London Fixed-gear and Single-speed

Bob Stapleton is lurking and making noises about cycling sponsorship again.

Yes. But Cancellara rode for Leferve, Ferretti, Riis and then Bruyneel and has a long association with Luigi Cecchini. I don't know whether he has doped or not but the company he has kept would suggest he has.

There are very few degrees of separation between a rider and a doping connection of course. Sky need to clean house yes, firing Yates, Rogers and possibly Julich would be a fucking good start. Or at least do something like Matt White did. Clinging to a 'it wasn't me, I didn't see nothing honest' like Yates is futile in the current climate: fess up, pay your dues and perhaps the sport can move forward

Sky would have been more sensible to adopt an approach similar to Slipstream, rather than this ridiculous 'zero tolerance' policy.

agreed, I don't think Sky are doping but they have managed to make an unholy mess of their PR

It is quite difficult to find a DS that doesn't have a connection to doping, given the majority are riders from the last 20 years.

cavendish confirmed for quick step next year
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/cave...arma-quickstep

Rabobank are pulling out of their team sponsorship, after 17 years, citing the USADA report as the reason.

They've stood idly by whilst their team dopes to the gills, then finally enact a management change to clean up the team, promote young, clean Dutch cyclists, extend their sponsorship to a women's team and now do this.

Cunts.

Seems they are pulling exposure, not the sponsorship, so the money remains until the end of the contract.

They are still cunts though.

+1

Great news for cav and the team. Omega-Pharma QuickSprint.

Shame about rabobank, the dutch will be fuming. Hugh knock back for the bank in dutch countries now, expect huge repercussions for their business.

The management may well foresee further scandal.

As I Dutch person, Rabobank's announcement has hit me pretty hard.
I partly see where they're coming from, but to withdraw support now (or at least after next year) is going hit the new generation of clean riders very hard. Massive massive shame.

To make a point, and to stop myself from further rage, I will change over my bank account to a different bank.

Skoda Netherlands also dropped Rabo team but will continue with races. They'd be a huge loss to Euro cycling sponsorship.

To be fair to Rabobank they're still funding the team through 2013 and continuing support cross and youth cycling. As pointed out here they're paying to not be on the team jersey.

^ that's only because they can't get out of the contract. They would drop all funding as well if they could...

I suppose as owners they could have fought/settled/paid-up on individual contracts closing the team overnight. That wouldn't have been a PR shitstorm though.

An alternative interpretation is: they kept funding a team for 17 years through all the scandals when other sponsors pulled out and now this is the final straw. They cannot do any more for pro-cycling.

Or simply rats deserting the sinking ship

Tour route is out.

Night time finish, lapping around the arc will be amazing! Will definitely go!

60km of individual tt and plenty of mountains in the last few days. Hope foomedog gets his shot and can smash it.

No-needle policy, no?

Alex Dowsett off to Movistar.

anything to do with his unfortunate comments about Lance Armstrong?

He's a month older than me, bastard.

Intertube's gone nuts but @inrng says deal was done months back.

@laurenstendam - "That's what I like about those fixed bikes. No mantainance for one year, but still ready to go!"



Laurens Ten Dam's fixie skidder conversion.

:)

That's awesome.

Valverde need someone to hold his blood bags?

Will rpm have to return his burger?

Ned Boulting collared Dowsett after Revolution; he wants to ride a GT and he knows he won't get a chance at Sky now they are signing climbing phenoms younger than him.

http://audioboo.fm/boos/1033071-alex-dowsett-movistar

Thoughts....

Fresh evidence of Vinokourov Liege bribe.

http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/...ege-bribe.html

Wouldn't the doping topic be a better place to put this?

leave vino alone

For bribery?

It's been happening since forever at every level of racing.

Bullshit - I've never once been offered money to lose a race...

Oh hang on I've never actualy been in a position to win one come to think of it.

As you were...

Guess that makes it ok then.

Anyone want to merge this into the doping thread?

Just because there have always been lying cheaters out there doesn't reduce them to anything other than what they are: lying cheaters.

I'm not saying Vino is, but it's sounds like he's got some allegations worth responding to.

Not sure it should be merged with the doping thread - it's only tangentially related to doping. This is a bribery case uncovered by a doping investigation. As a librarian and indexer I remain a (powerless) authority on the topic.

Never underestimate the allure of the DFL prize.

don't worry the UCI come down heavily on anyone bringing the sport into disrepute
he'll get his comeuppance

clubman

Professional Olympics?

Quote:
Originally Posted by General Lucifer
Landis has surfaced to praise Vino's victory. Not really the ideal chappie to be patting you on the back on the occasion. He said:


Thanks, Landis. That really helps.(End Quote)




I’m really glad Vinokourov won.

His victory goes a long way towards proving that the British Olympic authorities were right to want to exclude convicted dopers.

I make no accusation against Vino and his preparation for this race. Very possibly he now has the zeal for honesty of a truly reformed sinner, but as some one who has been hearing opinions about bike racing for some decades I know for certain there are going to be a very large number of people asking “What was he on?”

Without even considering how long it ought to take for a rider to recover from the Tour de France (three weeks racing = lowered haematocrit level), just think about what we know:

• Here’s a rider at the very end of his career who is not really going to be deterred by the possibility of a ban, but who obviously wanted to go out with a bang.
• He’s a former client of the sulphurous Michele Ferrari.
• He has been convicted of doping.
• We will assume he passed the dope test this time, but we know that tests are not necessarily infallible and that one of the purposes of expensive medical advice is to find loopholes.

I’m not at all clear what is meant by the term ‘Olympic spirit’ but I am certain the concept is damaged by having the games open to suspicion of cheating. I make no complaint here against Vinokourov, nor against the organisers of the London Games: it is the IOC, forcing the acceptance of convicted dopers, who are at fault here.

I’d like to go one step further than saying convicted dopers should not be allowed to compete in the Olympics: I want the games to revert to amateur status. For me professional sport and dodgy practices inevitably go hand in hand. “I could’a been a contender, Charlie, but all I got was a one way ticket to Palookaville.” I’ve enjoyed following professional bike racing, but I’ve never expected it to be pure: “Do they think we do this on Evian Water?” (J. Anquetil).

In my mind, this result shows that if we want to idealise sport it has to be amateur.

I tipped Kolobnev to win that race on the pro-cycling season thread on here. I think Vino should bung me a tenner or something.

Out of the blue a new British registered womens cycling team Honda-DTPC with the Olympic pursuiters, Laura Trott, Elinor Barker and Giorgia Bronzini with sponsorship from Bradley Wiggins' foundation.

The bit about further naming rights still being negotiated with a "UK based global company" maybe Sky?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012...iggins-cycling

Dream Team Pro Cycling isn't the best name really..

^^ good news in pro cycling.

wooop.

that DTPC will get ditched once they have a proper sponsor. Shame they didn't get Pooley but a very impressive line up otherwise

Been in the works for a while, no?
Maybe I remember reading wrong.
But bloody good news.

Bradley Wiggins has been knocked off his bike by a van while out training - news from twitter is he's got broken ribs, wrist, arm injuries. He's in hospital.

I'll pass on news as I find it....

Posted the guardian article in General.