Cycling: UCI…Bring It On! March 9, 2008
Posted by Steve in : Tour De France, Cycling , add a commentI am a HUGE cycling fan and we are now experiencing the fallout of a blood feud between the ASO and the UCI. The ASO controls the Tour de France race and the UCI controls the season-long Pro Tour. So now we get to this week’s Paris-Nice cycling race and both sides refuse to budge and the ASO has basically said, “UCI…Bring it on!”. Can someone please reign in these 2 year olds for the benefit of the sport?
The Paris-Nice race is set to start Sunday even though teams that participate face sanctions from cycling’s governing body, which says it is fighting for its “survival” and ability to regulate the doping-marred sport. International Cycling Union (UCI) president Pat McQuaid has urged riders to boycott the season’s first major stage race, calling it “illegal” because the race organizers—the Amaury Sport Organization (ASO)—are holding it under French laws and outside UCI rules.
McQuaid has threatened teams with six-month suspensions, fines of up to $9,700, and bans from the track world championships this month, which would affect cyclists (more…)
Can It Happen Again? Say It Ain’t So! July 24, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Tour De France, Breaking News , add a commentWhat a debacle AGAIN! After he bonked then showed the world he could grit his teeth, and win a tough mountain stage, Alexander Vinokourov was found guilty of blood doping. This disgusts me….I really thought this would be a clean ride this year but again my legs are whacked out from beneath me.
In a scene eerily parallelling last year’s Tour winner Floyd Landis‘ remarkable “bonk one day then win the next“, Alexander Vinokourov was found guilty of blood doping and immediately sacked by his team, who also pulled out of the Tour de France. “The doping test carried on Alexander Vinokourov after last Saturday’s time trial in Albi has returned positive,” the Swiss team backed by Kazakh companies said. “There is the presence of a double population of haematids (blood corpuscles), which implies there has been a blood transfusion with homological (the same type of) blood.” “Tour organisers have asked Astana Cycling Team to leave the race, which has been accepted spontaneously.”
Vinokourov has asked for the B sample to be tested. “I cannot comment on this until the result of the B sample’s analysis,” International Cycling Union (UCI) president Pat McQuaid told Reuters over the phone. Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme said the cheats should now be worried. “I told the riders before the start that this was a fantastic opportunity for renewal,” he said at a news conference.”That has failed. But the cheats must understand that they are playing Russian roulette. We are utterly determined”. Vuelta champion Vinokourov was one of the pre-race favorites for this year’s Tour but injured his knees in a crash during the first week of the race.
The 33-year-old then blew any hopes of victory when he bonked and finished almost half an hour down on stage winner Alberto Contador and overall leader Michael Rasmussen on Sunday. Vinokourov, who won Monday’s 15th stage, was 23rd in the overall standings, 28 minutes and 21 seconds behind yellow jersey holder Rasmussen of Denmark. The biggest loser of all of this blood doping? Andreas Kloeden, who was Astana’s best placed rider in the standings. The German, second in 2004 and third last year, was fifth overall, 5:34 down on the leader.
Still Waiting on Landis Ruling from Last Year
Last year’s Tour de France winner Floyd Landis is still awaiting a ruling from a United States arbitration panel after testing positive for testosterone during the 2006 race. The American has protested his innocence but if the decision goes against him, he could become the first Tour winner to be stripped of his title. Check out all the latest Floyd Landis updates at Trust but Verify.
