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Fresh start New season, same old problems for tarnished sport
PARIS (Reuters) -- A new season of doubts and suspicion begins Tuesday for cycling, a sport still in shock after the revelations of the Festina doping trial and yet to clear its name once and for all. Hein Verbruggen, president of the International Cycling Union (UCI), pledged to introduce new anti-doping measures this season after being criticized by the Festina trial judge. A new method to detect EPO -- the banned hormone erythropoietin -- will be put into place, combining advances by French and Australian scientists. "I'm not prepared to enter into details but we are proposing the use of measures which will enable us to fight effectively against EPO," he said. Such a system was tried at the Sydney Olympics but no positive case was revealed. The Grand Prix d'Ouverture, the first race of the season taking place near Marseille on Tuesday, will start without cycling superstar Lance Armstrong. The double Tour de France reigning champion has decided to stay away from France as much as possible before the Tour to avoid a French press he finds biased against him. Armstrong to shun France His U.S. Postal team is currently being investigated by a French judge on doping allegations. The American squad is suspected of taking products containing calf blood during last year's Tour but it has denied any wrongdoing. The constant allegations raised by French media over Armstrong's performances have led the American to move base from the French Riviera to Spain. "We are a 100 percent confident that the results (to test for illegal substances) will be negative," said Armstrong. "I do think that doping allegations should be followed through (...) The good news is that we will have a chance to clear our name and that of the whole sport," he added. The star of the Grand Prix d'Ouverture will be Frenchman Laurent Jalabert, now riding for the new Danish team CSC-World On Line, managed by former Tour winner Bjarne Riis. Its sponsors have also pledged to hit hard at riders who fail dope tests. But despite the promises and decisions to crack down on drugs, the doping situation is far from perfect. The powerful Spanish team ONCE has replaced Jalabert by Spanish champion Alvaro Gonzalez-Galdeano and Czech hopeful Jan Hruska, but both were suspended soon after signing for failing dope tests. Italian superstar Marco Pantani, the only man to really challenge Armstrong in the last Tour, has been charged by an Italian judge probing his suspension from the 1999 Giro for failing a blood test. "I'm determined to fight on and prove that I'm still the same rider as the 11-year-old who started to win races," the world's best climber said. Ullrich has learnt a lesson The cycling circuit will also resume without Frenchman Richard Virenque, who admitted taking drugs during the Festina trial. The Frenchman is without a team after being suspended for nine months. Olympic road champion Jan Ullrich will be closely watched this season as he apparently decided to prepare better and earlier in the season to avoid starting the Tour off-form. The German rider, arguably the most gifted man in the bunch, will not try his luck at one-day classics, even though his victory in Sydney proved he had the talent to win some. Belgian Franck Vandenbroucke, dropped by his Cofidis team for lack of results, is also hoping to revive his career in Italy with the Lampre-Daikin team. The World Cup season should star world champion Romans Vainsteins, who still has to confirm his world crown, and veterans Michele Bartoli and Belgian Johan Museeuw. In stage races, all eyes will be on Britain's David Millar, the first leader of last year's Tour, who should fulfil some of his promise this season.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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