Leaked UCI Documents

According to leaked memos seen by Belgian newspaper Het Nieuwsblad Lance Armstrong tested positive four times in the 1999 Tour de France. Sounds dramatic, no?

Only if parts of the media are reporting this as news (here, here or here) it turns out the UCI mentioned all of this last year in a press release. But whilst news of Armstrong’s positive test is stale as a baguette baked months ago, there’s some fresh insight because the memos appear to show the UCI positioning itself to explain past actions. Rather than analysing what went wrong the memos appear to be trying to present excuses for significant lapses in the UCI’s anti-doping procedures.

The same with the leaked information about Armstrong’s 2001 Tour de Suisse EPO tests. Whilst the media (ici) says there was no “cover-up” of a positive test there are still big questions that have yet to be answered.

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Flèche Wallonne Preview

It might be a midweek race but the Flèche Wallonne is big classic thanks its history and famous finish. The race heads across the Belgian Ardennes before tackling the vicious Mur de Huy with a gradient that can reach 26%.

Here’s the preview for Wednesday’s race and note the late finish on TV mentioned below.

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Should Luis León Sánchez Be Suspended?

Luis León Sánchez has been on “non-active status” since February after his team started an investigation into media reports he was linked to Dr Fuentes.

Months later and he’s taking his Blanco Pro Cycling team to the UCI to try and settle the matter of his informal suspension. The issue goes beyond this rider and shows us how different teams are struggling with ethical issues.

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Giro del Trentino Preview

A warm-up for the Giro d’Italia, this race marks a turning point in the season when the roads for the high mountains. A key test of form and teamwork ahead of the season’s first grand tour, it’s an exciting race with some tough climbs.

Here’s a preview with the stages, climbs, riders and if you’re planning to watch it live on TV note the early finish each day.

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The Myth of Raymond Poulidor

Raymond Poulidor

Raymond Poulidor is 77 today. The Frenchman has two nicknames “Pou-Pou” and “The Eternal Second” and unfortunately for him his Wikipedia entry begins ” ‘Pou-Pou’ redirects here. For other uses, see Poo-poo (disambiguation)”. But two names are linked as Poupou was a term of affection for an underdog, a rider who finished second so often that he won fame and fortune for losing.

But the more I read about him, the more he seems to be a misunderstood rider whose myths and simple labels mask the truth of an efficient and calculating rider.

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The Moment The Race Was Won: Amstel Gold Race

With 7km to go Roman Kreuziger ditches his breakaway companions to ride away for a solo win in the Amstel Gold Race. We expected a Slovak and got a Czech.

In a season of classics so far dominated by the favourites, this was a surprise result and a reward for attacking riding.

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Roads to Ride: Col du Tourmalet

Col du Tourmalet

As the latest in the series to explore the famous roads of cycling, here is the Col du Tourmalet in the French Pyrenees. The idea is to discover the road and its place in the world, whether as part of cycling’s history or to look at the route on a day without racing and it is open to all.

The Col du Tourmalet is a legendary place for cycling, steeped in history and steep in slope. The first climb above 2,000 metres ever used for a race and with 75 appearances in the race, the most used climb of the Tour de France.

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The Spin: Amstel Gold Race Preview

Amstel Gold Race

Giant crowds, 34 climbs and a brewery as race sponsor, what’s not to like about the Amstel Gold Race?

This is a different race to the ones we’ve seen in recent weeks. Born in 1966 it is the newest of the spring classics and one defined by suburban roads rather than medieval farm tracks. It marks a change in the season where stage race specialists compete alongside one day specialists. But some things remain constant: Peter Sagan is riding and it’s hard to look beyond him.

Here’s the preview with the riders, the route, the TV timings, beer, weather and more.

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Forbidden Races Allowed…

…but is Your Bike UCI-approved?

A follow up to Monday’s piece about “forbidden races” where the UCI was instructing all national federations to insist on a rule that bans licence holders from unsanctioned events.

The UCI has now issued a press release saying it will not enforce the rule this year but it’s coming 2014. But this doesn’t solve the issue, it probably makes things worse.

The idea of having rules that people are told to ignore by press release is a novel one. But this isn’t the only rule that was meant to apply to everyone but gets ignored. For example a recent rule requires all UCI licence holders to use approved bikes… only it’s another example of a rule that nearly everyone ignores.

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The Kaykov Case: Black Market Drug Detected

When the news came out about Valery Kaykov this morning I couldn’t be bothered to mention it in a tweet. Doping news can crowd out other stories to the point where if one rider tests positive then it can be the only mention they get. Kaykov’s had some success as a track racer but I’d not covered his success in the velodrome nor his wins on the road either so why mentioned he’d tested positive?

Only this has changed because the substance he’s been caught with is GW501516, a drug so dangerous that WADA issued an unprecedented alert last month.

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