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Former world champion Oscar Camenzind (Phonak) has tested positive for EPO and was immediately removed from the Swiss Olympic team, according to information released Monday by the Swiss Olympic committee. Camenzind, 32, showed traces of the banned blood booster in a urine sample from a July 22 test conducted by the Swiss anti-doping agency. Under Swiss cycling rules, a rider can be suspended without a second follow-up test being conducted. Phonak also immediately suspended Carminzind from the team. “Every rider that gives a positive test during a race or during training for a product that

To revisit the COVERAGE OF THE 2004 TOUR DE FRANCE.

The Mail Bag 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.Link racers’ pay to drug-free performanceEditor:It seems as though every single cyclist who has been caught doping or trafficking has recited the same excuse: "I had to succeed because my livelihood depended on it.” And it's hard to argue against their course of action. Mr. Millar

here is a new poll:

Camenzind has been dropped from the Swiss Olympic team and sacked by Phonak

Arvesen wins Tour of DenmarkNorway’s Kurt-Asle Arvesen (CSC) won the Tour of Denmark on Sunday, finishing just two seconds ahead of German teammate Jens Voigt. Arvesen overhauled Voight by taking three bonus seconds in the final 195km stage, which was won by France’s Jimmy Casper (Cofidis). Australia's Stuart O'Grady (Cofidis), winner of the fifth stage of last month's Tour de France, finished third overall. Tour of Denmark1. Jimmy Casper (F), Cofidis, 195km in 4:34:502. Tomas Vaitkus (Lit), Landbouwkrediet-Colnago3. Stuart O'Grady (Aus), Cofidis3. Giosue Bonomi (I), Saeco5. Jeremy Hunt

Alison Dunlap (Luna) held off an impressive late-race charge by Jimena Florit (RLX Ralph Lauren) to collect her 14th career NORBA short-track win Sunday at Snowmass Village near Aspen, Colorado. With a stiff wind kicking up clouds of dust on the slopes of Snowmass, Dunlap's Luna team put in a show of power that only Florit was able to challenge. After two laps on the dry, dusty course, which climbed one of the lower ski slopes and then descended through a series of loose, rocky S-turns, Dunlap launched a vicious attack. “I could just tell there wasn't anyone feeling really gung-ho today,”

Overcoming the disappointment of mechanical problems that might have cost him the win in Saturday's cross-country race at round seven of the NORBA series in Snowmass Village, Colorado, Maxxis rider Geoff Kabush put in a show of power to win the men's short-track event on Sunday. Riding his gold full-suspension Turner bike, Kabush wasted little time fighting his way to the front, while the other 55 pro men swapped elbows and swallowed dust behind him. “I watched the women's race and saw that there wasn't going to be much drafting in this race,” said Kabush after beating GT-Hyundai's Todd

You may think of cyclo-cross as a winter sport, but while you were sweating your way around a crit course somewhere in America, Sven Nijs (Rabobank) was winning the GP Eric De Vlaeminck, the summer edition of a winter sport. During a warm race in Zolder, Belgium, Nys had no competitors. Ben Berden finished second after a big gap while Wim Jacobs finished third. Bart Wellens, who won the race this year, abandoned due to the enormous heat. Now, Wellens leaves for a monthlong training camp in St-Moritz, Switzerland, before the real cyclo-cross season begins in September . . . when the weather

Kathy Pruitt completed the Luna-team double at Snowmass Village, Colorado, on Sunday, winning the women’s NORBA downhill race and adding to Alison Dunlap’s win in the short-track earlier in the day. In the men’s downhill, Australian Nathan Rennie (Santa Cruz Syndicate) ended Greg Minnaar’s three-race unbeaten streak to collect his second career NORBA downhill win. On a super-fast course that reminded riders of NORBA downhills of old, Pruitt edged her Luna teammate Marla Streb by 1.79 seconds for the win. “The key was to be consistent and not go off the course,” said Pruitt, the 2000 world

On Saturday in downtown Charlotte, North Carolina, Ivan Dominguez displayed his knack for winning big-time money criteriums, as he took the win at the inaugural Bank of America Invitational, featuring one of the biggest one-day payouts in the world. With $125,000 in prizes on the line, including $25,000 for first place, the Colavita Olive Oil rider beat out Health Net-Maxxis's Gord Fraser and Navigators Insurance's Henk Vogels in the mad dash to the finish. In the closing 10-laps of the 44-lap, 53-mile race, Health Net took control of the race, chasing down the late-race break that included

CSC had a good Tour of Denmark, claiming the top two spots on the podium

Mario de Clercq gives it a go

But it wasn't a day at the beach, even if it was hot enough for swimming

Sven Nijs had a better time of it

But then again, winning is always nice

Kaboom: Kabush rode away with another short-track win.

One time: Craig finished third on a single-speed

14 and counting: Dunlap chalked up another short-track win.

The other blue train: Luna was unstoppable.

Close call: Rennie won by a whisker.

Leading lady: Pruitt leads the DH series with one to go.

Out of the shadows: Rockwell made a surprise showing.

Spanish rider Miguel Angel Martin Perdiguero (Saunier Duval) uncorked a vicious sprint with 250 meters to the line in Saturday’s Clasica San Sebastián to surprise pre-race favorite Paolo Bettini (Quick Step) for the biggest win of his career. Martin Perdiguero was part of a seven-man break that cleared the always-decisive Category 1 climb up Alto de Jaizkibel with 31.5km to go in the sweltering 227km race across the verdant hills of northern Spain’s Basque Country. “I sprinted at 250 meters, it wasn’t too far,” said Martin Perdiguero, the first Spanish winner since 1990. “I was confident I

George Hincapie will ride for the next three seasons with Discovery Channel after penning a contract extension to stay with the American team during the recent Tour de France. Hincapie has raced in the U.S. Postal Service colors since 1997 and decided it was best to continue with the team as cable giant Discovery Channel is set to take over the sponsorship for the 2005 season. “I’ve signed for three more years. I’m staying,” Hincapie told VeloNews after finishing 56th at 5:24 back in Saturday’s Clasica San Sebastián. “I had some offers and we didn’t know if the team was going to continue,

Ongarato sprints to win in PortugalAlberto Ongarato (Fassa Bortolo) won the 147.2km ninth stage of the Tour of Portugal between Figueira da Foz and Alcobaca on Saturday. The Italian outkicked Pedro Costa (ASC-Vila do Conde) and Ramon Zaragosa (Imoholding-Loule Jardim Hotel) to win in 3:18:48. With only Sunday’s final stage remaining, David Bernabeu (Milaneza-Maia) held onto his eight-second overall lead on David Arroyo (L.A. Pecol), with Rui Lavarinhas (Milaneza-Maia) third at 0:36. 66th Volta a Portugal (POR 2.2), Figueira da Foz to Alcobaca, 147.2km1. Alberto Ongarato (I) Fassa Bortolo,

It was a good day for Olympians at the Snowmass NORBA National event near Aspen, Colorado, on Saturday. Todd Wells (GT-Hyundai) and Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (RLX Ralph Lauren), the two American men selected for the Olympic mountain bike race in Athens later this month, finished first and second in the 24.6-mile men’s cross-country race. Jimena Florit (RLX Ralph Lauren), who will represent Argentina at the upcoming Olympic Games, won the 20-mile women’s cross-country race to move into the overall series lead in the women’s standings. It was the climbing strength of the 29-year-old Wells that

Perdiguero claims his first World Cup win

Leipheimer had a go after shelling an early break

Rebellin crossed third to hold onto the World Cup lead

Totschnig tows the break

Ullrich chased until sidelined by a mechanical

Garate

The top three

Long time coming: Wells finally won his first NORBA cross-country

On target: Florit said she's ready for Athens

BERKELEY, Calif., August 5, 2004 - Clif Bar Inc. announced today that George Hincapie has won fan balloting for the third annual Beyond The Podium Award, earning a $10,000 first prize from the company. Riding in his 10th career Tour de France, Hincapie came through with his most impressive effort to date, finishing 33rd overall, but more importantly playing a key domestique role in helping his U.S. Postal Service Pro Cycling Team leader win an unprecedented sixth straight yellow jersey at this year’s Tour de France. The Clif Bar Inc. award honors domestiques - the unsung heroes of cycling -

The Mail Bag 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.Stop paying attention to all this crapEditor:If you pay attention to the ratio of articles posted on your site (which has always been my favorite, by the way, and I go to it several times a day), about half of them are about drugs. Everyone keeps saying, “Show something else other than

Bernabeau seizes lead in PortugalDavid Bernabeau (Milaneza-Maia) grabbed the overall lead from José Miguel Eliaz (LA Pecol) after finishing second to Elias’s teammate David Arroyo on Friday in the Tour of Portugal. Bernabeu now leads Arroyo by eight seconds with two days of racing remaining. His teammate, Rui Lavarinhas, finished third on the day and sits third overall at 36 seconds back. 66th Volta a Portugal (POR 2.2), Fundao to Torre, 143.4km1. David Arroyo (Sp) L.A. Pecol, 4:13:052. David Bernabeu (Sp) Milaneza-Maia, at 0:153. Rui Lavarinhas (Por) Milaneza-Maia, at 0:354. Nuno Ribeiro

After six months of chasing UCI points, a weeklong delay in the initial announcement, an arbitration hearing and an appeal of that decision, the battle for the lone women’s start spot on the U.S. Olympic cross-country team is finally over. On Friday afternoon in a federal courthouse in downtown Denver, Judge Phillip Figa denied a motion filed by Sue Haywood’s attorney asking the court to vacate the original arbitration decision that awarded that lone start spot to Mary McConneloug, and allow for another arbitration hearing. Haywood (Trek-Volkswagen), who was at the courthouse in Denver,

The seventh round of the 2004 NORBA National Mountain Bike Series got under way with amateur racing Friday at Snowmass Ski Resort near Aspen, Colorado. As the second-to-last event before the finals in Durango (August 27-29), pro series leaders will be looking to solidify their placings at Snowmass over the weekend. Trek-Volkswagen pro Travis Brown, having his best NORBA season since he won the National Championship Series title in 1999, spent Friday inspecting the 12.3-mile cross-country course. The long climbs and rugged single-track will present riders with tough decisions on equipment.

Italian cyclist Massimiliano Lelli (Cofidis) was charged Thursday with drug importing and trafficking, and with inciting the use of doping products, French judicial sources said. The 36-year-old was one of nine subjects of a judicial inquiry into the alleged use of illegal substances by the Cofidis team, which has been under investigation in France since March 2003. Lelli was implicated by British rider David Millar and French rider Philippe Gaumont, both of whom have been sacked by Cofidis. Millar was handed a two-year ban and stripped of his world time trial title by the British cycling

Clerc takes Burgos finaleAurélien Clerc, a Swiss flier on the Quick Step team, sprinted to victory in the final stage of the Vuelta a Burgos in northern Spain on Thursday. Clerc was a clear winner ahead of Alexandre Usov (Phonak) and Roger Hammond (Mr Bookmaker.com) in the rolling stage to cap the four-day Burgos tour. Alejandro Valverde (Kelme) finished safely in the main bunch, choosing not to contest the final sprint after charging to three consecutive victories to claim the overall title for his 14th win of the 2004 season. Early in the rolling stage a group of 16 riders tore away from

Dear Bob,Here in Massachusetts, we have several off-road trails that cross roadways in mid-block using crosswalks. The trail has a regular stop sign facing the path, only smaller, and the crosswalk has the usual street markings. The roadway doesn't have a stop or yield sign, but it does have a yellow warning sign. Some cars stop, some don't. Who really has the right-of-way, a cyclist or a motorist? Is the stop sign legitimate, or just advisory?E & C Dear E & C,This is a good question, and it's becoming a hot topic among off-road trail planners. Many motorists think that they only have an

Lelli has been charged wiith drug trafficking

The British cycling federation on Thursday banned David Millar from cycling for two years and stripped him of his world time trial for taking the banned performance enhancer EPO. The 27-year-old Scot's use of the blood booster erythropoietin was uncovered when French police raided his Biarritz home in June as part of their drug investigation into his team, Cofidis. Two empty capsules of Eprex, a commonly used form of EPO, were found in his flat. He later confessed to taking the prohibited substance in 2001 and 2003, an admission that led to his sacking by Cofidis. After the British cycling

Dave Fuentes tested positive for oxymetholone metabolites at the Redlands Classic on March 25, the U.S. Olympic Committee has announced. The 31-year-old from Berkeley, California, who had 12 wins in 2003, disputes the test results. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) is investigating. "If a sanction is imposed, USADA will make the announcement at a later date," the USOC said in a statement. Long-term, high-dose use of oxymetholone, an anabolic steroid used to treat certain types of anemia, has been linked to tumors of the liver, liver cancer and peliosis hepatis.

Dear Monique,In your recent article regarding daily fluid consumption (June 10, 2004) you briefly mentioned alcohol. I was wondering if studies have been made that confirm whether alcohol is beneficial or detrimental to athletic performance. I drink beer and wine regularly and am more concerned with the caloric aspect of the beverage rather than the chemical aspect. What are the effects on muscular recovery when consuming alcoholic beverages? Does consuming alcoholic beverages affect the body’s physiology during performance? What are the diuretic effects of alcohol

Spanish sensation Alejandro Valverde earned a hat-trick Wednesday in the Vuelta a Burgos after taking his third consecutive stage in the difficult 139km climbing finish up the narrow, twisting roads to Lagunas de Neila. Valverde, a winner of the opening two stages of the four-day Burgos tour, faltered within the final kilometer of the steep climb with ramps as steep as 14 percent, but bounced back to catch the wheel of Italian Leonard Piepoli (Saunier Duval) and Denish Menchov (Illes Balears). Valverde caught back on with less than 200 meters to go and shot ahead of Menchov to score his

The Mail Bag 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.Sign petition asking OLN to air VueltaEditor:Please add to your mail that there is hope for the Vuelta a España on OLN. There’s an online petition asking OLN to reconsider its decision to air only a one-hour highlight show. It’s at http://www.petitiononline.com/vuelta3/. The more who

Chris Stockburger (U.S. National Team) rode to victory in the 36th edition of Le Tour de l’Abitibi after seizing the lead on the fifth of nine stages in the weeklong race. The race, run July 19-25 in Québec, Canada, is the only UCI Junior World Cup Race in North America. Stockburger, of Fort Collins, Colorado, took an eight-second lead on Zach Taylor (Hot Tubes) after the 83.5km road race from Senneterre to Val-d’Or, Québec. As part of a 14-rider breakaway, Stockburger picked up 1:31 on the rider from Marietta, Georgia, who had held the brown leader’s jersey since the first-stage team time

Merckx: Teammates with Armstrong again.

Millar at the Dauphine: One of the last times he wore the Arc en Ciel

The MTBchicks are at it again, bringing passion and advocacy for women’s cycling to the trail. This weekend the MTB chicks hit Snowmass Resort, near Aspen, in what will be the seventh of nine races in the 2004 NORBA National Mountain Bike Series. Following the competitive mountain bike events on Sunday, August. 8, the girls of MTBChick invite beginner and junior women to “come get dirty” in a free one-hour mountain bike skills clinic. “Women’s clinics didn’t exist when I began mountain biking,” says founder and pro mountain bike racer Tonya Laffey. “I want to give others the opportunity to

Alejandro Valverde (Kelme) stormed to his second consecutive victory Tuesday in the second stage of the four-day Tour of Burgos in northern Spain. A day after winning atop the Alp de Altotero on Monday, Valverde took a bunch sprint coming into Aranda de Duero to conclude the 170km stage. Francisco Mancebo (Illes Balears), fresh off his sixth-place finish in the Tour de France, fractured his left wrist in a crash and was forced to abandon. Vuelta a Burgos (SPA 2.1), Stage 2, Lerma to Aranda de Duero, 170.45km1. Alejandro Valverde (Sp), Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme 3:46:132.

New York, NY -- Help celebrate the completion of the Tour of Hope Team’s cross-country journey across America this October, with a 25-30-mile recreational fundraising ride. You can be one of 1500 people to go the distance for cancer research in Washington, D.C. on the morning of Saturday, October 9! Following the recreational ride, join Lance Armstrong, the Tour of Hope Team, and special guests at the grand finale on the Ellipse, open to the public. The ride route is being finalized with the National Park Service and other jurisdictions; more details are coming soon. All of the funds raised

Dear Lennard,There was much discussion before the Tour about Lance's mountain TT bike. In “The Lance Chronicles” he was trying several different models and he used the aero' bars on Mont Ventoux. What happened to them? Was it something at Ventoux that made him change?Anthony Dear Anthony,I’ll let Trek’s team liaison, Scott Daubert, field that one: There are two answers here. Steve Hed used one of the formulas we developed through F-One and learned that the clip-on’s weight would cost Lance six or seven seconds during his assault up L’Alpe d’Huez. Their aerodynamic advantage is impossible to

Another closeup

A closeup

Nazon's busted bike

The Mail Bag 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. How many suffered for Meirhaeghe’s drug use?Editor:It is expectedly disappointing to look back at Filip Meirhaeghe's past performances through the cloudy filter of drug abuse and wonder, "What if?" (See “Meirhaeghe tests positive, admits guilt, retires”). How many clean riders have

U.S. Postal Service – soon to be Discovery Channel – got its man after Ukraine sensation Yaroslav Popovych agreed to a three-year contract to join the team beginning in 2005. Following weeks of speculation that the 24-year-old rising star was set to join Lance Armstrong at Postal Service, the team announced the news Monday. “I’m really excited to get Yaroslav on the team,” said team director Johan Bruyneel. “He’s a young rider who has shown his talent on numerous occasions. … I’m sure he still has a great margin of progression (to make), and I see him as a future contender for the Tour de

After narrowly missing a rainbow jersey in the 200-meter sprint at the junior world track championships on Saturday, Michael Blatchford was looking toward Sunday night’s team sprint as an opportunity for redemption. “We’ll get another chance tomorrow,” said the 18-year-old U.S. junior national sprint champion after taking the silver behind Australia’s Shane Perkins at the ADT Event Center velodrome near Los Angeles, California. Come Sunday, once again it was the U.S. versus Australia – but this time, the race was for bronze, after Germany and Japan advanced to the gold-medal round. In the

Disgraced cyclist Jobie Dajka on Monday will appeal against being dumped from the Australian team for this month's Athens Olympics, the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) said Monday. Earlier Monday the Court of Arbitration for Sport said that the deadline had passed for the 22-year-old Dajka to appeal against his banishment from the cycling team after admitting to lying to an official doping inquiry. But late Monday a fax from Dajka's legal team was located at the AOC's office in Sydney, the AOC said. "Please be advised a fax from Jobie Dajka's legal team has been located in the AOC

With a final stage breakaway at the International Tour de 'Toona in Pennsylvania, Health Net’s John Lieswyn and Scott Moninger were able to snatch the race lead away from Webcor Builders’ Chris Horner, with Moninger capturing the stage win and Lieswyn nailing down the overall title. In the women’s race, Quark’s Lyne Bessette led the seven-day event from start to finish, beating Canadian Olympic teammate Sue Palmer-Komar (Genesis Scuba) by 34 seconds in the overall. In the men’s race, Colavita Olive Oil’s Nathan O’Neill made an impressive return to the race where he suffered a crash that

For the second year in a row, the NORBA series ventured north to Idaho’s Schweitzer Mountain Resort in Sandpoint, Idaho. This time around it was stop No. 6 on an eight-race slate that will conclude at the end of August with the series finals in Durango. Here’s a look at all the action from Idaho. Hesjedal, Koerber finish on topCanadian Olympian Ryder Hesjedal and American Willow Koerber each took wins on a dusty and technical Sandpoint cross-country course to open racing in Idaho. Hesjedal (Subaru-Gary Fisher), who will be a surefire medal contender in Athens, took the lead early during the

Popovych after assuming the maglia rosa in the 2004 Giro d'Italia

Stuart O’Grady continued on his winning ways Sunday after pipping pre-race favorites Paolo Bettini (Quick Step) and Igor Astarloa (Lampre) in a much tougher version of the HEW Cyclassics race in Germany. A new course took the World Cup riders over the short but steep Waseberg climb five times, including the final pass that broke up the main bunch in the final 15km. In a sprint finish, O’Grady shot ahead of last year’s winner, Bettini, to win his first World Cup victory of his career. World Cup series leader Davide Rebellin (Gerolsteiner) came through sixth to retain the overall lead while

Surviving an early crash on the slippery, rain-drenched New York streets, New Zealand’s Greg Henderson (Health Net-Maxxis) came back to win the third annual New York City Cycling Championships in a massive field sprint. Henderson shot off the wheel of countryman and teammate Hayden Godfrey in the final 50 meters of the 60-mile race through New York’s financial district for his highest-profile win of the year. Another teammate, designated sprinter Gord Fraser, said he wasn’t feeling great but still slotted in for second behind Henderson. “We wanted to be patient in the sprint,” said Fraser.

Surviving an early crash on the slippery, rain-drenched New York streets, New Zealand’s Greg Henderson (Health Net-Maxxis) came back to win the third annual New York City Cycling Championships in a massive field sprint. Henderson shot off the wheel of countryman and teammate Hayden Godfrey in the final 50 meters of the 60-mile race through New York’s financial district for his highest-profile win of the year. Another teammate, designated sprinter Gord Fraser, said he wasn’t feeling great but still slotted in for second behind Henderson. “We wanted to be patient in the sprint,” said Fraser.

With the overwhelming support of a partisan home crowd, all signs seemed stacked in favor of American junior national sprint champion Michael Blatchford securing a rainbow jersey at the junior track world championships Saturday, held at the ADT Event Center velodrome near Los Angeles, California. Blatchford, who hails from the nearby city of Cypress, was first in the 200-meter qualifying sprints Friday, laying down a 10.696 ahead of Australia's Shane Perkins, winner of Thursday night's keirin, who rode a 10.701. And when both Blatchford and Perkins required just two rides in the

Hamburg is probably the easiest of the World Cups…but it is not easy. The race draws massive crowds and is always a welcome home race for Jan and the Telekom team after the Tour. The race starts out with a large flat loop and then several smaller loops with some tight turns and a steep climb. It is not the difficulty of the climb that splits the race up, but the fight for position going into the climb and the tight corners after the climb. As the World Cup script pretty much dictates, the race started off quick, a break got away, the peloton settled down and cruised along, and then teams

Hamburg is probably the easiest of the World Cups...but it is not easy. The race draws massive crowds and is always a welcome home race for Jan and the Telekom team after the Tour. The race starts out with a large flat loop and then several smaller loops with some tight turns and a steep climb. It is not the difficulty of the climb that splits the race up, but the fight for position going into the climb and the tight corners after the climb. As the World Cup script pretty much dictates, the race started off quick, a break got away, the peloton settled down and cruised along, and then

O'Grady pips 'em at HEW

The break had 14 minutes at one point

And then the peloton got seriously busy

O'Grady pips 'em at HEW

The break had 14 minutes at one point

And then the peloton got seriously busy

O'Grady pips 'em at HEW