Tour de France 2007

Might as well have one bucket thread to capture all of this stuff.

It seems that Basso has just been suspended by Discovery and won't be taking part in the tour this year... last years drug scandal rolls on:

Discovery Channel suspend Basso
Tue 24 Apr, 06:22 PM

PARIS (AFP) - Italian cycling star Ivan Basso has been suspended by his team, Discovery Channel, as Italian authorities investigate his role in the 'Operation Puerto' doping affair in Spain.

Basso, who was suspended by his former team CSC due to his alleged role in the affair prior to the 2006 Tour de France, has the full support of Discovery although his future in the sport may now be severely compromised.

The Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) has asked Basso to appear before an anti-doping prosecutor on May 2, where he could be asked to provide a DNA sample to prove his innocence.

Basso was kicked off the Tour by CSC in 2006 after it was revealed that he and German Jan Ullrich, formerly of T-Mobile, were among dozens of cyclists to have links with Spanish doctor Eufemiano Fuentes.

Police uncovered bags of blood and doping products on a raid on Fuentes' laboratory in Madrid, along with codenames of cyclists and documents which suggested the doctor had been paid to manipulate and store blood.

On Wednesday a Spanish magazine said the Spanish authorities are now ready to send the blood allegedly belonging to Basso to the Italian authorities.

Recently, a DNA sample from former Tour de France winner Ullrich matched blood allegedly belonging to the German found in Fuentes' laboratory.

The Italian authorities, including CONI, initially cleared Basso of any wrongdoing last autumn claiming there was not enough evidence to sanction the reigning Tour of Italy champion.

However their decision to act in the wake of a series of damaging revelations to have appeared in both the Spanish and French press has left Basso's future in limbo.

A statement by Discovery Channel's management company, Tailwind Sports, said: "Team management at Tailwind Sports has requested that Italian rider Ivan Basso not compete pending further information in a new investigation coming out of Italy.

"Consistent with the teams stated position on this issue, upon notification of the new investigation opened in Italy, General Manager Bill Stapleton and Sports Director Johan Bruyneel will not allow Basso to race pending further information.

"We continue to stand behind Ivan and intend to cooperate with all parties involved until there is closure. It is unfortunate that this is now occurring, however, I have spoke to Ivan and although frustrated he agrees and understands with the decision we have taken."

The news will be a huge blow to Basso, who was deprived of racing the Tour de France last year when he had a great chance of succeeding retired seven-time winner Lance Armstrong.

After last year's pre-race debacle, which led to the suspension of 13 riders in total, Tour de France chiefs recently declared they will not tolerate a repeat when the race kicks off in London on July 7.

Tour de France chief Christian Prudhomme said that the recent developments on Ullrich had been decisive for them, and added: "Naturally, the level of suspicion on the riders implicated has been pushed up a notch.

"The sport just cannot allow cyclists who are still implicated in this affair to start the Tour de France if suspicion still hangs over them."

Basso's participation in the Tour of Italy, from May 12 till June 3, is also under doubt, according to race director Angelo Zomegnan.

He told La Gazzetta dello Sport: "As it stands his participation in the Giro d'Italia will be difficult.

"To live under suspicion is frightening and I say that without any rhetoric. I hope that the truth comes out as soon as possible because cycling can't stand stress like

Hasn't the fact that he's not gonna start the TdF been in the news for a couple of weeks?

Wonder if Discovery are beginning to regret buying him? Or will be still be 'worth it' if he wins the Giro again.

Also when does Discoverys sponsership deal end?

allyb Wonder if Discovery are beginning to regret buying him? Or will be still be 'worth it' if he wins the Giro again.

That's the news. It looks like the Giro is off the table as well as the investigation is now in Italy.

In the TdF warm-up category Moving Target let us know about a courier race:
http://www.movingtargetzine.com/article/courier-race-at-smithfield-nocturne

The site for this as details come out is:
http://www.smithfieldnocturne.co.uk/

A summary:

The Smithfield Nocturne is set to be the premier event in advance of the Tour de France coming to London. Held around the historic Smithfield Market on Saturday 23rd June it will be the official event for the Corporation of London’s promotion of the TDF. With historic bikes, ProTour cyclists, an elite criterium and a quintessentially British feel it will be an amazing night for the 5000 people expected to attend.

The evening will start with a parade by local school children which will be followed by a rather unique messenger race which will incorporate teams from some of London’s best know courier firms. The messengers will take part in a delivery and pick up challenge with packages and points around the route that need to be collected and signed off. With lots of zig-zagging and stopping and starting it is expected to be a real crowd pleaser and a fiercely competitive event!

Following our messenger race we will be featuring a “Le Mans Start” folding bike race – wherein competitors in full overalls will wait 15m away from their folded bikes, on the drop of the British Flag the competitors will run to their steeds, build them and set off on a 5 lap dash. We hope this will provide much amusement for competitors and spectators alike.

Our “All Star Challenge” will be exactly that – 20 famous faces lining up to sprint round the highly technical course. We will be inviting a variety of celebrities from old Tour de France cyclists, to news readers and TV celebrities to models and industry “faces”.

The evening will finish with the race “proper”. An elite criterium that will feature some of the UK’s very best cyclists, the 40km race will be technical, fast and very tough. To spice things up for the domestic riders we will be bringing in cyclists who will, two weeks later, be on the Tour de France Start ramp in Westminster. Already confirmed we have David Millar, one of the hot favourites to take the yellow jersey on the 7th July.

I'm off to see Jarvis Cocker that night... so no Nocturne for me, but it looks like a pretty great evening. The messenger race and the crit would be the highlights in my book. Watching Elites race crits is pretty impressive and not all of them dope ;)

can fakengers enter the messenger race?
funny cause I used to live ON Smithfield Market, and always thought it would be a good spot for a checkpoint involving a few laps during an alleycat.

it'll all be staged, the "messengers" will be drama students and actors who've never ridden bikes before.
they'll have helmets at jaunty angles, skater's knee and elbow pads, henna tattoos and stick-on beards

le car can fakengers enter the messenger race?

Depends how good they are at faking it I suppose

Is anyone stewarding for the Grand Depart? I've just booked myself in at a briefing session with the hope of earning an "exclusive TdF goodybag". I'm hoping it's going to be full of testosterone and someone else's clean blood.

le car can fakengers enter the messenger race?
funny cause I used to live ON Smithfield Market, and always thought it would be a good spot for a checkpoint involving a few laps during an alleycat.

meat farmer joe alleycat when through it..

Is that some sort of code that non-messengers don't get? Sounds like a random selection of words to me.

Did you have a good birthday?

"meat farmer joe" was the name of an alleycat that went through smithfields...

yeah it was cool, just got some parts for the rensho, kashimax saddle, nitto seatpost and stem.. oooh

Oh I see. Can't wait to see it, hope the kashimax doesn't disagree with your backside. I've heard it's like being raped by a 15mm spanner.

you'd know about that wouldn't you tom..

lovely.

haaaaa

This morning a I saw a team doing a traing circuit going over the river lea in east London. First sighting for me.

I just finished reading a book entitled 'Lance Armstrong's War'

It was a brilliant book about the 2004 tour

I learn't loads of stuff about the Tour and riding in the Tour

Things like the riders consume 9000 calories each day

The equivalent to eating 28 hamburgers each day

I was so intrigued I wanted to know more

So I googled

Ty Hamilton, Floyd Landis, Jan Ullrich

one by one nearly all the names I read about in this book

people that come across as heros becuse they are so bloody tough

nearly all of them have been done for doping

kinda left me feeling a little deflated

That sucks, I don't think you should tarnish all riders with the same brush though. a lot of professional spots are full of some scandle or another. It should still be a amazing to watch. I have never seen a big road race close up, only little local club ones I am well excited.

i find it really hard as well with all these doping stories coming out. it's getting hard and harder to defend professional cycling to my non-cycling friends. when they stripped rijs of his title people were asking about who it would be given to. 2nd place Ulrich, 3rd Virenque, 4th Defaux. all banned for doping!

I read a book on the history of the tour recently and that kind of opened by eyes. the fact that the TdF is so freaking hardcore has contributed to a culture of doping. Back in the 60's Anquetil's said how do they expect us to race "on mineral water alone". its just people are only now being caught.

anyway, this year will probably be the cleanest yet. can't fucking wait!

You might also wanna check out:
Rough Ride by Paul Kimmage
Breaking the Chain by Willy Voet (translated)

I just ordered another four cycling books (can't even remember what they are!!) and I know one is about Robert Millar, which I'm sure will focus heavily on his ban, the how's and why's etc. I dunno, I love the whole scandal - why defend it?

Person: "All cyclists take drugs"
Me: "And?"

You can get into the facts: hardest sporting event, other sports are barely tested compared to cycling, paid athletes as opposed to amatuers, but is it worth it?
Just tell 'em "yep, they all take drugs, that's why they're so fast. I'm off to watch them race, bye!"

I'm with hippy... all cyclists take drugs... and so what? My view... they still have to climb mountains, they still have cobbles to contend with, they still have to sprint, they still have thousands of kilometres to ride. The drugs help them do that, because it's expecting too much to think that they can do that each day, and recover the speed that they do, without the drugs. Do they take drugs? Yeah... but so what... they still have to get on those bikes and pedal their asses off.

If they all do it then the playing field's level anyway.

Unless some do it better ;)

What are your thoughts on EPO and amphetamine use for a 20k commute?
I say I don't need the gear but Mum keeps insisting..

I thought amphetamines compromised the rider's ability to to in oxygen?

I can't take the sport seriously because of the drug problem. saying the tour is so hard you have to take drugs is bollocks, if the tour was drug free there would still be a spectacle and a race but the overall times would be slower.
i'll be watching the 'event' and hopefully enjoying the experience but as a competitive sport it has no credibility IMHO.