Stuart O'Grady still one of the greats, says cyclist Patrick Jonker Five-time Tour de France rider, Patrick Jonker, speaks about Stuart O'Grady's admission that he doped before the 1998 tour. "I RESPECT Stuart O'Grady as an amazing athlete - super-dedicated, determined - one of the toughest riders that I've ever come across," former Australian Olympic cyclist Patrick Jonker says. I still regard him as one of the all-time greats to have competed in the sport that, for a decade, was definitely very tainted. Jonker, 45, rode from 1993 to 2004 and won the Tour Down Under in his final year of competition. His time in the professional peloton coincided with the period 1995-2005, considered by many to be cycling's darkest moment due to the prevalence of drugs. Jonker referred to the decade as "an era that we'd like to forget." I'm disappointed in the whole decade of cycling, really - I don't think you can be disappointed in one person. This is not about Lance (Armstrong), this is not about Stuart O'Grady, this is about the sport of cycling and several other sports as well. I think that we will never experience such an era in sport again. Asked whether he felt the pressure to take drugs to be competitive in the doping decade, Jonker, who finished 34th in the 1998 Tour de France, said he had no need for red-blood-cell-boosting EPO because he had a naturally high level of red blood cells (haematocrit) in his blood. Stuart O'Grady leading the way with the Orica GreenEDGE team. Picture: Bryn Lennon. Before a test for EPO was developed, riders were prevented from starting a race, or removed from a tour if the percentage of the blood that consisted of red blood cells rose above 50 per cent. Any rider whose red blood count was naturally near the 50 per cent level could not boost it with EPO. My natural haematocrit is nearly 50 per cent. I was born that way," he said. I didn't notice any advantage. It was a frustrating period, but I think for everybody the 50 per cent limit was set and there were people who had the opportunity to increase their haemoglobin. Those people who couldn't, it probably wasn't through moral reasons. If you're 49.9 per cent it's pretty difficult to take something, isn't it? "I'm probably borderline "illegal" (close to the old 50 per cent rule) today as I speak," Jonker said, "and no, I'm not taking EPO today." Jonker said that the biological passport - a record of blood profiles collated by cycling's governing body, the UCI - has cleaned up the sport. Patrick Jonker has defended Stuart O'Grady, saying he remains of the greats of Australian cycling. Picture: James Elsby Despite what people say about (2013 Tour de France winner) Chris Froome, I'd say at the moment it's impossible to cheat. And what of the riders who are still testing positive? "You can't help it if some people have a low IQ," Jonker said. You're always going to have people who are going to try to cheat. We have breathalyzers and people still drink and drive.