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Armstrong responds to Tour organizer's 'embarrassment' quip
Seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong responded strongly to the Tour organizer's new president's comment that he has "embarrassed" cycling's premier race.
"We can't say that he has not embarrassed the Tour de France, as he has had a quite a complicated history with it," Jean-Etienne Amaury said earlier Saturday in French sports newspaper L'Equipe. Seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong responded strongly to the Tour organizer's new president's comment that h... more -
Armstrong set to join Astana team
Lance Armstrong will join the Astana team when he makes his much-anticipated return to cycling, according to a Kazakh cycling federation offical.
"On Wednesday Armstrong will announce his decision to join our team," said Kazakhstan's cycling federation deputy president Nikolai Proskurin.
The seven-time Tour de France winner will begin his comeback at the Tour Down Under in Australia in January.
The 37-year-old Texan will reveal further details of his comeback schedule at a news conference in New York.
But Tour Down Under director Mike Turtur has already said that Armstrong has confirmed his entry for the six-day race around South Australia, centring on Adelaide, starting on 20 January.
The Kazakh-financed Astana team, now based in Switzerland, suffered two high-profile doping scandals in 2007 and were barred from this year's Tour de France despite a substantial overhaul in team management.
Kazakh rider Alexandre Vinokourov, the old Astana team leader, tested positive for blood doping after winning a time-trial stage of the 2007 Tour, and was subsequently sacked and banned for a year.
Astana is now run by Armstrong's friend and former sporting director Johan Bruyneel, who helped the American win all his seven Tours.
Bruyneel has suggested that he would find it almost impossible not to include a fit-again Armstrong in his team.
But current team leader Alberto Contador, the 2007 Tour de France winner who recently became only the fifth rider in history to win all of cycling's three major Tours when he won the Tour of Spain, has already hinted Armstrong's presence could cause conflict.
"I've earned the right to be the leader of a team without having to fight for my place," Contador told AS newspaper.
"And with Armstrong, some difficult situations could arise in which the team would put him first and that would hurt me."
But Proskurin believes the two will work together in a new line-up.
"Currently there's certain tension in the team but I hope we are capable of keeping the situation under control," Proskurin added.
"Armstrong will not be the only star, he will be one of the team's leaders. Lance Armstrong will join the Astana team when he makes his much-anticipated return to cycling, according to a Kazakh cycling federati... more -
Lance Armstrong returning to Tour de France in 09
Lance likes France.. what can you say?
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Armstrong coming out of retirement for Tour
AUSTIN, Texas (AP)—Lance Armstrong is getting back on his bike, determined to win an eighth Tour de France.
Armstrong’s return from cancer to win the Tour a record seven consecutive times made him a hero to cancer patients worldwide and elevated cycling to an unprecedented level in America.
The 36-year-old Armstrong told Vanity Fair in an exclusive interview posted on its Web site Tuesday that he was inspired to return after finishing second last month in the Leadville 100, a lung-searing 100-mile mountain bike race through the Colorado Rockies.
“This kind of obscure bike race, totally kick-started my engine,” he told the magazine. “I’m going to try and win an eighth Tour de France.”
The sport and particularly the Tour have missed his star power, even though skeptics refused to believe he could win 7 Tours without the help of illegal performance-enhancing drugs.
The 2009 Tour “is the intention,” Armstrong’s spokesman Mark Higgins told The Associated Press, “but we’ve got some homework to do over there.”
Tour director Christian Prudhomme did not return messages seeking comment on Armstrong’s decision. His staff said he would not comment before Wednesday morning, if at all.
Armstrong’s close friend and longtime team director, Johan Bruyneel, now with team Astana, sent a text message to an AP reporter in Paris saying he did not want to comment now.
In a video statement on his foundation’s Web site, Armstrong said details— such as a team and schedule—will be announced Sept. 24 at the Clinton Global Initiative in New York City.
“I am happy to announce that after talking with my children, my family and my closest friends, I have decided to return to professional cycling in order to raise awareness of the global cancer burden,” Armstrong said in a statement released to The Associated Press. “This year alone, nearly eight million people will die of cancer worldwide. … It’s now time to address cancer on a global level.”
In the Vanity Fair interview, Armstrong told the magazine he’s 100 percent sure he’s going to compete in the Tour next summer.
“We’re not going to try to win second place,” Bill Stapleton, Armstrong’s lawyer and longtime confidant, told the AP.
“I think it’s great,” said longtime teammate George Hincapie, who added he spoke to Armstrong on Tuesday morning. “Like I said earlier today without Lance half the teams in this race probably wouldn’t be around. He’s done more than anyone for the sport especially in America and around the world.”
“On a personal note, I like that he’s going to be back in the peloton. He’s a great friend of mine, and I also think for the sport it’s good, too.” AUSTIN, Texas (AP)—Lance Armstrong is getting back on his bike, determined to win an eighth Tour de France. ... more -
Armstrong returning to cycling, will try for Tour No. 8 win
Lance Armstrong is getting back on his bike, determined to win an eighth Tour de France.
Armstrong's return from cancer to win the Tour a record seven consecutive times made him a hero to cancer patients worldwide and elevated cycling to an unprecedented level in America.
The Tour "is the intention," Armstrong's spokesman Mark Higgins told The Associated Press, "but we've got some homework to do over there." Added Bill Stapleton, Armstrong's lawyer and longtime confidant: "We're not going to try to win second place."
What team he'll ride with and in what other races he'll compete are undecided, Higgins said. Lance Armstrong is getting back on his bike, determined to win an eighth Tour de France. ... more -
Lance Armstrong 'to make Tour return'
Lance Armstrong plans to come out of retirement and try to win an eight Tour de France, according to reports.
French cycling magazine VeloNews claims the American will race in five events in 2009 culminating in Le Tour.
The US anti-doping agency has confirmed Armstrong has reinstated himself in its out-of-competition testing pool.
The Texan, who turns 37 on September 18, beat testicular cancer before winning seven straight Tour de France titles from 1999 to 2005. Lance Armstrong plans to come out of retirement and try to win an eight Tour de France, according to reports. ... more -
Report that Armstrong to ride for Astana team refuted
As speculation swirled that seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong will return to competitive racing in the 2009 season, the champion himself remained mum, as did his closest advisers.
Quoting anonymous sources, VeloNews.com reported Monday that Armstrong, who turns 37 on Sept. 18, would return for several high-profile races next year, taking no salary and posting the results of blood tests on the Internet in order to prove that he is riding clean.
Armstrong, who recovered from life-threatening testicular cancer to rewrite the Tour record books, was dogged through much of his career by unproven allegations and circumstantial evidence that he took performance-enhancing drugs, charges he vehemently denies to this day. He never tested positive.
The report further said that Armstrong would ride for the Kazakhstan-financed, Belgium-based Astana team, managed by his close friend and former director Johan Bruyneel, who guided the U.S. Postal Service and Discovery Channel teams during Armstrong's reign at the top. Several of Armstrong's former teammates still ride for the team, along with 2007 Tour de France champion Alberto Contador of Spain.
Messages left for Bruyneel, Armstrong and his agent and business partner Bill Stapleton went unanswered Monday. A spokesman for Astana said the team had "no plans" with Armstrong.
"The Lance rumors exist already a few weeks," team press officer Philippe Maertens wrote in an e-mail from Spain, where Astana is competing in the Tour of Spain. "We know that he continued training hard after that mountain bike race. He will do some cyclocross races as well in the USA. I cannot tell you more. You better ask him. Lance Armstrong is no part of our team. Team Astana has no plans with him."
Armstrong is said to be interested in competing in five road races, including the Tour of California and the Tour de France. Astana controversially was not invited to cycling's biggest event this year because race organizers said they felt burned by the team's past doping offenses. Tour director Christian Prudhomme has said in recent months that race officials would reconsider that stance depending on the team's results and whether it steered clear of doping scandals. Contador won the Tour of Italy and his teammate, American Levi Leipheimer, is currently a close second in the ongoing Tour of Spain. As speculation swirled that seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong will return to competitive racing in the 2009 season, the... more -
Lance Armstrong to return for 2009 Tour de France?
Lance Armstrong’s reported comeback won’t take place with the Astana cycling team.
“He is no part of our team,” Astana team press officer Philippe Maertens told The Associated Press in an e-mail. “Team Astana has no plans with him.”
The cycling journal VeloNews, citing anonymous sources, reported on its Web site Monday that the 36-year-old seven-time Tour de France champion would compete in the Tour and four other road races with Astana in 2009.
But Astana team director Johan Bruyneel, who was with Armstrong for all seven Tour wins from 1999-2005, told cyclingnews.com that he was unaware of any Armstrong comeback.
“I don’t know where the rumors come from,” the Web site quoted him as saying.
Maertens said rumors that Armstrong might come out of retirement had been circulating for a few weeks.
“I cannot tell you more,” Maertens said in the e-mail. “You better ask him.”
Armstrong did not immediately respond to a text message or voice mails left by the AP. Armstrong’s manager Mark Higgins and Bruyneel also did not respond to voice mails left by the AP.
George Hincapie, a longtime Armstrong teammate, would not comment Monday afternoon following the first stage of the Tour of Missouri.
VeloNews reported Armstrong will compete in the Amgen Tour of California, Paris-Nice, the Tour de Georgia and the Dauphine-Libere, in addition to the Tour.
The Astana team, however, was not allowed to compete in this year’s Tour after Alexandre Vinokourov was kicked out of the 2007 Tour for testing positive and the team quit the race.
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency confirmed Armstrong is part of its out-of-competition testing pool and would be eligible for elite competition on Feb. 1, 2009. The Amgen Tour of California begins Feb. 14.
USA Cycling said Armstrong has not applied for an international cycling license, but chief operating officer Sean Petty said Armstrong typically did not request such a license until January or February. Lance Armstrong’s reported comeback won’t take place with the Astana cycling team. ... more -
Is Lance Armstrong, 7-time TdF Champion, making a comeback?
"Lance Armstrong will come out of retirement next year to compete in five road races with the Astana team, according to sources familiar with the developing situation.
Armstrong, who turns 37 this month, will compete in the Amgen Tour of California, Paris-Nice, the Tour de Georgia, the Dauphine-Libere and the Tour de France — and will race for no salary or bonuses, the sources, who asked to remain anonymous, told VeloNews."
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Alberto, Levi AND Lance?? My gawd, what an arsenal. Astana is poised to kick some serious butt. "Lance Armstrong will come out of retirement next year to compete in five road races with the Astana team, according to sources f... more -
'Rideable art" rolling along
Way too pricey for the average me, but aesthetically this is pretty nice to look at. It is always good eye- candy to see the breakthrough design of a frame and its 2 wheels.
'Carbon-fiber components, aerodynamic wheels and pristine paint jobs drive up the price of high-end racing bikes.'
interesting article, though - - - full @ link- - -
PORTLAND — The new status symbol for ardent pedal-pushers: a five-figure ride.Blame seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong for the high-priced bike movement. In addition to boosting the sport's popularity, one of the most enduring of the so-called Lance effects "was to get the people who already rode a high-priced bike to buy a higher-priced bike," said Jay Townley, a partner in a Wisconsin marketing and research firm who studies cycling trends.
Price ceilings have risen with the introduction of more lightweight, sophisticated and aesthetically pleasing cycling components. In turn, many of the high-end bikes have become collector's items, more to lust over than to use for any practical purpose.
River City Bicycles co-owner Mark Ontiveros calls them "rideable art."
"When we go down to our basements or our garages, it makes us as happy as some of the finest art in the world," Ontiveros said. "It's just beauty. And that's why they sell."
The latest masterpiece on display at the River City shop in southeast Portland: a limited-edition, sports-car-inspired Colnago for Ferrari.
"The people driving this high-end business aren't your typical bike commuter," Townley said. "They aren't helping the environment or saving money by buying these high-priced bikes. They're doing it because it's a fashion statement for them within their circle of friends and acquaintances who happen to be other bikeys." Way too pricey for the average me, but aesthetically this is pretty nice to look at. It is always good eye- candy to see the breakthro... more -
Riccardo Riccò admits using EPO
"Italian cyclist Riccardo Riccò admitted to using banned blood booster EPO when interviewed by the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) on Wednesday about his positive dope test on the Tour de France.
Riccò, who had won two stages, was kicked off the Tour after testing positive for EPO (erythropoietin) following the fourth stage time-trial on July 8.
He initially denied having doped following his positive test and arrest by French police, but now he has come clean." "Italian cyclist Riccardo Riccò admitted to using banned blood booster EPO when interviewed by the Italian Olympic Committee (CON... more -
Tour de France Winner Carlos Sastre Receives Hero's Welcome
"Spain's Carlos Sastre received a hero's welcome Wednesday when he returned to his hometown of El Barraco after becoming the third Spaniard in a row to win the Tour de France over the weekend.
Hundreds of ecstatic supporters cheered when the 33-year-old held up his yellow jersey during a welcome ceremony held outside of El Barraco's town hall under bright sunshine." "Spain's Carlos Sastre received a hero's welcome Wednesday when he returned to his hometown of El Barraco after becomin... more -
Tour de France Team Out After Rider Tests Positive
NARBONNE, France — The Tour de France, battling to maintain its credibility after so many years of doping scandals involving riders at the top of the sport of cycling, was hit again Thursday with the third drug scandal of this year’s Tour.
Riccardo Ricco, the winner of two stages in the Tour’s first nine days and in ninth place in the race so far, tested positive for a new-generation variant of the blood-boosting drug EPO after the fourth stage of the race last week, according to the French Anti-Doping Agency.
After the results became known Thursday morning, French Gendarmes questioned Ricco in the start village at Lavelanet and then drove away with him in a team car.
Members of Ricco’s Saunier Duval-Scott team had already prepared to start the 12th stage of the race in Lavalanet on Thursday morning when news of the failed drug test led the team’s management to withdraw its remaining riders from the Tour.
Ricco’s is the third failed test by a rider at the Tour this year. Two Spanish riders previously tested positive for EPO: Manuel Beltran of the Liquigas team and Moises Duenas Nevado of the Barloworld team. Duenas Nevado was also arrested after a police search found banned performance-enhancing drugs in his hotel room. NARBONNE, France — The Tour de France, battling to maintain its credibility after so many years of doping scandals involving riders at... more -
Tour de France tainted by third drug scandal
A third cyclist has been kicked out of the 2008 Tour de France for drug use following a positive test by promising Italian rider Riccardo Ricco.
Ricco, who had won two stages in this month's prestigious event, was taken off the Saunier-Duval team bus by police on Thursday and booed by spectators, the Associated Press reported.
Saunier-Duval subsequently pulled all its riders, including eighth-placed Juan Jose Cobo and stage 10 winner Leonardo Piepoli, out of the race as it sought to investigate the situation.
"It's a team decision not to start the race," the team's sporting director Matxin Fernandez told AP. "He's our leader, we can't act as if nothing happened. We suspend the activities of the team until we know what happened."
The 24-year-old Ricco, considered one of the world's top climbers, tested positive for the banned blood-booster EPO after the fourth stage, a time trial in the western town of Cholet.
Ahead of Thursday's 12th stage, Ricco was placed ninth overall -- two minutes and 29 seconds behind overall leader Cadel Evans of Australia.
He had won the sixth and ninth stages and was top of the King of the Mountains and Young Rider categories to confirm his status as one of the sport's rising stars.
Ricco came into the French event in fine form, having finished second overall at his home Giro d'Italia.
He followed Spanish duo Moises Duenas Nevado and Manuel Beltran in being kicked out of the race following positive drug tests.
Duenas Nevado, of the Barloworld team, was also busted for using EPO on Wednesday, while veteran Liquigas rider Beltran was ejected last Friday after testing positive for the same performance-enhancing substance.
The controversies have provided even more embarrassment for race organizers, already reeling after Floyd Landis was stripped of his 2006 title for steroid use and Michael Rasmussen was kicked off while leading last year's race for lying to his team to avoid a random drug test. A third cyclist has been kicked out of the 2008 Tour de France for drug use following a positive test by promising Italian rider Ricca... more -
Piepoli triumphs as Evans takes yellow
Saunier Duval's Leonard Piepoli won the 10th stage of the Tour de France as Australia's Cadel Evans took over the race leader's yellow jersey in a dramatic finale on the cruel slopes of the Hautacam on Monday.
An emotional Evans dons the race leader's yelllow jersey after an epic 10th stage.
The 14 kilometer climb came hard on the heels of the ascent of the famous Col de Tourmalet and previous race leader Kim Kirchen of the Columbia team was quickly distanced by the mountain specialists.
The climb also saw the end of the challenge for overall honors of Spaniard Alejandro Valverde, the Caisse d'Epargne star cutting a forlorn figure as he slipped off the pace having already struggled on the Tourmalet.
Evans, showing no ill effects from his nasty crash of the previous day, has just one second to spare over Luxembourg's Franck Schleck with Christian Vandevelde of the United States in third spot at 38 seconds.
"I thought my Tour was finished yesterday," said Evans, speaking in French on television before he donned yellow.
"Like the others who took the yellow jersey on the Hautacam, I hope I can continue in it," an emotional Evans added.
In fourth place overall is Austrian Bernard Kohl of Gersolsteiner, with Spaniard Carlos Sastre -- the CSC team leader -- in fourth place at one minute 28 seconds down.
Luxembourg's Kirchen, who battled hard to limit his losss, slipped to seventh place, nearly two minutes down.
Schleck had forged clear in a breakaway group with Saunier Duval pair Juan Jose Cobo of Spain and Italian climber Piepoli, but was distanced towards the finish.
Saunier Duval team leader Riccardo Ricco, who won the first stage in the Pyrenees on Sunday, had predicted a Piepoli victory and the team were as good as his word with Cobo not contesting the finish.
CSC star Schleck bravely held his deficit to just 29 seconds, but was cruelly robbed of yellow as Evans came home in the group containing Ricco and Vandevelde at two minutes 17 seconds down.
The dangerous Ricco has moved up to ninth overall, two minutes and 29 seconds behind Evans, who finished runner-up to Alberto Contador in last year's Tour de France.
Contador, who won this year's Giro d'Italia ahead of Ricco, was not able to defend his title because his Astana team was excluded for past doping misdemeanors before he joined the squad.
Tuesday is a welcome rest day for the riders as they face up to the most open and unpredictable Tour de France in many years. Saunier Duval's Leonard Piepoli won the 10th stage of the Tour de France as Australia's Cadel Evans took over the race leade... more -
Mark Cavendish makes Tour de France history
Mark "Cannonball Cav" Cavendish won his second stage of the Tour de France yesterday making him the first British cyclist to win two stages in one Tour since Barry Hoban, 35 years ago.
When asked about how he was dealing with the bad weather, Cannonball Cav shrugged and said "I used to work in a bank when I was younger and to me it doesn't matter if it's raining..."
Wise words indeed. Mark "Cannonball Cav" Cavendish won his second stage of the Tour de France yesterday making him the first British cyclist to... more -
Cyclist Floyd Landis Loses Appeal
Floyd Landis lost his final chance to retain his 2006 Tour de France title Monday, the last step of a long, multimillion-dollar process that poked holes in the anti-doping establishment but ultimately left the cyclist as just another convicted cheater. Floyd Landis lost his final chance to retain his 2006 Tour de France title Monday, the last step of a long, multimillion-dollar proces... more
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Landis Victory
Landis lands the U.S.A. its 8th consective win in the Tour de France.
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High on the Tour de Dope
Salon: This year's chaotic, scandal-ridden Tour de France was the best ever -- because it exposed the truth about cycling today.
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