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UCI president Pat McQuaid on Tuesday called on ProTour riders to pledge their commitment to a dope-free Tour de France by making a sample of their DNA available and lodging the equivalent of a year's salary, which they will lose if they fail a drugs test in next month's race. Doping cases have rocked recent editions of the world's premier cycling race. Last year's winner, American Floyd Landis, stands accused of using performance-enhancing substances on his way to victory.FullText of Riders' Pledge Speaking during a press conference after a meeting between the UCI and

Yes, Andy Schleck will one day be a great champion, but after Tuesday's fourth stage of the Tour de Suisse, one should remember that his older brother Frank is not one to be ignored, either. On the steep slopes of the finishing climb to Triesenberg-Malbun, its second category rating belying a vicious character, big brother Schleck asserted his authority with an impressive display of power climbing, and left all rivals in his wake to capture his fifth career victory and the race lead to boot. "Of course, the Tour de Suisse is a beautiful race and it's one of the biggest races of the

Maybe it’s a natural progression. Maybe it’s a response to competitive pressures from the newest player in the road market. Either way, consumers will likely be the ones to benefit as Shimano narrows the gap between its 10-speed Ultegra and Dura-Ace groups. The new Ultegra SL, sporting a new "Ice Grey" color scheme, drops close to a quarter of a pound from standard Ultegra. The new group likely comes in response to the increased competition within the mid-level road market, a direct effect of SRAM entering the fray with its economical Rival components. While the new color is striking,

After 3042 miles, Jure Robic of Slovenia has reached Atlantic City, New Jersey to win the 26th Annual Race Across America. In doing his 8 day, 19 hours and 33 minutes ride from Oceanside, California, Robic averaged 14.38 mph, crossing 12 states and cranking up more than 110,000 feet of climbing. So, how many miles did you ride this week? Robic, not known for being verbose, was extra quiet on the podium — understandable, spending something like 190 hours on a bike saddle, over the last nine days, can do that to people. “RAAM is not a bike race," Robic said in a fit of verbosity. "This is

Emergency Fundraising effort for ChenowthNick Chenowth, long time cyclist and world masters champion, has beendiagnosed with cancer. Nick is now in a race for his life, with this potentially terminal illness.Due to circumstances beyond Nick’s control, he does not qualify for insurance,and has no means to allow him to manage the enormous expenses that willbe required for his recovery.Nick is in need of immediate surgery. Each day that passes reduces hischances. With the proper medical attention Nick can recover and be “backin the saddle,” training, coaching, spinning and racing. But he

Two new books about American Tour de France winners are due to hit the shelves next week, and both are expected to cause a stir. Ballantine Books, an imprint of the Random House Publishing Group, is publishing “From Lance to Landis: Inside the American Doping Controversy at the Tour de France,” which will be available on June 26. The book is written by award-winning journalist David Walsh, who is poised to return to his position as chief sports writer with The Sunday Times of London in August. Walsh is a four-time Irish Sportswriter of the Year, three-time UK Sportswriter of the Year, and

Frank Pipp of the Health Net-Maxxis team was on his own at the Austin Criterium last Saturday. With no teammates helping him at the AT&T Criterium, he had to play the race smart and take advantage of opportunities when they opened up. His tactical prowess helped earn him a strong second place in the race behind Frank Trevieso (AEG-Toshiba), and ahead of Ivan Stevic and Henk Vogels (both Toyota-United). "It was a fast race, with a pretty good field," Pipp said. In addition to three riders from Toyota and AEG-Toshiba, he also had to contend with a three-man team from Abercrombie & Fitch,

Bruyneel says the teams' association does not 'represent our team in a positive manner,'

The new Ultegra SL

The XTR Shadow

Robic wins RAAM for the third time

Like his brother, Schleck is built to climb.

The final climb took its toll on many, including race leader Fabian Cancellara.

Schleck takes over the jersey, but keeps it at CSC

Press Release - Friends raise funds for Chenowth cancer battle

Discovery Channel captain Levi Leipheimer is okay despite a fall in Sunday’s final stage of the Dauphiné Libéré. Sport director Johan Bruyneel said Leipheimer wasn’t seriously injured when he slipped on rain-soaked roads while attacking for victory with about 4km to go to Annecy. A frustrated Leipheimer could only watch Alexandre Vinokourov (Astana) ride past him and secure the stage victory. “He’s fine. He hit the side of the round-about. There’s no problem,” Bruyneel told VeloNews. “It was very slippery and he was risking a little bit because he was by himself.” The defending Dauphiné

He was a last-minute substitution when Paolo Bettini decided not to race, and it's a big call to fill the shoes of a current world road champion. But on Monday in the tiny Austrian village of Nauders, after the longest leg of the race, Quick Step's Alessandro Proni repaid the trust to claim victory on the third stage of the Tour de Suisse. Though it was by the barest of margins, as the Italian only just finished ahead of Bouygues Telecom's Xavier Florencio and T-Mobile's Kim Kirchen, who were part of a 28-man group that surprisingly included race leader Fabian Cancellara. So

While Navigators Insurance rider Ben Day was securing his overall leadat the Tour de Beauce, his teammate Kyle Wamsley scored another team win when he took the sprint at the inaugural Crystal City Classic presented by the United States Air Force in Arlington, Virginia. Wamsley and Jon Hamblin (Manulife Financial-Kane Bikes) attacked a high-pacedmain field with 12km to go, and stayed away until the finish of the NRCevent. Local rider Peter Cannel (Artemis Elite-Immediate Mortgage) tookthe field sprint for third.“It is a technical course and hard to make a break so we had to be alittle

VeloNews contributor Vic Armijo is following this year's Race Across America and - when he finds a WiFi signal - is sending in regular dispatches from the road.Monday Evening - Barring some physical catastrophe or mishap, Jure Robic will win his third—and as he claims, final—Race Across America sometime around 6:00 on Tuesday morning. To say that the 41-year-old Slovenian Army major has dominated this year’s Race Across America would be something of an understatement. Aside from a short time back in Arizona where Wolfgang Fasching briefly held the front position, Robic has led the

A break that worked. Proni celebrates a successful 200km effort.

Frustrating, but no major injuries.

The fourth edition of the AT&T Downtown Austin Criterium had a twlight start.

Fasching isn’t the only rider afflicted with 'Shermer’s Neck.' British rider Jim Rees has fallen victim too. He rode into the Camdenton, Missouri time station wearing a makeshift neck roll, but there was fitted with this PVC-pipe contraption.

Rock and Roll - Optis is using Thin Lizzy to stay awake.

Boulder, CO, USA — June 7, 2007 — The VeloNews 2007 Official Tourde France Guide is many things. It’s the best way to follow the race, withcomprehensive maps, complete stage information, and detailed team information.It’s the first place to turn to for rider profiles and predictions. It’sthe richest source of Tour history, with stories and statistics on pastwinners. And this year it is the biggest Tour Guide ever. At 228 pages, the 2007Tour Guide is nothing less than massive, with more photos, more maps, moreteam news, more features, and more in-depth coverage of the world’s greatestsports

At the start of Sunday’s seventh stage at the 59th Dauphiné Libéré, high up in Valloire in the shadow of the Galibier, it seemed like the worst was behind the peloton with just the final stage to Annecy on tap. French veteran Christophe Moreau (Ag2r) was nursing a 14-second lead to Cadel Evans (Predictor-Lotto) and looked to have the overall in the bag if he could get through Sunday. Moreau, like everyone else, knows better than to count the cycling chickens before they’re hatched. “Sunday’s stage is difficult. Instead of just letting us ride round the lake in Annecy the organizers have

Confession appears to have its rewards. Milram's Erik Zabel, who three weeks earlier admitted to using EPO, says he's a man reborn, and on Sunday in Lucerne, the 36-year-old used his newfound spiritual freedom to win the opening road stage of the Tour de Suisse. It was a perfect throw of the bike by the veteran Zabel, who just pipped Lampre-Fondital's Daniele Bennati at the line, surprisingly followed by race leader Fabian Cancellara (CSC). The maillot jaune and local hero was given a superb lead-out by his Australian teammate and friend Stuart O'Grady, who finished fourth,

Defending National Mountain Bike Series short-track champions Geoff Kabush and Katerina Nash each grabbed their second short-track victories of 2007 at the Deer Valley NMBS on Sunday. Nash, ranked 13th in the World Cup cross-country standings, scored a come-from-behind victory against Luna teammate Georgia Gould. Kabush, leader of the 2007 NMBS cross-country standings, stretched a second-lap gap into a winning solo breakaway. Gould seized the lead on the opening lap of the women’s short track after surging up the course’s one dusty climb with Subaru-Gary Fisher rider Willow Koerber in hot

The 22nd edition of the Tour de Beauce ended Sunday with the Navigators Insurance squad taking their its third consecutive victory, as Australian Ben Day easily held off last ditch attempts by second placed Svein Tuft (Symmetrics) and Danny Pate (Slipstream) to put him in difficulty. The stage was won by veteran Soren Petersen (Farso Denmark), who – perhaps unsportingly - outsprinted breakaway companion Christian Meier (Symmetrics), after letting Meier pull for the final 34 kilometers. The final stage of Beauce always takes place in the host town of St-Georges. It is by no means a parade

Last year, organizers of the National Mountain Bike Series heard gruff remarks from the gravity racing crowd for holding the mountain-cross competition on a BMX track located an hour’s drive from Deer Valley resort. The decision was made after Deer Valley resort predictably balked at the idea of cutting a gated race course into one of its ski runs. For 2007, NMBS organizers convinced resort management to allow a scaled-down dual slalom track built near the base of the mountain’s famed downhill course. While it lacked the steepness and length of most other NMBS dual slalom tracks, it

2007 Official Tour de France Guide Hits Newsstands

Moreau poses on the podium with child Margot and wife Emilie

Zabel takes it

Moreau remained vigilant throughout the finale

Leipheimer made a promising late move . . .

. . . only to lay it down in a wet roundabout

Martinez in the escape

Contador has a dig

But Vino' had the winning move

Slalom winner Graves has become a World Cup player

American Melissa Buhl was happy to win both the slalom and DH

The finishing dropoff of Deer Valley's course made for some hang time

Men's winner Duncan Riffle makes one autograph seeker happy

People all week have been saying Christophe Moreau was the strongest rider at the Dauphiné Libéré. Despite two stage wins and superb form in the mountains, it was Astana playing hot potato with the leader’s jersey at the eight-day Tour de France tune-up. The Ag2r captain attacked with about 5km to go on the 12km Cat. 1 Col du Télégraphe at the end of Saturday’s seven-climb “queen stage” to erase any doubt. Maxim Iglinskiy gave Astana its third stage win of the week after holding out as part an 11-man, all-day breakaway, but Moreau came through eighth to turn a 14-second deficit to

It is time. When the Tour de Suisse begins in Olten on Saturday, the occasion is not so significant for the opening time trial, as it is that the Tour de France is exactly three weeks away. For the time being at least, the Puerto headlines do not rule the sporting pages of magazines or newspapers. The confessions, that have so far numbered four, have stopped. But the cynicism is still there; the public wants - no, the public needs - to see some clean winners, and it must start now. One of two primary lead-up events to Tour itself, the Tour de Suisse runs concurrently with the Critirium du

Farrar wins in PortugalTyler Farrar scored his first win as a pro in Europe in Friday’s second stage at the GP Correios in Portugal. The 23-year-old Cofidis rider opened up an early sprint that not only earned him a breakthrough victory but also slotted him into the overall leader’s jersey. Farrar fractured his left kneecap in a fall on the infamous Kemmelberg cobblestone descent at Ghent-Wevelgem in April, but luckily, surgery wasn’t required. That allowed him to return to Europe to race at the Tour of Picardy and the Tour of Belgium last month. The Portuguese tour ends Sunday and Farrar is

Those who began to hail Bradley Wiggins as the likely winner of the Tour de France prologue spoke too soon. On Saturday in Olten, reigning world time trial champion Fabian Cancellara (Team CSC) smashed the prologue of the Tour de Suisse and his rivals, sending out a flashing red warning light to his adversaries all over Europe. "This victory is a confirmation that everything is working right, that I am back to winning form," announced Cancellara, who by default also took the first yellow jersey as race leader. "The Tour de France [prologue] will be completely different, because the roads

VeloNews contributor Vic Armijo is following this year's Race Across America and - when he finds a WiFi signal - is sending in regular dispatches from the road. Saturday — Fatigue has taken its toll in the 2007 Race Across America. Jure Robic is still in the lead, but his average speed has dropped to 15.21 mph, ending any hope he may have had of breaking Pete Penseyre’s 1986 record of 15.4 mph. And there’s a very real possibility of there being no women finishers in this year’s event. First, the men. The order at the front remains unchanged — Robic is out front, with Wolfgang Fasching

Americans Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski and Georgia Gould scored convincing cross-country victories at the fifth round of the 2007 National Mountain Bike Series, held June 16 at Deer Valley resort in Park City, Utah. The first high-alpine race of 2007, Deer Valley’s 8.5-mile cross-country loop sent riders climbing up to 7700 feet above sea level before embarking on a speedy, dusty descent, followed by two more successive climbs and descents. The men completed four laps around the course, with the women tackling three. An unseasonably hot sun beat down on a large crowd of pro racers — 87 men and

Mike Sayers (BMC) won Saturday’s Twilight Criterium in Reno, Nevada. The race concluded with a tactical sprint between Sayers and Jaior Perez of the Colombian National Team. Alex Candelario (Jelly Belly) used his explosive sprinting ability to win the chase-group sprint, finishing third in the stage and first in the omnium. Saturday’s race was extremely fast from the moment it began. Once again, the Colombian team kept the pace painfully high on the 0.8-mile loop, turning the 90-minute criterium into a race of attrition. An early breakaway by Perez was followed by 10 of the field’s

With an 11th-hour burst of speed, Frank Travieso placed a commandingfootprint on the 2007 AT&T Downtown Austin Criterium which went downon Saturday, June 16th. Coming out of the final turn of the four corner,1KM circuit Travieso clearly demonstrated that he had gotten the betterof his competition.

Iglinsky wins

Moreau waited for the right moment to attack, and it paid off

Kashechkin wasn't overly upset at losing the jersey

Cancellara en route to victory

Evans said Moreau was the strongest

Just another day on the job

Phillip Baker on the Highway of the Legends, between La Veta and Trinidad, Colorado

The high-tech carbon-fiber machines of Team Velokraft sit close to the ground and present a much smaller front profile

Team Bacchetta’s machines have a fairly standard (for a recumbent) position

JHK takes the V

The women's podium

Sayers takes the win

The stage podium

The overall podium

Travieso leaves no doubt about who won that one

McRae celebrates with the officers of the official Jen McRae fan club

VeloNews contributor Vic Armijo is following this year's Race Across America and - when he finds a WiFi signal - is sending in regular dispatches from the road.Friday - Jure Robic continues to dominate the solo men’s field. As of this afternoon (Friday) he’s already reached the Marthasville, Missouri, time station. His closest rival, Wolfgang Fashing is approximately five hours back, with third place Daniel Wyss riding another two and half hours back. Robic is currently averaging 15.56 miles and hour. While that’s still slightly better than Pete Penseyres’ 15.4 mile an hour record the

Alexandre Vinokourov is playing kingmaker at the Dauphiné Libéré. A day after stepping aside on Mont Ventoux to let Astana understudy Andrey Kashechkin move into the leader’s jersey, the 33-year-old gifted Friday’s 195km fifth stage to Astana teammate Toni Colom. The Astana captain powered away from Friday’s winning 22-rider breakaway on the day’s final hurdle on the Cat. 2 Col du Corobin with about 20km to go to latch on to the attacking Colom and the pair drove home the victory 3:27 ahead of the chasing favorites. Vinokourov then insisted the Spanish journeyman take the scalp because he

There won’t be a Tour de France debut for Tom Danielson this year. Recurring stomach ailments – which forced him to pull out of the first stage of the Dauphiné Libéré -- have scuttled Tour hopes for the 29-year-old Discovery Channel rider. “Tom is off the Tour team,” Discovery Channel boss Johan Bruyneel told VeloNews. “He’s sick. We’re trying to find out exactly what the problem is. He’s had stomach problems throughout the year at several key moments. It’s definitely a disappointment.” Danielson was hoping to earn a spot on the nine-man Discovery Channel team in what would be his

The Italian cycling federation (FCI) on Friday gave Ivan Basso a two-year ban for his involvement in Operación Puerto, but deducted the time he has spent on the sidelines after first being identified as a suspect in the blood-doping scandal. "I can't do anything other than accept the sentence," the 2006 Giro d'Italia champion was quoted as saying by Italian news agency ANSA after the hearing. "I'm calm. I knew that it wasn't going to be easy and that's why I accept the sanctions. Now I will continue to train and I will be thinking ahead to the races in 2009." Asked if

American cross-country racer Willow Koerber is enjoying her finest World Cup campaign ever. The 29-year-old collected a ninth-place finish at the May 26 event in Offenburg, Germany, and followed that up with an impressive podium performance at the June 9 World Cup in Champéry, Switzerland. Finishing on the box at a European World Cup is a career accomplishment, and Koerber hopes it’s the first of many. And with the 2008 Olympics looming, Koerber knows that continuing her consistent World Cup performances will earn her a ticket to the Games. VeloNews caught up with Koerber as she was

Conflicts with the USA Cycling Elite National Championships in Seven Springs, Pennsylvania, have forced organizers of the Cascade Cycling Classic to cancel this year’s women’s stage race. A decision was made this week to postpone the women’s Pro 1-2 race until 2008. Race organizer Chad Sperry called it “one of the toughest decisions in recent history.” “We are just heartbroken about this situation,” said Sperry, who also directs the Mt. Hood Cycling Classic. “Last fall I sat down with the owners of the event, Mt. Bachelor Sports Education Foundation (MBSEF), and we had decided to take the

For the third consecutive year, the National Mountain Bike Series heads into central Utah’s rugged Wasatch Mountains as the Deer Valley resort in Park City hosts the fourth NMBS round of 2007. An 11-year mainstay on the NMBS — formerly called the NORBA and NCS series — Deer Valley is arguably the series’s marquee event, thanks in no small part to community support. On Thursday, pro riders Todd Wells, Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski, Heather Irmiger, Chris Van Dine and Kathy Sherwin held an autograph signing to benefit the local Young Riders recreational cycling club for kids. “The place was packed,”

For the second consecutive day, the Tour de Beauce saw a change in the lead, with Australian Ben Day (Navigators) taking over the yellow jersey from Gregorio Ladino Vega (Tecos) after scorching the competition in the individual time trial. Danny Pate (Slipstream-Chipotle), the defending time-trial champion at Beauce, finished second with Svein Tuft (Symmetrics) third. Tuft moves into second overall at 33 seconds behind Day, with Pate taking over third at 1:04. The 20km out-and-back time trial was held under near-perfect conditions, with temperatures in the mid-20's (Celsius) and almost

Alex Candelario (Jelly Belly) won the first of two criteriums in thisyear’s Tour de Nez on a beautiful Friday evening in Truckee, California. The local favorite took advantage of a mid-race break and capped offhis effort with a ferocious sprint. Finishing just half of a wheel length behind Candelario was Juan PabloForero of the Colombian National Team, and just behind Forero was TonyCruz (Discovery), the overall winner of last year's Tour de Nez. During the first 30 minutes of the race, the field was at the mercyof the Colombian National Team, which maintained a blistering pace,

Colom and Vino' celebrate another 1-2 Astana punch

Basso arrives at his hearing in Rome on Friday

Koerber is having fun and riding strongly