"I think everything we and the UCI can do is a positive measure but, at the same time, there are parts of it that seem quite pointless. In one way the UCI is setting a good structure for the future but they're still not investing any more money themselves. They're just putting the focus back on the riders and once again the riders' rights have been overlooked."

O'Grady added: "We're already giving DNA and blood and every other thing you can imagine. It's a good way to go but could have been done a lot better." O'Grady will start his 11th Tour de France on July 7 in London. But the image of cycling is suffering from doping scandals. O'Grady said: "It's a bit of an ongoing saga," he said. "All the riders, including me, would like to see the guys that are involved get sanctioned and basically get kicked off [the Tour de France]), but it's dragging on with inconsistent findings and all sorts of stuff going on. It's doing more harm than good."

On Thursday, O'Grady's team mate David Zbriskie told cyclingnews.com that he will sign the UCI riders charter as well. But Zbriskie was pretty sarcastic as he told cyclingnews.com: "I am for 100 percent transparency and am willing to wear a GPS locater so that doping control officers can find me 24/7." Zbriskie added:  "If they wanted to do a GPS locator system I would not disagree, I think it would be easier than filling out the athlete location forms."

O'Grady's team mates Karsten Kroon and Fabian Cancellara are against the riders agreement. Cancellara told Italian website tuttobiciweb.com last week: "It is truly stupid. I am hundred % against it." Cancellara continued by saying: "I will call the president of the UCI and say that something is not right. He is acting like a godfather."