October 29, 2008 (Montreal, QC) – A new book on Quebec cyclist, Genevieve Jeanson, who confessed to doping for much of her career is to be released November 6 reports the Montreal daily, la Presse. Entitled, “L’affaire Jeanson : l’engrenage” (The Jeanson Affair : the Gears), the book by journalist Alain Gravel explores the “unhealthy” relationship between Jeanson and her coach, Andre Aubut whom she eventually married and later divorced. The relationship began when Jeanson was only 16 and lasted almost 10 years. Gravel is the same journalist who coaxed Jeanson to admit on TV last year that she used EPO (erythropoietin) during her cycling career.

Jeanson recounts her first embrace with Aubut (a physical education instructor at the time) in his office at a Montreal area college. This continued at Aubut’s house where he lived with his wife and in Aubut’s car. “He protected me,” declares the 27-year-old former cyclist, describing the beginning of a relationship that soon went sour. She goes on to describe how he began to beat her mentally and physically. “I felt obligated to satisfy his every desire, including sexual ones,” she admits. “He did everything he could to ensure that my training sessions went badly.” The relationship was marked by blackmail, threats and violence with Aubut apparently punching Jeanson in 2004 resulting in a black eye.

Aubut encouraged Jeanson to start taking a banned substance, EPO, to help her win races. Jeanson’s father knew about the EPO. As recounted in earlier coverage, if Jeanson was initially an adolescent victim, forced to take EPO, she later took the drug willingly as an adult.

The book’s title is apparently a reference to quotes Jeanson made on TV while explaining how she taking EPO and then couldn’t quit. “Je me suis fait prendre dans un /engrenage//” //(“/I got myself caught caught in the gears [of doping],” recounted Jeanson in September, 2007.

There has been no announcement of an English translation of this book published by Voix parallèles. Pedal telephoned the parent company, Editeur Septembre, this morning to get more details of the soon-to-be-released book. L’affaire Jeanson : l’engrenage will sell in bookstores for $29.95 and no English translation is envisioned at this time.

Read the La Presse article (in French) here.

Read the Pedal article from the archives here