- HOT TOPICS:
- An American start for the Giro? •
- 2010 Routes: Giro | California | TdF •
- LA doc guilty on all counts
Wednesday's Eurofile: Petacchi fighting for Tour slot; French await Landis ruling; Kessler suspended
Alessandro Petacchi faces a race against the clock to prove his innocence over an alleged doping offense so that he can take part in the Tour de France, which starts in London on July 7.
The 33-year-old sprinter produced a "non-negative" urine sample when tested by Italian anti-doping officials after the third of his five stage wins at this year's Giro D'Italia at Pinerolo on May 23. The Milram sprint star also won the Giro's points jersey.
His sample showed unusually high levels of Salbutamol, a substance primarily used to treat asthma. Salbutamol is a banned substance but riders suffering from asthma are allowed restricted use of the drug if they can provide a medical certificate, which Petacchi had submitted.
On Tuesday Petacchi's suspicious sample returned from a laboratory of the UCI in Barcelona where it was confirmed the test showed a high level of Salbutamol.
If found guilty of cheating, Petacchi, an asthma sufferer, could be banned from cycling for two years and ProTour teams for another two.
Petacchi has renounced a counter-analysis and has asked to be seen immediately by the Italian Olympic Committee - Italy's governing body for sport - to plead his case in a desperate attempt not to miss the Tour de France.
"What must I do to show that I acted in good faith?" Petacchi asked in an article in Wednesday’s Gazzetta dello Sport.
"Why would I have done anything differently from other times, especially when I carry the responsibility of my team, and my sponsors are always speaking out against doping?
"I may have used the (Salbutamol) spray a bit more than usual, but I haven't done anything illegal."
Petacchi's urine sample taken at Pinerolo was the only one of the five doping tests he gave that showed an excessive amount of Salbutamol.
French doping officials await Landis ruling
Officials from France’s national anti-doping agency said Wednesday that the organization will only rule on Floyd Landis's positive test at last year's Tour de France after a decision has been announced by an American arbitration panel.
France's national anti-doping agency, the AFLD, ruled in February it would temporarily delay its own investigation into Landis on the condition the American cyclist agreed not to race in France in 2007.
Landis is waiting for an American arbitration panel to rule on whether he is guilty of cheating during his 2006 Tour de France victory, when he apparently tested positive for testosterone after stage 17.
The Tour de France will begin in London on July 7 in the absence of the defending champion. After staging a well-publicized defense of his case in May, Landis awaits a ruling which could result in a two-year ban from cycling and another from riding on a ProTour team.
The AFLD was expected to rule on the Landis affair by the end of June at the latest, but its president Pierre Bordry said that there was no reason to rush.
"We're going to wait,” Bodry said. “We can't make any decision until the American arbitration panel comes to its own conclusions."
Bordry admitted he was glad he had come to the "amicable" agreement with the Landis camp, thus avoiding the possibility of the American lining up for the Tour de France as he awaited a ruling on his case.
Kessler suspended
German rider Matthias Kessler was suspended by his Astana team Tuesday after testing positive for excess levels of testosterone last April.
"This result is inexplicable and I will immediately ask for a second assessment," Kessler said in a statement released by the team.
Astana officials said they had been informed by the UCI about the results of an out-of-competition test in Charleroi, Belgium, on April 24.
Under international rules, Kessler has five days to ask for tests on his B sample.
"Until the result of this B-analysis, Matthias Kessler is suspended by the team with immediate effect," a statement released by Astana said.
The 28-year-old Kessler won the third stage of last year's Tour de France riding for T-Mobile.
Millar and Mayo lead Saunier Duval Tour squad
Britain's David Millar and Spaniard Iban Mayo will spearhead Saunier Duval team's bid at on the Tour de France, which begins with a 7.9km prologue in London on July 7.
Scottish time trial specialist Millar returned to cycling from a doping ban in time to race the Tour last year, and this year is among the favorites to pull on the first yellow jersey of the race after the opening day prologue.
Mayo, who won the stage to Alpe d'Huez in 2003 while racing with Euskaltel, will be looking to finish the race - preferably in the top 20 – having abandoned on stage 11 last year and finishing 60th in 2005.
Saunier Duval for Tour de FranceJose Angel Gomez Marchante (Sp)Fran Ventoso (Sp)Iban Mayo (Sp)David de la Fuente (Sp)Juan Jose Cobo (Sp)Iker Camano (Sp)Ruben Lobato (Sp)Christophe Rinero (F)David Millar (GB)Reserve RidersDavid Canada (Sp)Angel Litu Gomez (Sp)Jesus del Nero (Sp)
