News

The chase

One reporter called it "the Black Monday of American cycling." Just like that, in the matter of a few hours on April 18, the U.S. lost two of the best Tour de France riders of a generation. First, Lance Armstrong, the undisputed king of the Tour, announced he’s abdicating the throne after making a run for a seventh crown come July. Then, Tyler Hamilton, heir apparent and former right-hand man, was delivered a devastating two-year racing ban for illegal blood transfusions. If you add in the ProTour ethics code, Hamilton won’t be able to even think about riding the Tour for four years, when

Tafi gets encouragement from his director

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. Keep up the fight, TylerEditor:I believe Tyler. A rider of his determination and grit has more credibility. I hope that his appeal will bring out the justice and credibility of his claims. In the meantime, I hope he can maintain the will to keep training and believing in himself. Go

Eki drives at the front

Winning at Huy was unexpected, said Di Luca

Voigt was aggressive from the start

Kashechkin goes for it

The Mur de Huy

Di Luca takes over the ProTour lead.

Saul Raisin

Street2

Andrea Tafi

Steven

TIAA-CREF plotting and planning at the start Stage 1

Finish

One of the few fast moments in Tuesday's stage

Julich

Map Stage 1

Hunter takes slooooooow Georgia opener

Navs

Profile Stage 1

Bowman gets sage advice from team guru Jonathan Vaughters

Stage 3

For Tafi, it may seem like retirement started early...

Stage 4

Armstrong had a safe and easy day

Stage 5

Profile Stage 2

Julich has had a great early season...

Map Stage 2

...but Armstrong remains a big favorite in any stage race he enters.

Phil and Bob ready for commentary

Bobby Julich

Bus Stage 2

Bobby Julich Stage 1

Kabush

Lance Armstrong Stage 1

Image files - info Tour de Georgia

Parade Lap - Stage 1

Image files - info Tour de Georgia

Race Start Stage 1

VN View

Armstrong plans to say goodbye to cycling at the end of the '05 Tour.

The end of an era: Armstrong to retire after '05 Tour

Olympic hero or doper? Two-thirds of the review panel votes for the latter.

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. Forget the jerseys – study the ridersEditor:I offer a friendly tip to all these VeloNews readers who are still wondering who won the Roubaix 'cause everyone's little outfits look so similar: Stop looking at the jersey, people, and pay attention to the rider! George is the big

Initially choking on his words, six-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong dropped the bombshell Monday afternoon that the cycling community has been speculating on for years: that after a bid for an attempt at an unprecedented seventh Tour de France victory, the 2005 Tour will be his last. Flanked by his Discovery Channel team director and longtime advisor Johan Bruyneel at a pre-race press conference for the Dodge Tour de Georgia, Armstrong wasted no time announcing his decision to retire on July 24th, the final day of the 2005 Tour. After sitting down, Armstrong cleared his

In a split decision, a three-member arbitration panel from the American Arbitration Association/North American Court of Arbitration for Sport (AAA/CAS) has ruled that former Phonak star Tyler Hamilton is guilty of homologous doping - transfusing another person’s blood - and ordered the 34-year-old American suspended from competition until April of 2007. The panel handed down the maximum sentence for a first-time doping offense, ordering that Hamilton begin serving that suspension on Monday and forfeit any results earned on or after the date of his positive test, September 11, 2004, the

Ullrich during the third stage of the Circuit de la Sarthe, April 7th.

Olympic gold medalist Tyler Hamilton is expecting an arbitration decision in his blood doping case as soon as Monday, the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday. With the decision - and a possible two-year suspension - imminent, Hamilton continued to deny wrongdoing. "I didn't blood dope, that's for sure," he told the newspaper. Hamilton presented his case in late February and early March to hearing conducted by a three-member panel of the North American Court of Arbitration for Sport and the American Arbitration Association. Rumors have abounded for the past seven days, with many

Gaggioli has a go with an early break in the women's race

But once Teutenberg caught and passed the break, Pic and Thorburn launched a chase of their own

But the day would go to Armstrong, who hit the climb fresh and ready to rock

Boogerd launches his attack on the Cauberg

Thick as pea soup...

Freire

Moreau and Thijs kept up the effort for nearly 200km

Etxebarria on the attack

For struggling racers, figuring out the logistics of getting to a far-off start line can be every bit as challenging as the race itself. Travel and accommodations present the two most crucial elements in race planning, and a perceived lack of either can make the difference between a result and “what could have been.” With ridetimes.com, one racer has developed what he hopes will help alleviate this scenario for North American bike racers: a centralized database of host housing and carpooling for events across the country. Kevin Hankens, the founder of ridetimes.com, saw the need for a

On the Cauberg

Rebellin hopes to repeat his 2004 Amstel victory

Ollerenshaw and the Health Net boys were in good shape up front . . .

. . . until they got the word that Stevic was on his way up, closing a six-minute gap all by himself

That meant it wouldn't be Fraser's day

Instead, Ollerenshaw attacked the break, and got the stage and the overall

Wherry, meanwhile - GC leader going into the stage - may have suffered from a bit of course confusion

Serbia's Stevic puts the hammer down

Pic shoots ...

... and scores

Fraser was left behind with four to go

Health Net's attack surprised Clinger