Lance Armstrong Quits

Armstrong Yellow Jersey

Lance Armstrong has said he will not contest the charges brought by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) and has issued a statement citing procedural matters and fatigue as the reason why he’s not going to challenge the agency.

Later today USADA is expected to announce a formal lifetime ban from all Olympic sports and to invalidate all his results obtained since 1998.

Here’s a look at the issues of the day, from Armstrong’s bold statement, to what will happen to the results and prizes, what happens next, whether for the others in the case like Radioshack-Nissan manager Johan Bruyneel or the options for the UCI.

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The Spin: Vuelta Stage 7

Vuelta Stage 7 profile

Yes the show must go on and there’s a stage of the Vuelta on today. However it’s one of those stages that can’t compete with the summit finish excitement, in fact it finishes on a motor racing circuit that’s ideal for the sprinters but less so for TV viewers.

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The Haute Route and The Amateur Boom

Away from the Vuelta and USA Pro Cycling Challenge there’s an event in France called La Haute Route, literally “the High Road”. It’s not a pro race, it’s part holiday tour, part cyclosport and goes across the French Alps. And it’s this that gives us interesting glimpse of the future because it combines several aspects of sport, business, tourism and more into a seemingly winning formula.

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The Spin: Vuelta Stage 6

The race heads to the Pyrenees but there are no high mountains. Instead the stage finishes outside the Fuerte del Rapitán, the Rapitan Fort that sits high on a hill above the town of Jaca. The climb to the fort has not been used before but it has an irregular gradient and steep sections and 13 hairpin bends in the final 3km.

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Questions for Carlos Barredo and the UCI

Carlos Barredo has done nothing wrong and he not allowed to race by his team.

If this sounds odd, you are not alone. Today brings the story of Rabobank’s Carlos Barredo who has had some curious values in his blood passport during a five year period spanning 2007-2011  and earlier this year the UCI asked him to explain the data.  Odder still.

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The Spin: Vuelta Stage 5

Vuelta Stage 5

A circuit race for today’s stage, iit has the air of a Belgian kermesse as the race does eight laps around Logroño. We can expect a sprint finish. Today’s the day for a siesta and if you need to wash you hair, do it today.

Given this, I’ll add a quick take on yesterday’s polemic over Valverde’s crash yesterday.

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The Vuelta, The First Race of the 2013 Season?

Cycling goes big on history. Champions from the past are venerated and today’s races draw prestige from their past and not their past list. At the same time it’s a sport that’s always looking to the future. Make a mistake today and there’s always tomorrow and look at the Vuelta where several riders are there to train for the World Championships, a three week grand tour is a mere training camp for future races.

But there’s a hidden side to this. Namely we have riders wearing the jersey of one team but riding for another. This happens because they have already signed for a new team for 2013 but are racing the Vuelta for their existing team. For now it’s not changed the results but it is easy to envisage a range of scenarios where the results are distorted.

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The Spin: Vuelta Stage 4

Yesterday provided plenty of excitement with seven attacks from Alberto Contador during the short final climb and sprint for the line.

Stage 4 brings a ski station summit finish but it’s a more gradual affair, a road wide enough to ensure visitors can reach the estación de esquí with ease. By contrast it won’t be easy for the riders but that’s because the pace will be high.

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Lance Armstrong’s Lawsuit Dismissed

Judge Sam Sparks

Lance Armstrong’s lawsuit has been dismissed by a judge in Texas. The case saw Lance Armstrong challenge the US Anti-Doping Agency, claiming they could not have jurisdiction over him and therefore any case against him was invalid.

Judge Sam Sparks ruled that whilst USADA’s charging letter was “woefully inadequate”, there was sufficient grounds to expect a just arbitration hearing given the arbitration panel would follow a due process and besides, Armstrong can always appeal there verdict to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

I don’t want to give a running commentary of this case as it’s seemingly never-ending saga. But today is the equivalent of a mountain stage in the stage race that is the USADA investigation and so it’s worth checking the standings.

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A Long Hot Day – Racing in a Heatwave

If only the weather forecast was accurate. Riders in the Vuelta a España can look online or in the newspaper and see temperatures of 32°C (90°F) quoted for today… but these temperatures never reflect the reality of the road cyclist.

Instead the road is far hotter. This imposes a greater strain on riders who must drink many litres during the race. Here’s a look at the real temperatures and the ways to cope with the heat.

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