VN news ticker: UCI president David Lappartient: ‘no reason to have doubts’ about Tadej Pogačar, Teams announced for Ceratizit Challenge
Here's the news making the headlines on Monday, July 19.
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
UCI president David Lappartient: ‘no reason to have doubts’ about Tadej Pogačar
UCI president David Lappartient said Monday that there is “no reason to have doubts” about 2021 Tour de France winner Tadej Pogačar.
In an interview with The Guardian, Lappartient said that not only was the race leader clean, but his bike was x-rayed to determine if contained any prohibited technologies.
“I have the pictures of Pogacar’s bike and everything is clean, regarding the results of the X-ray machine,” Lappartient said. “The only limit is the capacity of the lab themselves to detect – in all sports – some substances. We have a very solid and robust testing program in cycling for both anti-doping and technological fraud and there is no reason to have doubts. However, zero risk doesn’t exist.”
With the yellow jersey on his shoulders for nearly two weeks, Pogačar was one of the most-tested riders in the peloton.
“I had three controls in one day – two before the stage and one after. So I think that gives enough weight to prove them wrong,” Pogačar said.
In addition to doping controls, the UCI also performed scans of more than 703 bikes used by riders at the Tour.
Lappartient also commented that the UAE-Team Emirates director Mauro Gianetti — who had previously been associated with a team on which riders had been using banned substances — has a right to be involved with the team.
“Under the WADA rules and UCI rules, if you had a disciplinary procedure or sanction after 2011, you can’t be part of a team, or leading a team. That’s the international rule, but of course, we are always very careful with team managers who in the past have been involved in negative stories,” Lappartient said.
Teams announced for 2021 Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta 21
The four-stage Ceratizit Challenge by La Vuelta, the seventh edition of the Women’s WorlTour stage race slated for September 2-5 announced the teams invited to this year’s event.
Two mountain stages, an individual time trial, and a stage for the sprinters are on the schedule. Instead of concluding in Madrid, this year’s Certatizit Challenge will finish in Santiago de Compostela at the historic Plaza del Obradoiro, where the finale of the 2021 Vuelta a España will also take place.
Nine WorldTeam squads and nine additional teams have been offered wild card invites to the 2021 Ceratizit Challenge.
UCI WorldTeams automatically receiving invitations
Alé BTC Ljubljana
Canyon-SRAM Racing
FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope
Liv Racing
Movistar Team Women
Team BikeExchange
Team DSM
Team SD Worx
Trek-Segafredo Women
Teams receiving wildcard invitations
Bepink
Bizkaia – Durango
CERATIZIT – WNT Pro Cycling Team
Eneicat – RBH Global – Martin Villa
Team Coop – Hitec Products
Instafund Racing
Jumbo-Visma Women Cycling Team
Laboral Kutxa – Fundación Euskadi
Massi – Tactic Women Team
Rio Miera – Cantabria Deporte
Sopela Women’s Team
Team Farto – BTC
Team Tibco – Silicon Valley Bank
Valcar – Travel & Service
Women Cycling Sport
Daniel Martínez out of Olympic Games with Covid-19
The Colombian men’s team has suffered a big blow ahead of the Tokyo Olympic Games after Daniel Martínez tested positive COVID-19 and will no longer be able to compete.
Reports in the Colombian media say that Martínez, who was instrumental in Egan Bernal’s Giro d’Italia victory, has continued to test positive for the virus several weeks after contracting it.
Sergio Henao could replace Martínez in the nation’s five-man team, but it will be difficult given the tight turnaround time.
According to the reports, Rigoberto Urán will take Martínez’s place in the time trial event. Meanwhile, Urán, Esteban Chaves, Sergio Higuita, and Nairo Quintana will ride the road race event.
Austrian cyclist rides over 1,000km in 24 hours
Ultra-cyclist cyclist Christoph Strasser has smashed the distance record for riding over a 24-hour period. The Austrian traveled an incredible 1,026.215 kilometers in a single day, adding over 100 kilometers to the previous record of 914km set by Ralph Diseviscourt in Luxembourg last July.
Strasser made set the record, which still needs to be officially verified, on a 7.6km track in Zeltweg, Austria. To achieve the impressive distance, he maintained an average speed of 42.75km/h throughout the 24 hours.
“Words cannot describe what we are feeling right now. The magical 1000 [km] mark was broken,” Strasser’s partner Sabine Prager wrote on social media. “We are simply exhausted, worn out, tired and grateful for today and would like to say ‘thank you’ to all of you from the bottom of our hearts. For today it’s just about going to bed, Christoph has already gone ahead. We’ll get back to you in the next few days.”