest the finding and quit the sport.

UCI president Brian Cookson said: "We have invested considerable resources in developing this new and highly effective scanning technology and also in strengthening the sanctions applicable to anyone found cheating in this way.