Thursday, October 25, 2007

Cycling

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/26102007/58/tour-de-france-balanced-route-2008-tour.htmlThe Tour de France will have revamped rules and a slightly less mountainous but hopefully more exciting course in 2008, organizers announced on Thursday, looking to inject fresh enthusiasm into cycling's doping-battered showcase race. After the drug problems of the past two Tours, riders will cross a geographical high in 2008, scaling Europe's highest mountain pass _ the 9,193-foot Col de la Bonette-Restefond. Last climbed by the Tour in 1993, it is one of 19 major mountain passes that riders will face, two fewer than in this year's race. And for the first time since 1967, the race will start with a full road stage -- 121 miles from Brest to Plumelec in Brittany _ instead of an opening individual time-trial race against the clock that had become traditional. The goal is to give more riders, and not just time-trial experts, the chance to compete for the race lead and its coveted yellow jersey from the very start.

Adding further unpredictability to the mix, organizers have done away with time bonuses that were awarded to the fastest finishers each day and those who were among the first at other fixed points along the route. That rule change, especially in the high mountains which often open up large time gaps between riders, could lead to a tighter and more suspenseful and open Tour. The July 5-27 Tour will cover 2,200 miles, with 21 stages and two rest days. The first of two time trials will come on Day 4. The second comes on the penultimate day, to fix the finishing order before the race concludes with its habitual processional final ride to the Champs-Elysees in Paris, when the winner often sips champagne in the saddle as he rides.

Cleared of doping during the 2007 Tour de France, Spanish cyclist Iban Mayo is considering legal action against the International Cycling Union. "I'm still worked up about it all, but it's a possibility," Mayo said after the Spanish cycling federation announced Monday that Mayo's backup "B" sample test came back negative. In July, Mayo's Saunier-Duval team was told by cycling's governing body that he tested positive for the blood-boosting drug EPO. But the Spanish federation said there had been a mistake with the first sample taken from the rider. The 30-year-old Mayo, who finished 16th in the Tour, faced a minimum two-year suspension if found guilty of doping. He was suspended without pay while his team awaited the results on his "B" sample. In June, Mayo was suspected of having failed a test for testosterone during the Italian Giro but was later cleared by the UCI.

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