So that was a pretty good TT. Leipheimer riding like a man possessed, Cadel Evans looking like a wounded beast, and Contador feeding Evans slack the whole way, knowing all along that he had plenty to give. In the end, the Top 3 remained unchanged, but the tight time gaps (:31 between first and third)…
Tag: Dopage
Tour de France '07 – Casar Wins, The Fans' Blind Eye
Say what you will about doping; I think today’s finish was the saddest and most unfair of the entire ’07 Tour. Not that three-time runner up Sandy Casar was an undeserving winner – he bounced back from an early spill, made his turns in the break, and played his speed edge perfectly in the finale….
Tour de France '07 – The Morning After
So finally, the Chicken has been plucked. But when one asks “Why now? Why not ten days ago?”, that’s when the feathers really fly. Rabobank Manager Theo DeRooy says that the Dane claimed to have been training in Mexico all through June. But yesterday, DeRooy heard from an Italian Journalist that Rasmussen was in Italy…
Tour de France '07 – Chicken Flies Again
So – who do you believe least – Alexandre Vinokourov or Lindsay Lohan? After all, each claims to suffer from some persecution; and, to Vino’, at least, the official response is “well, duh”. While I still wouldn’t mind seeing B-samples before I see headlines, the results of Stage 15’s test sure don’t look good for…
Tour de France '07 – No Rest Day for Dopers
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, with all the savagery and suddenness of a Great White, word of another positive test. Can I call it, or what? Kinda gives new meaning to Bobby Julich’s nickname for the about-to-be-disgraced Kazakh, doesn’t it? Throughout my outrage at the suspensions last…
Tour de France '07 – Back From the Dead Again
Entertaining though it may be, I am highly suspicious of Vino’s roller coaster riding. Granted, I’ve never raced a Grand Tour, so I can’t say firsthand how the body reacts, but this up-again, down-again seems physiologically improbable, at least through natural means. A brief look back at some notably inconsistent rides would seem to support…
Tour de France '07 – Contador and The Chicken Fly The Coop
Well, now – Stage 14 (thanks for the typo catch, Chris) was the mountain shakeout I think everyone had wanted to see back in the Alps. Unfortunately, Rasmussen and Contador (chillin’ with Manolo a mere 6 months before that whole Puerto thing…) aren’t exactly poster children for clean cycling, you know? Certainly the French DS’s…
Tour de France '07 – Vino's Revival, Valverde's Collapse
You wanna know why I don’t write race previews? I think this little Evans vs. Kloden piece is a good example. Biggest bit of pre-competition vaporware since Dan vs. Dave. Yes, both Evans and Kloden maintained their positions, but the real stories of the day – Vino rebounding and Rasmussen maintaining – had nothing to…
Tour de France '07 – The Rasmussen Doping Saga To Date
So, nothing against Tom Boonen, but his second win of the Tour was probably the least significant development in the cycling world today. I suppose the best place to begin relating the latest developments is last night, when the Danish Cycling Federation officially dumped Michael Rasmussen (who just happens to be leading the biggest race…
Tour de France '07 – Hunter Starts RSA Account, Moreau Lost in the Mistral
Man, how I love the mainstream press: flat day = boring day, right guys? I suppose it’s ok that they apply the same logic (car starts = car is fine) to auto maintenance, but I really draw the line at fact checking. This BBC story states incorrectly that Patrick Sinkewitz tested positive during the ’07…