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Seven years, seven wins, some 17,000 miles of road covered since...and we're right back where we started.A French newspaper is charging Lance Armstrong with doping.Again.He's denying it.Again.And the rest of the world is choosing up sides.Again.I have no idea whether Armstrong used the blood-boosting drug EPO towin his first Tour de France in 1999, despite having been on hand for thatone and each of the last three. And you could argue that neither does L'Equipe,the leading French sports daily, despite devoting four pages Tuesday tothat allegation, bolstered by pictures, an

Upon hearing the news of a new round of doping allegations against Lance Armstrong, Jan Ullrich – finishing up the Tour of Germany – reacted with typical reserve and caution. Should the allegations turn out to be true, Ullrich said, he would be “very disappointed” in Armstrong, hastily adding, however, that this was not the first time French media have attempted to discredit the seven-time Tour de France winner. Ullrich said he remains skeptical of the allegations outlined in Tuesday’s edition of L’Equipe. While Germany’s top cycling star remained somewhat reticent, one of the country’s

Our man in Australia, Rupert Guinness, reported in Wednesday’s edition of The Daily Telegraph that Stuart O’Grady will refuse to ride in support of Aussie team captain Robbie McEwen in the upcoming world championships. In an exclusive interview with Guinness, O’Grady said the rift between McEwen and longtime rival O’Grady is too wide to erase in time for the Madrid world title race, one ideally suited for McEwen’s brash style. The pair’s head-butting incident at the end of the third stage of the 2005 Tour de France - when McEwen was relegated for dangerous sprinting which scuttled his chances

Leblanc: We're so tired of doping

Buddies? Not on your life.

Lance Armstrong has vigorously denied allegations outlined in Tuesday’s edition of the French sports daily L’Equipe charging that the seven-time Tour de France champion used the performance-enhancing drug EPO to help him achieve his first Tour victory in 1999. "Yet again, a European newspaper has reported that I have tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs," Armstrong said in a statement on www.lancearmstrong.com.

World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) president Dick Pound said Tuesday the agency is looking into the latest doping claims against seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong. The American cycling legend denied a report in Tuesday's French sports newspaper L'Equipe saying urine samples taken from Armstrong in 1999 tested positive for the banned substance EPO when subjected to testing unavailable six years ago. "It's a pretty serious story, if it is true," Pound told AFP. "We have not decided what we would do because I have not looked at all the details. "We will look at the

Gerolsteiner’s Levi Leipheimer won the 2005 Tour of Germany on Tuesday after holding the yellow jersey for the final five stages. Italian Daniele Bennati (Lampre) won the 168km final stage from Bad Kreuznach to the former West German capital of Bonn to register his third stage victory but Leipheimer took the overall Tour win. "This is the biggest success of my career," said the American. "This race has matured and is now one of the top three races so I am overjoyed to win it. "It is also a great day for the team and we have proved that we are the strongest team here." Leipheimer, sixth in

Danielson, Barry ready for VueltaTom Danielson is quietly confident going into Saturday’s start of the 2005 Vuelta a España in Granada. The Discovery Channel rider has been intensely preparing for the three-week Spanish tour, but doesn’t want to create too much of a stir ahead of his second three-week tour start of his career. “I don’t want to say too much. It will be my first Vuelta,” Danielson told VeloNews last week. “I’ve worked really hard. I’m ready to do a good race.” Danielson is part of the nine-man roster confirmed by the team for the Spanish tour it won in 2003 with Roberto Heras.

French sports daily L'Equipe dropped a four-page bombshell on the cycling world Tuesday, publishing what it claimed was “irrefutable evidence” that Lance Armstrong used EPO in achieving at least his first of seven Tour de France wins. In winning, in 1999, the first of his seven Tours of France, Lance Armstrong had consumed EPO," says the second paragraph of editorial introduction to the paper's exclusive story, which begins on the front page. "After a long, detailed and rigorous work of investigation, L'Equipe has published, today, the proof." L’Equipe printed photos of the

The director of Canada’s top anti-doping laboratory on Tuesday said she was "very surprised" over doping allegations raised in a four-page story in the French sports daily L’Equipe. Doctor Christiane Ayotte, director of the Doping Control Laboratory at Montreal’s Institut National de la Recherché Scientifique, said that the L’Equipe story, outlining charges that seven-time Tour de France winner had used EPO at the 1999 edition of the race, raised several important scientific and ethical questions, beginning with the assertion that France’s anti-doping lab had tested frozen urine samples five

Armstrong denies charges outlined in Tuesday's L'Equipe

Ullrich congratulates Leipheimer

Bennati scores his third stage win

Today's L'Equipe

Today's L'Equipe

Today's L'Equipe

Dr. Christiane Ayotte, Doping Control director at Canada's Institut National de la Recherché Scientifique

The latest Photo Gallery in our continuing photo contest has now been posted for your viewing pleasure. After reviewing a host of very notable submissions, we Robert Mueller’s “Col de Marie Blanque TDF 05” to be the winner of our most recent contest. Congratulations, Robert! You win a copy of Graham Watson's "Landscapes of Cycling." A new winner also signals a new contest, so take a quick look at our latest gallery, decide what you like and let us know what you think by dropping a note to Rosters@InsideInc.com. Just remember we’ll be posting more later on in the week. Earlier Galleries:

The Mailbag is a regular feature on VeloNews.com. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your full name and home town. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.Put a muzzle on O'GradyDear Editor,It is currently 0448 in Baghdad, Iraq, and I’m writing to tell youhow disturbing and deeply offensive that I found this article by PatrickO’Grady.This year during this year's Tour de France, I looked to VeloNewsto stay current on the news, and of

T-Mobile's Jan Ullrich won the eighth stage of the Tour of Germany, 31.1km time trial from Ludwigshafen to Weinheim, on Monday, but American Levi Leipheimer managed to preserve his hold on the overall lead, conceding 54 seconds to the German. The T-Mobile team leader Ullrich recorded a winning time of 36 minutes and 56 seconds to finish 11 seconds ahead of American Bobby Julich (CSC) and 54 seconds up on Leipheimer. Leipheimer, sixth in this year's Tour de France, retains the yellow jersey heading into Tuesday's 168km final stage run from Bad Kreuznach to Bonn. Ullrich is now

Gilberto Simoni will start the Vuelta a España after all. Last week, the two-time Giro d’Italia was doubtful about his Vuelta start after struggling to keep up in the Tour of Portugal. Simoni, however, has found the motivation to return to the season’s final grand tour. “The Vuelta is a unique course, the stages are short and nervous with a lot of movement,” Simoni said. “The competition is hard for the climbers because the Spanish riders are natural-born climbers and they want to do well at home.” Simoni has had good luck at the Vuelta, winning stages in 2000 and 2001. The 33-year-old

It's one of those images that will remain with cycling fans for years,the remarkable shot of a young snow-covered Andy Hampsten cresting theGavia Pass in the epic ride that took him to an overall victory in the1988 Giro d'Italia.Previouslyissued by Cinelli, Sergio Penazzo's memorable photograph has been reworkedin a stunning new version by the graphics team at Hampsten Cycles.The image has been digitally sharpened and enhanced, then printed oncover (heavy) weight paper on a six-color, 40" Heidelberg press using astochastic transferal process. No expense was spared to bring you

PRESS RELEASE: Dr. Michael Ross presents at Lombardi Sports8/22/05Boulder, CO—Michael J. Ross, M.D., team physician for JitteryJoe’s-Kalahari and race doctor for the U.S. Pro Tour, will give a presentationon the science of cycling at Lombardi Sports on Saturday, September 3rdat 1:00 p.m., one day before the start of the San Francisco Grand Prix.Dr. Ross will talk to cyclists about how to tailor workouts to theirown unique physiology and then answer questions after the presentation.Ross will also sign copies of his new book, Maximum Performance for Cyclists,on sale at Lombardi Sports for

Col de Marie Blanque TDF 05

Ullrich did what he could...

... and Leipheimer did what he had to.

PRESS RELEASE - Hampsten signs Gavia posters for Phinney Foundation

Australian rider Cadel Evans (Davitamon-Lotto) won the 177.7-kilometer seventh stage of the Tour of Germany from Singen to Feldberg on Sunday. Gerolsteiner's Levi Leipheimer, sixth in this year's Tour de France, retains the yellow jersey after the American finished fourth in Sunday's stage. In rain-soaked conditions Evans, eighth in this year's Tour de France, finished nine seconds ahead of Swiss rider Fabian Jeker and German Jorg Jaschke who recorded the same time. The Gerolsteiner rider has a 33 second lead over Austrian team-mate Georg Totschnig with Evans 48 seconds

It’s crazy how easily the schedule of a bike racer can be changed. We all want to know our race schedule at the beginning of the year so our training can be laid out perfectly, but I don’t think much is guaranteed in this sport. Last Tuesday I went for an 80-kilometer ride in the morning and then raced track in the evening. Once I was home from racing and getting ready for bed, I got a call from another team here in Switzerland, Team-Next 125 . They were headed to Germany the following day for a stage race, but were short on riders. Most of my own team, Team Andeer Interflon Scott would be

The short track cross-country closed out the XC program Sunday afternoon at the NORBA National Series event Snowshoe Mountain, West Virginia, with Seamus McGrath (Haro) and Katerina Hanusova (Luna) netting the wins. With Hanusova leading the series over Sue Haywood (Trek-VW) coming into the Snowshoe round of the NORBA series, the Czech rider never strayed far from the front on a course well-suited to her powerful style. Her solo move just six laps into the race drew out Dara Marks-Marino (Ford-Specialized) and Haywood to form a three strong group at the front, while Hanusova’s Luna teammate

Less than a week after signing with the French-based Pro-Tour team Cofidis, Health Net’s Tyler Farrar scored the biggest win of his domestic career, winning the USPRO criterium championships in Downers Grove, Illinois. “I’m on cloud nine right now,” Farrar said after the podium presentation. “I’ve been up there since I signed a couple of days ago and this just adds to it.” At the helm of fastest leadout train in the domestic peloton, Farrar rode the wheel of Kiwi world track champion Greg Henderson through the final 90-degree turn before launching his sprint with 150 meters to go. But hot

Cadel rides into Feldberg on his own

Ullrich said this stage suited his talents... only they suited Evans' even more.

After a tough day in the rain, Leipheimer's hold on the jersey seems more secure

Photo Finish: Farrar edges McCook for the win.

Pic goes early....

... and makes it look easy

Van Gilder and Freeman

This break had promise.

Farrar is heading to the big leagues

Domina Vacanze’s Maxim Iglinsky won the 171.3km sixth stage of the Tour of Germany from Friedrichshafen to Singen on Saturday. The 24-year-old Kazakh won a frantic sprint involving nine riders, finishing ahead of Belgian Jurgen van der Broeck (Discovery Channel) and Italian Alessandro Ballan (Lampre-Caffita). Levi Leipheimer (Gerolsteiner), sixth in this year's Tour de France, retains the yellow jersey with an 18-second lead over teammate Georg Totschnig of Austria. Germany's Jan Ullrich (T-Mobile) is third in the standings, 56 seconds behind Leipheimer. Sunday's seventh stage

The seventh round of the 2005 Shimano NORBA National Mountain Bike Series is under way at Snowshoe Mountain Resort in central West Virginia, where Australian gravity riders Mick Hannah and Katrina Miller rode to wins in the mountain cross and Chris Eatough (Ellicott City, Maryland) and Monique Sawicki (Calimesa, California) officially closed out the ’05 marathon season with overall NORBA National Series titles. On Friday, Brian Schmith (Lancaster, Pennsylvania) came within a whisker of his first pro NORBA national win after taking an early lead in the final heat ahead of the top-seeded

Tyler Hamilton, in his first race in 11 months, pedaled away from the field to win the Volkswagen Mt. Washington Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb on Saturday. Behind him, Aimee Vasse was blown off her bike by the famous Mt. Washington winds but managed to remount and maintain a strong lead to win the women's race for the second consecutive year. And Ned Overend celebrated his 50th birthday by placing fourth overall and chopping several minutes off previous masters’ records. It was the 34-year-old Hamilton’s first trip to Mt. Washington since 1999, and he was after Tom Danielson’s record of

NORBA cross-country racing continued Saturday at the seventh round of the series at Snowshoe Mountain, West Virginia. Geoff Kabush (Maxxis) repeated his 2004 win here to take over the series lead from Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (Gary Fisher-Subaru), who withdrew following a severe crash on the first of three laps. In the women’s race, Luna’s Shonny Vanlandingham continued her tear through the series by taking her fourth cross-country victory of the year. Horgan-Kobelski crashed just minutes into the men’s race while negotiating the slippery, root-strewn bottom half of the course, ending his

Hiding somewhere in Lara Kroepsch’s compact 5 foot 2 inch frame is one of the most ferocious finishing sprints in the North American professional women’s peloton. But the 26-year old from Boulder, Colorado usually keeps the goods under wraps — as a support rider for T-Mobile, Kroepsch usually plays second fiddle to teammates Kim Baldwin, Kristin Armstrong and Ina Yoko Teutenberg. But at the Pro-Am Challenge criterium, held on the eve of the USPRO criterium championships in Downers Grove, Illinois, Kroepsch let her guns do the talking, and walked away with the biggest victory of her

Iglinsky wins a frantic finish

The Mailbag is a regular feature on VeloNews.com. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your full name and home town. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.Lance should reconsider riding with prezEditor:I honestly don’t care how Lance Armstrong decides to spend his long and comfortable retirement, but I do have some unsolicited advice regarding his future adventure in politics: Don’t go riding with the president, at least not right

Italian Daniele Bennati (Lampre-Caffita) won a sprint finish in the fifth stage of the Tour of Germany on Friday, collecting his second victory in this year's race. Roger Hammond (Discovery Channel) took the runner-up slot in the 219.2km stage from Sölden in Austria to Freidrichshafen in Germany. Baden Cooke (Française des Jeux) was third. Levi Leipheimer (Gerolsteiner), sixth in this year's Tour de France, retained the overall lead after his triumph in Thursday’s mountainous fourth stage. He leads teammate Georg Totschnig of Austria by 18 seconds with German Jan Ullrich (T-Mobile)

Levi Leipheimer safely defended his leader’s jersey in Friday’s sixth stage, but he remains cautiously optimistic about his chances for overall victory with three stages left in the Tour of Germany. Just a day after his dramatic victory in Thursday’s epic climbing stage high in the Austrian Alps, the Gerolsteiner rider says 1997 Tour de France champion Jan Ullrich (T-Mobile) remains dangerously close. Leipheimer won 50 seconds ahead of Ullrich, pushing the race favorite into third overall at 56 seconds back going into this weekend’s action. “Having 50 seconds’ advantage on Ullrich isn’t

Have you ever gotten to the bottom of a mountain or canyon road descent and had to wait several minutes for the rest of your group to catch up? Have you ever thought that you might be the fastest descender on a road bike? Then this is the race for you. The Red Bull Road Rage, slated November 5 in Malibu, California, is an inaugural all-downhill road race performed on road-racing bicycles. Malibu’s Tuna Canyon is a highly technical, one-lane, European-style descent that drops 2000 feet over two miles. It will definitely be enough time to separate the men from the boys. This is an elite event

Bike Durango and Todd Wells are proud to announce that the TWells CX Camp will be held September 28-October 2 in Durango, Colorado. Todd was on the 2004 Olympic mountain biking team and won the 2001 national cyclo-cross championship. He is perennially one of the top cyclo-cross racers in the U.S.. He believes that cyclo-cross is a sport where technique is more important than pure horsepower and has a specific training regimen to hone skills and fitness. Camp attendees can expect: two-a-day skills sessions; training seminars by Rick Crawford; SRA presentation by Dr. Frank Jerrell; Q&A’s with

I’m back before you had a chance to miss me. I haven’t done an update in I can’t remember how long. I think the last time I checked in was after the Joe Martin Stage race in Arkansas. I have done quite a few races between then and now. I’ll try to get back up to speed with the highlights/lowlights. I think I’ll start out with one of my best performances of the year, the Tour of Connecticut. It’s the perfect day here in Durango to reflect on Connecticut, cold and rainy. I managed to stay pretty high up in the overall going into the last day but was still about a minute out of the lead. That’s

A few irate letter-writers have suggested that we keep politics out of cycling here at VeloNews.com, and we can see their points, once they’ve removed their Bush-Cheney 2004 caps. After all, the liars, cheaters and dopers infesting politics might teach cycling’s liars, cheaters and dopers a few new tricks, and God knows it’s already tough enough to tell who’s on the up and up these days, no matter how much blood gets drawn or spilled. Still, if the daily papers are going to cover the Recreationist-in-Chief’s mountain-bike rides as though they were actually news, it’s only right that cycling

VeloNews.com breaks two records in JulyBoulder, CO - It was bound to happen eventually, but no one atVeloNews.com thought it would happen this soon: For the month of July,VeloNews.com not only recorded its first 1 million+ unique visitormonth, but the site's advertising billings topped those of a printedition of VeloNews for the first time.During a month largely driven by Tour de France traffic, VeloNews.comrecorded some 1.1 million unique visitors, up 27% from the 860,000 uniqueslast July, and delivered 26 million page views -- up 24% from the 21 millionpage views delivered in July

Bennati wins his second stage of the German tour

Cyclist of the year?

Two Australian cyclists who have been in a German hospital for more than a month after a car accident that killed a teammate are well enough to return home this week, cycling officials in Sydney said Thursday. Doctors treating Alexis Rhodes, 20, and Louise Yaxley, 23, in the University Clinic in the German city of Jena had deemed it safe for them to come home, Cycling Australia said. They were badly hurt in July when a teenaged driver ploughed into them and four other women training for the Tour of Thüringen. Amy Gillett, 29, was killed instantly. The other injured women, Kate Nichols, 20,

Vande Velde ready for VueltaChristian Vande Velde (CSC) is pumped for the Vuelta a España, which kicks off later this month in Granada, Spain. “I’m psyched to have a good Vuelta,” Vande Velde said. “We’re going to be helping Carlos. He’s looking strong for the race.” Vande Velde will be part of a motivated Team CSC for the Vuelta, the season’s final grand tour. Spanish rider Sastre will be looking to post a strong result in the GC while the always-ambitious CSC will be on the hunt for stages. Joining Sastre and Vande Velde will be former Tour de France stage-winner Jakob Piil, Nicki

American Levi Leipheimer (Gerolsteiner) won the most difficult stage of the Tour of Germany on Thursday, a tough 171.6 kilometer Alpine race from Kufstein and Sölden in Austria. Leipheimer, sixth at this year’s Tour de France, also grabbed the overall leader’s jersey as he rode away from race favorite Jan Ullrich (T-Mobile) on the brutally difficult 15-kilometer final climb to the finish. Ullrich, who had made the German Tour his main post-TdF objective, conceded 50 seconds to the American on the final climb, which rises 2670 meters with an average grade of 12 percent. Only Leipheimer’s

Hi Bob,I rent a loft in the Bay area and I often ride my rollers or turbo at night after work. One of the other tenants stopped me in the hallway and asked what I was “doing up there." What is the law about noise in a private building?Rob,California Dear Rob,Ah, the joys of riding a bike that goes nowhere, but still manages to make you numb and anger your roommates and neighbors. Now that should be against the law! Still, I was so enthusiastic when I began racing that I used to spend more than four hours a stint on rollers on dark December days back in Madison. I can’t say I miss it. If

GREENVILLE TO CELEBRATE GEORGE HINCAPIE DAY! The City of Greenville cordially invites you to participate ina special celebration September 9, 2005, at 6:00 p.m.  Downtown GreenvilleGreenville’s own George Hincapie, Tour de France Stage Winner and theonly teammate to faithfully accompany Lance Armstrong during a record sevenTour de France victories, will be honored on September 9 in recognitionof his extraordinary victory on Stage 15 of the 2005 Tour de France.You are welcome to take part in a unique evening of fun and entertainmentfor the entire family.  George Hincapie Day

Totschnig (l) and Leipheimer soon after ridding themselves of Ullrich's company

Ullrich fought to stay with the two Gerolsteiners, but faded near the top.

"Cycling in the News" is a regular service of VeloNews.com. Readers,reporters and friends are encouraged to send links to current stories aboutcompetitive cyclists and cycling that appear in the mainstream media. Ifyou come across a news item that you believe may be of interest to otherVeloNews readers, we would be grateful if you choose to send it to Rosters@InsideInc.com. Cycling: Robinson at heart of big night of nostalgia - August 17,2005The Huddersfield Daily Examiner -Great BritainEIGHTEEN former Tour de France riders were among a 90-plus gatheringpaying homage to the pioneering British

I will be the first to admit that I have long suffered from a cycling affliction — make that addiction — brought on by fast, furious local group rides. I just can’t get enough of them. Occasionally I will sit at my desk daydreaming about the week’s ride. Will I make the front group? Will I flat? Will my legs fall off? Will my lungs exit my body by way of my mouth? I, my friends, am a group-ride junkie. Now, the group-rides that have always whetted my appetite aren’t just the ol’ cruiser-bike stroll in the park with mom ‘n pop. Nope, I love the speedy ones with plenty of muscle flexing and

It’s good to be back in Europe. This past weekend I was back racing with my team here in Switzerland. We raced the GP Oberbaselbiet. It’s the first year for this race to take place. Going over the race info, our director told us that though the course profile looked hilly the race was actually pretty flat. He also informed us that there would be no caravan, but he wasn’t exactly sure why not. Once we arrived and warmed-up, we understood the promoter’s reasoning completely. We also realized that the hills on the profile were real. The course was actually very technical, up, down and on

The Mailbag is a regular feature on VeloNews.com. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your full name and home town. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.Giving backDear VeloNews,For the first time in several years, HealthNet's John Lieswyn did nottoe the start line at the Tour of Kansas City this past weekend. But hisabsence, due to a broken pelvis, did not slow his efforts to nurture participationby the sport's youngest

Lampre’s Daniele Bennati won the 227.3-kilometer third stage of the Tour of Germany from Bodenmais to the Austrian city of Kufstein on Wednesday. A frantic sprint at the end of the Tour’s longest stage saw the 24-year-old Bennati triumph ahead of compatriot and QuickStep rider Filippo Pozatto who had won Tuesday's second stage. Pozatto’s QuickStep teammate Bram Tankink of the Netherlands retains the yellow jersey he has held since winning the opening stage. T-Mobile captain Jan Ullrich lies 23 seconds behind Tankink after finishing amongst the main group of riders. American Bobby

The Phonak team announced Wednesday that Fabrizio Guidi has tested positivefor an as-of-yet-undisclosed substance. Phonak general manager John Lelangue said Guidi's A-sample has comeback positive and the 33-year-old rider has been immediately suspendedpending the outcome of follow-up tests of a B-sample. The suspension isin keeping with current UCI policy. Guidi was competing in the Tour of Germany, although the team has not disclosed when and at which event the original sample was taken from the Italian rider. Phonak has undergone major management changes since last season's

Leipheimer realistic about German tourGoing into Thursday’s grueling climbing stage at the Tour of Germany, Levi Leipheimer continues to have realistic expectations in what’s his final major stage race of the 2005 season. The 31-year-old Gerolsteiner captain went into Wednesday's action poised with the main leaders at just 23 seconds behind race leader Bram Tankink (Quick Step). Danielle Bennati (Lampre) won the bunch sprint while Tankink stayed in the leader’s jersey. “The Tour of Germany is hard. I didn’t even look at the profiles until last week. It surprised me – it’s like a

The place to be on Saturday

JHK and Heather Irmiger

Travis Brown makin' faces again

Cathy Wherry (now Pacocha) dancing with some young stud

Brother Chris approves

The happy couple

Fabrizio Guidi

Leipheimer at this year's Tour.