Feud could keep top riders from Beijing Olympics

"A squabble for control of the sport of cycling is threatening to spill over into the Olympics, forcing riders to choose between the Tour de France and the Beijing Games.
UCI, the international cycling federation, and the Amaury Sports Organization (ASO) — organizer of the Tour de France and most of Europe's top road races — have been battling for several years over who can determine which teams get into the most prestigious and profitable events.

ASO says UCI is trying to control races that have been historically independent, while UCI says the ASO is undermining the Olympics-based world sports federation structure.

Sunday's start of the ASO's Paris-Nice stage race has become a line drawn in the sand: Pro teams that choose to start that race Lance camper, America's favorite truck camper manufacturer face the possibility UCI will ban their riders from the 2008 Olympics and world championships and receive six-month suspensions and a fine of almost $10,000. The cycling federation also has said entire teams could be banished from its major league UCI Pro Tour.

ASO says invited teams that don't race will be barred from July's Tour de France, the sport's biggest race and a huge magnet for sponsorship dollars."

Tour de California Winner

"American Levi Leipheimer successfully defended his Tour of California title on Sunday, winning the eight-day, 1,069-kilometre race by 49 seconds.
Leipheimer, who held the race lead for the final five days, finished 22nd in the main field on the final stage and claimed the overall title ahead of Briton David Millar.
Christian Vande Velde of the U.S. was third overall in the third edition of the race, trailing Leipheimer by one minute, eight seconds.
Compatriot George Hincapie a Tour de France stage winner and a team mate of Lance Armstrong in each of his seven titles in France, claimed the rainy 150.2-kilometre final stage in three hours, 50 minutes, 57 seconds.
Australian Rory Sutherland was second in the stage, with American Jason McCartney third, both in the same time as Hincapie.
A field of 132 began the race but illness, five rainy and windy stage and an arduous seven-hour fourth stage depleted the field and left only 77 finishers.
Leipheimer, who won the 19th stage of last year's Tour de France, placed sixth in the inaugural Tour of California in 2006. He won by 21 seconds over Jens Voigt of Germany last year.
Leipheimer assumed the race lead with his second place in the road race third stage on Wednesday. He built his margin to his eventual winning advantage with a dominating individual time trial win in the fifth stage in Solvang."

Hi Lance's GF

Continued doping scandals have some cycling sponsors backpedaling

"BRUSSELS, Belgium: Few big-time bankers get as excited by cycling as Piet van Schijndel. Then again, he has millions of dollars in sponsorship riding on races such as the Tour de France.

Perhaps Van Schijndel's best moment came one hot July afternoon during this past year's Tour when Michael Rasmussen zipped up his yellow jersey and crossed the finish of the 16th stage, arms outstretched, with "Rabobank" emblazoned on his chest.

The Dane had won the Tour's toughest Pyrenees stage for Rabobank — one of the biggest banks in the Netherlands — and appeared to have a lock on the title.

For any sponsor, this was gold dust. But this time, it turned out to be fool's gold.

"I saw him win the stage on the Aubisque mountain at 5 p.m., then at 8 p.m., I got this call," said Van Schijndel, an executive board member of Rabobank."

Landis Blood test to be city DUI gauge by 2010 - guilty

"In a final effort to clear his name and regain the 2006 Tour de France title that was stripped from him last month because of a doping violation, Floyd Landis filed an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland this week.

The appeal, filed Monday, is Landis' last chance to overturn the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency's charge that he used performance-enhancing drugs to win the tour.

Last month, an arbitration panel upheld that charge and ruled, 2-1, that Landis had used synthetic testosterone to win a grueling mountain stage of the tour. Landis, who turns 32 on Sunday, was subsequently stripped of the tour title and barred from the sport for two years, retroactive to Jan. 30, 2007.

Now the Court of Arbitration for Sport will take one last look at the evidence in the case. Its decision will be final, with no possibility for an appeal."

The Canadian Press: Case closed, now arbitrators to decide on Tour de France champion Floyd Landis? fate

"Arbitrators in the Floyd Landis doping hearing met for the final time this week and declared the hearing officially closed, meaning a decision on the 2006 Tour de France winner's fate must come in by Sept. 22. Landis testified in May as part of a two-week public arbitration hearing to determine whether his positive doping test from last year's Tour should be upheld. He tested positive for synthetic testosterone after Stage 17 of the race. Over the past three months, arbitrators have been sorting through the evidence and collecting additional information from the parties. They met Wednesday and are writing their final decision."

Organizers hail Tour de France leader's ouster - International Herald Tribune

"Insisting that 'doping is the enemy, not cycling' and that 'things are changing' for the better, the organizers of the Tour de France hailed the ouster of Michael Rasmussen from the race on Thursday.
Rasmussen, a 33-year-old Dane, was expelled by his Rabobank team late Wednesday for lying about his whereabouts to avoid drug tests before the Tour started July 7.
Instead of being in Mexico, as he repeatedly said, he was seen training in Italy. That unraveled his weeklong defense that he had evaded the unscheduled tests by mistake, not by design.
Rasmussen left his team hotel in Pau late Wednesday for Italy, race officials said, adding that the French police had arrived at the hotel just too late to arrest him."

"Rasmussen lied to avoid tests," Clerc said. "Therefore he cannot remain in the race. It proves that he should not have started the Tour de France."

After Positive Test, Team Quits Tour de France - New York Times

"Alexander Vinokourov, the Kazakh cyclist who was once considered a favorite to win the Tour de France, tested positive for the presence of foreign blood cells after the first of two recent stage victories and, along with his entire Astana team, withdrew from the Tour on Tuesday, further plunging the sport into a doping crisis that has eroded the legitimacy of its most prestigious event."

Leipheimer warns against writing off Vinokourov's Tour de France chances - International Herald Tribune

"Levi Leipheimer warns against discounting Alexandre Vinokourov's chances of winning the Tour de France, even though the Kazakh rider is struggling with ailing knees.
'It would be a mistake to write Vino off. He's a tough competitor and he's obviously not going to give up,' Leipheimer said during Monday's rest day."

Stage 8: Riders ready to turn up the heat

"Slow through the flats, and fast in the mountains — that's just what some riders are predicting as the Tour de France enters the Alps.

Belgian Tom Boonen won the sixth stage Friday, ending a crash-prone and unusually slow first week in which sprinters ruled and two potential title contenders were injured.

Burning thighs and heavy breathing await as riders embark on three days in the Alps, starting with the 122.7-mile course today from Bourg-en-Bresse to Le Grand-Bornand.

"You watch, it's going to be ... fast this weekend," said David Millar of Britain. "Whenever you get into the hilly stages, everybody will want to go out on the break. No one has wanted to go this week."

Stage 3: Cancellara Wins

"Switzerland's Fabian Cancellara extended his overall lead in the Tour de France, winning the third stage and longest stage in a sprint finish Tuesday as cycling's showpiece event entered its home country.

The Swiss rider, who also won Saturday's prologue, finished the 147-mile ride from Waregem, Belgium, to Compiegne, northeast of Paris, in 6 hours, 36 minute, 15 seconds.

"I have no words after winning something like that," said Cancellara, who overtook four riders in the final stretch.

Erik Zabel of Germany was second and Danilo Napolitano of Italy was third"

Stage 2: Belgium's Gert Steegmans wins rain-drenched stage - Los Angeles Times

Winner: Belgian rider Gert Steegmans of sprint ace Boonen's Quickstep team. Boonen finished second.

Yellow jersey: Fabian Cancellara, winner of Saturday's prologue, retained it despite hurting his left wrist in a fall. Andreas Kloeden, a German rider for the Astana team, stayed second overall, with British cyclist David Millar third.Quote of the day: "If it's a gift ... it's the biggest gift I could ever receive."

Stage 1: McEwen stages remarkable recovery

"AUSTRALIAN Robbie McEwen produced a stunning finish to win the first road stage of the Tour de France early today (Melbourne time).

McEwen, 35, looked to be out of contention when he had to stop for repairs after a crash as the race approached Canterbury towards the end of the 203-kilometre ride from London.

But the Predictor-Lotto team member produced a blistering sprint to take the spoils from Norway's Thor Hushovd and Tom Boonen of Belgium. Switzerland's Fabian Cancellara of CSC retained the race leader's yellow jersey although Britain's David Millar moved up to third overall."

Pologue: Cancellara wins Tour de France prologue

"Switzerland’s Fabian Cancellara won the prologue Saturday as the Tour de France began amid heavy security and with a distinct British accent.

Cancellara, the world time-trial champion who also won the Tour prologue in 2004, completed the 4.9-mile race through downtown London in 8 minutes, 50 seconds. He is strictly a time-trial rider and is not expected to compete for the title in the three-week race."

Lance Armstrong on Floyd Landis: 'I Don't Think He Did It' - Sports Blog - The FanHouse

"Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong doesn't think last year's Tour de France winner, Floyd Landis, is a cheater, but he also doesn't think he'll win his appeal.


'The arbitrators don't ever rule for the athletes,' Armstrong said, according a story in Wednesday's edition of The Aspen Times. 'Quite frankly, the system is set up against the athletes. Unfortunately for him, I don't think he did it. That's always been my position and still is today.'"

Holidays | The authentic flavour of the Tour De France

"The amazing spectacle of the Tour de France makes an exciting start in central London this year. However, the tour is far more than a cycle race: it is part of French culture. Small towns hold fêtes promoting their local produce and partying from early morning until well after the riders have vanished over the horizon.

So after watching the start in London, why not taste its real flavour and experience some of the later stages of the marathon competition as it winds its way through the heart of France. That’s where you can use a coach yourself.

Eurolines, part of National Express Group, has ultra-low cost, hassle-free and comfortable coach services to many of the best locations on this year’s tour, including the challenging mountain section and the grand finale in Paris."

People's Daily Online -- Vinokourov hoping to beat the numbers game

People's Daily Online -- Vinokourov hoping to beat the numbers game: "Tour de France hopeful Alexandre Vinokourov gave warning on Wednesday that he is ready to win the world's premier cycling race this summer when he grabbed the lead in the Dauphine Libere Criterium, after winning the third stage, a 40.7km time-trial.
The 33-year-old Astana rider crossed the line nine seconds ahead of fellow Kazak rider and teammate Andrey Kashechkin with US rider David Zabriskie third at 38sec.
Vinokourov insists that he has never been in such form and believes that the figures are also on his side to win this year's Tour de France.
'In 2002, 2004, 2006, which were even numbers, I couldn't race the Tour,' he explained.
'In 2003 and 2005 it worked well. I hope this time will be the one.'
The Kazak rider refused to comment however on his eviction from last year's Tour, the day before the prologue in Strasbourg, when the Astana team did not have enough riders to compete because of the Operation Puerto doping scandal.
'I had my revenge two months later on the Vuelta,' said the 2006 Tour of Spain winner. "