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STAGE 13: ROAD BIKE ACTION SECOND EDITION NEWS JULY 18, 2008
Road Bike Action & AFP
July 18, 2008
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Basso Deserves Second Chance
Italian cycling star Ivan Basso deserves a second chance of resurrecting his career, the Italian's future manager at the Liquigas team said Friday. Basso's ban will end in late October after he was forced to admit, without having tested positive for banned substances, to being involved in the Spanish doping affair 'Operation Puerto'. The Italian, a former rival of Lance Armstrong on the Tour de France while racing for the Danish CSC team, is due to return to racing at the end of the summer.
Liquigas had hoped to brush off the criticism and welcome one of Italy's most revered riders with open arms, however they have had the worst possible preparation. The acid-green Italian squad are currently one of three teams on the Tour de France to have suspended a rider following a positive test for the banned blood booster EPO (erythropoietin). Liquigas manager, Stefano Zanatta, claims that Beltran's positive test after the first stage will lead to his firing if it is confirmed by a counter-analysis next week. But Zanatta has defended the team's decision to sign Basso, whom he claims is being watched closely by the anti-doping authorities.
"I can understand that people might regard (Liquigas) with suspicion, but we have nothing to hide and Basso has paid the price for his mistakes. Everyone deserves a second chance," Zanatta told AFP prior to the 13th stage. "Right now Basso is training a lot but he is also being visited on a regular basis by the doping controllers. Basso has been tested at home a lot."
On Thursday Tour de France chief Christian Prudhomme left the future of Riccardo Ricco's Saunier Duval team in doubt after declaring he doubted the integrity of the team's manager. And it remains to be seen whether Liquigas, and the Barloworld team of Spaniard Moises Duenas - who has also left the Tour following a positive test for EPO, will even be invited back next year. But as far as Basso is concerned, it shouldn't be a problem. "Basso won't be racing the Tour De France next year," said Zanatta. "He will proably ride the Tour of California in the early season, then perhaps some of the (one-day) classics and Tirreno-Adriatico before preparing for the Giro d'Italia. "The Tour is the biggest race in the world, but for our sponsor the Giro is just as important." However, Basso, Zanatta and Liquigas may be in for a big surprise, as Tour of California owner AEG may ban the Italian from the California event for his involvement with the Puerto affair, just as with Rock Racing's Santi Botero, Oscar Sevilla and Tyler Hamilton this year.
Photo: Roberto Bettini
Olympic Nix For Devolder
According to Team Quick.Step's press officer Alessandro Tegner, Stijn Devolder has decided not to participate in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. The decision was taken Thursday evening after a meeting with the team’s technical staff. Devolder explained "Giving up the Olympics is a difficult, painful decision. Since the beginning of the year I’'ve participated in many races, always at the highest level", said the man who won the 2008 Ronde Van Vlaanderen and Ronde Van Belgie races, "and also expending a lot, both physically and mentally. At this time I want to concentrate 100% on the Tour de France, giving it my best for myself and for the team. The experience I’m achieving in this Tour de France will be very important for me in view of my future participations in this important race.”"
After the finish of the Tour de France Devolder is planning a brief period of rest before entering in the last part of the season. "After the Tour de France I’m only going to race one crit in Dixmude (Belgium) - explained Devolder "and then I’'ll concentrate on recharging my batteries and spending time with my family. I return to racing on August 20th for the Eneco Tour and then start working on a plan to reach the World Championship, a race that means a lot to me. I want to be in Varese to give it my all and have a great race.”"
Photo: Yuzuru Sunada
Phinney Third At Junior Road World Championships TT
Double junior world champion Taylor Phinney of Boulder, Colo.rode his final event Friday at the 2008 UCI Junior Road & Track World Championships, earning a bronze medal in the individual time trial, just eight seconds off the gold medal pace set by Michal Kwiatkowski (POL), Phinney’s third-place finish marked his second trip to the podium this week after winning a gold medal in the 3,000-meter individual pursuit on the track last Saturday. Entering the race as the defending world champion, Phinney recorded a time of 36'29.15" over the 26.8-kilometer course. Kwiatkowski won with a 36'21.21" for the gold medal, while silver medalist Jakob Steigmiller (GER) was at 36'26.54"
Team USA’s Nathan Brown (Covington, Tenn.) placed 12th, 1:13 off the pace, while compatriot Adam Leibovitz (Indianapolis, Ind.) finished 40th out of 66 riders despite losing more than two minutes at the start because of a mechanical. Phinney next turns his attention to next month’s Olympic Games where he’ll compete in the 4,000-meter individual pursuit on Aug. 15.
In the junior women’s time trial, Americans Jerika Hutchinson (Mount Shasta, Calif.) and Sinead Miller (Pittsburgh, Pa.) placed 12th and 20th respectively. Maria Grandt Petersen (DEN) clocked the fastest time to win the gold medal with a mark of 21:03.11 over a distance of 14.1 kilometers. By comparison, Hutchinson finished 1:15.16 off the winner’s pace and Miller was 1:51.45 back.
The 2008 UCI Junior Road & Track World Championships conclude on Sunday with the men’s and women’s road race events. Starting for the U.S. National Team in the men’s race will be Brown, Leibovitz and Jacob Rathe (Portland, Ore.), while Hutchinson and Miller will contest the women’s race.
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