Doping scandals aside, the Tour de France is doing very well, merci beaucoup.

Earlier this month, the French stage race signed a contract extension through 2013 with French public television worth a reported 23 million euros per year (about $34 million).

Despite back-to-back editions wracked by doping scandals, Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme told VeloNews would-be host cities are clamoring to be a part of cycling’s marquee race.

More than 200 cities have expressed interest in hosting stage arrivals or departures and 10 cities have confirmed they want to play host to a grand départ in the coming years.

“London was a big turning point for the Tour,” said Prudhomme, referring to last year’s raucously popular start, which drew an estimated 3 million fans. “Everyone saw in London what a big celebration of cycling the Tour can provide. There are some people who only remember the bad news of last year’s Tour, but we are finding that there are just as many who remember the good first half with the image of London.”

The London start was such a hit Prudhomme is scheduled to sit down with London mayor Ken Livingstone in March to discuss a return of the Tour as soon as possible.

With the 2008 Tour set to start in Brest in northwest France and in Monaco in 2009, Prudhomme said the Tour is considering several options for future editions.

Among the candidates are: Rotterdam; Dusseldorf, Germany; Bilboa in Spain’s Basque Country; Liège, which hosted a départ in 2004; Lugano, Switzerland; Budapest; the Mediterranean island of Corsica, which has never hosted the Tour; Florence, Italy; Qatar; and even Japan.

“The Japanese want to do a prologue of 5km around the imperial palace,” Prudhomme said. “Corsica is asking to host the grand départ and it’s never held a Tour stage ever. We are finding strong interest in the Tour.”

Prudhomme said the Tour will look for host cities that offer a complete package in terms of access, hotel capacity, historic and culture values and opportunities to put on a good race course.

The idea of starting the Tour in some far-flung locales such as Canada or the Caribbean is pretty off the shelf.

“We were seriously considering Québec, but it was going to be this year or never,” Prudhomme said. “We were also considering Guadaloupe (in the French Caribbean), but even with the Concorde, the flight would have been almost four hours. Without the Concorde, it’s all but impossible because it’s simply too far and too long.”

Prudhomme said the health of the Tour remains robust despite cycling’s doping woes, but cautioned that the 2008 season is important.

“We cannot afford any more doping scandals. The sport needs to regain its credibility,” he said. “We hope for a clean Tour. The biological passport and these efforts are a step in the right direction.”

Prudhomme lauded efforts by individual teams and more vigilant controls introduced by the UCI.