It was an apocalyptic prediction that many hoped and prayed would take years to materialise. Only two months ago, Dick Pound from the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) told a conference: 'You would have to be blind not to see that the next generation of doping will be genetic.'
Gene doping, which is banned in sport but currently cannot be tested for, involves transferring genes into human cells to mix in with an athlete's DNA in the hope of stimulating muscle growth and increasing strength or endurance: creating genetically modified athletes.
While technically possible, most scientists believed it was still far from being a reality as research in the field is still in its infancy. But last week a court in Germany stumbled upon the fact that a generation of a dangerous new sporting world had apparently arrived.
In the dock sat Thomas Springstein, until recently one of Germany's top athletics coaches who stood accused of supplying his female athletes with a steady stream of steroids. When police raided his home, not only did they remove 20 chemical substances - only 12 of which have yet been identified - but they also took a peek at his computer.
Among the scores of e-mails that were read out in court, one reverberated through the sporting world. In an exchange with a doctor from a Dutch speed-skating club the German ordered more Repoxygen - a substance used in gene therapy - and complained that it was difficult to get a steady supply.
Repoxygen was designed for people with anemia as it gives the body the gene to stimulate erythropoietin, or EPO, production. EPO induces the production of red blood cells so more oxygen is carried to the muscles.
This means increased stamina and for drug cheats it sounds simple: instead of injecting themselves with synthetic EPO - which can be detected in tests - they could inject the gene that produces the EPO, which would allow the body to naturally produce more red blood cells.