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An investigator leaves the offices of Le Point with a seized computer

Reporters at Le Point wait for police to complete search.

Investigating magistrate Katherine Cornier led the raid on Le Point.

Racing in the 10-12s in Orlando. (No matter what you think, some day, these guys will crush you!)

Leipheimer: Willing to take risks.

Navigators’ Nathan O'Neill won the Australian Professional National Time Trial Championship on Wednesday, clocking 47:41 over the course of the 40km route. Oenone Wood took the women’s 30km championship in 41:18. O’Neill, the most recent recruit to the U.S.-based Navigators team, Nathan, beat Rory Sutherland and Russell Van Hout to take his third title in four years. Indeed, Wednesday’s win marks O’Neill’s ninth national championship, seven of which were earned in the discipline against the clock. Wood started the 30km time trial at the Adelaide hills town of Echunga as the strong favorite

Citing serious safety concerns, organizers of Paris-Roubaix have removed one of the most revered sections of cobbles from the route of this year’s race. Noting that the condition of a large stretch of pavé through the Forest of Arenberg has degraded over the past year the Amaury Sport Organization has pulled the famous portion of cobbles from this year’s Queen of the Classics, scheduled for April 10. "Organizers have decided not to ride on the 2400 meters of the famous Arenberg trench for safety reasons," ASO noted in a statement. "The condition of the road has seriously deteriorated in

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) - The inaugural United Texas Tour cycling race was postponed indefinitely Wednesday because organizers were reluctant to seek sponsorship money while massive aid is going to the tsunami relief effort. American officials had hoped the stage race in Lance Armstrong's home state would become a showcase event in a sport concentrated in Europe. "We are simply uncomfortable asking companies to fund the race when those dollars could be used for more immediate social concerns," said Eddie Owens, executive director of the United Texas Tour. Organizers had raised about half the

O'Neill gets another jersey

Wood was favored and did not disappoint

O'Neill had a comfortable margin

George Hincapie negotiates the infamous Arenberg Forest in 2001

With the cobbles of Arenberg, Paris-Roubaix will lose some of its 'charm,' says Bäckstedt

Olympic champion Paolo Bettini, Belgian classics star Tom Boonen and world time trial champion Michael Rogers will headline the Quick Step team in the 2005 season, but the Belgian team is investing heavily in young stars for future success. The 2005 roster was officially unveiled Monday in Belgium with a solid mix of youth and maturity to take over the mantle with the departure of retired stars Richard Virenque and Johan Museeuw. “With the maturity of our young stars and the recruitment of new talent, we will be as strong as we were last year,” said team manager Patrick Lefevere during the

2005 DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO CYCLING TEAM LED BY LANCE ARMSTRONG MAKESWORLDWIDE DEBUTSilver Spring, Md. – Discovery Communications announced todaythe beginning of a new era in professional cycling with the worldwide unveilingof the 2005 Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team led by six-time Tour deFrance Champion Lance Armstrong.  Following a nine-year sponsorshipagreement with the United States Postal Service, the only American professionalcycling team ever to win the Tour de France begins its new global partnershipwith Discovery Communications.“Today marks the beginning of a special

Phat Cycles, Inc. Pledges Percentage of Tsunami Model Cycle Sales ToWorld Vision Relief Efforts In Southeast Asia Seattle, WA – Phat Cycles, Inc., Fountain Valley, CA, a designerand distributor of stylized beach cruiser and chopper bicycles includingits 2004 Tsunami model, has partnered with World Vision to support itsrelief efforts in the countries affected by the recent tsunami tragedy.  Phat Cycles will donate $20 of the purchase price of each Tsunami modelbicycle sold through June 30, to World Vision. "Originally introduced in 2004, our Tsunami model bike was just

JANUARY 10, 2005 -- BRITISH COLUMBIA, Canada (BRAIN)--Some 80,000Adams Trail-a-Bike or Adams Slipstream bicycle attachments are being recalledby Norco Products. The product resembles a children's bicycle without afront wheel and has an elongated top tube that stretches to attach to theseat post of an adult bicycle, creating a tandem. The universal hitch assemblyhardware may come loose causing the unit to separate from the lead bicycle,which could lead to a serious injury or death to the rider of the bicycleattachment.Norco has received two hardware failure reports with one minor

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. (January, 2005)—USA Cycling announcedtoday the competition schedule for the 2005 Park City Cycling Festivalpresented by USA Cycling.Scheduled for June 20-July2, the opening week of the 13-day cyclingextravaganza features elite, U23 and junior events before yielding to themaster categories in week two.After a successful inaugural year that saw 1866 competitors and nearly2400 race entries, the 2005 festival has expanded to invite the nation’sbest men’s and women’s elite riders to Park city in an effort to unifyall levels of competitive cycling as they compete for

Oh my achin' backDear Lennard,My bones are getting stiff and achy, and I am looking for a way tosoften my every day/training bike, a Cannondale CAAD 5 with the stock all-carbonfork. The bike fits me like a glove and is very responsive.Would a carbon bar and stem combination damp the ride and add comfort,or are carbon bars just as stiff and noncompliant as alloy bars?Are any carbon bars "softer" than others? Have you ridden Specialized'sRoubaix? Is there a significant improvement in the ride? Isthere a real tradeoff in performance? My 59-year-old neck, arms andback thank you!Bill Dear Bill,I

Filippo Pozzato, Nick Nuyens, Rik Verbgrugghe, Michael Rogers, Tom Boonen, Paolo Bettini (front)

Technical Q&A with Lennard Zinn - Can I soften that ride?

German star Jan Ullrich lined up with his T-Mobile teammates this weekend to kick start the team’s 14-day training camp in Mallorca. The 1997 Tour de France champion already has 2,500km in his legs after spending the holidays in South Africa to prepare for the 2005 season. An assault on the 2005 Tour remains Ullrich’s top goal for the upcoming season and he said toppling six-time champion Lance Armstrong gives him extra motivation. Last year, Ullrich failed to finish on the podium for the first time in his Tour career. Despite recent reports that Armstrong is hinting at skipping the 2005

The Outdoor Life Network’s Phil Liggett will be joining former pros Jonathan Vaughters and Frankie Andreu, at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, February 15, in Denver, Colorado, to help launch Vaughters' two 2005 development teams, Team TIAA-CREF and Team 5280. Liggett will be hosting a small group of sponsors, supporters and other attendees at a fundraising dinner at Denver’s legendary Adega restaurant. Proceeds from the evening will be donated to the American Red Cross Emergency for its emergency relief work for survivors of the devastating December 26 tsunami. Space is very limited with only 50 seats

The "Weekend 'Cross Wrap" is a service of VeloNews.com.Stories and results are provided by race promoters and are not producedby VeloNews or VeloNews.com. Promoters are welcome to submit race reportsthroughout the cyclo-cross season to Rosters@7Dogs.com.Reports may be edited for length and clarity. Muddy finale for SoCal seriesThe 13-race Southern California Cyclo-cross Cup concluded Sunday at Hart Park in Bakersfield, with more than 100 riders braving the treacherous and wet conditions. The fast, European-style course was turned into a slippery race of attrition with some riders even

Six-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong said Monday that he will make up his mind whether he competes in this year's renewal at the end of April. Speaking at the unveiling of the new Discovery Channel cycling team in Silver Spring, Maryland, the 33-year-old Armstrong added that under the terms of hiscontract with his new sponsor he would have to take part in either this year's race or the one in 2006. "The deal was I was going to do the Tour in 2005 or 2006," said theTexan. Armstrong will race in the one-day Spring Classics in April before makingup his mind. "That would be a good

Hackettstown, NJ - Hilton Clarke (AUS), a new addition to the NavigatorsInsurance Cycling Team, scored his first victory of the 2005 racing season,yesterday in Melbourne, Australia.  Racing locally for the "McKnight'sRetravision/Fisher & Paykel" squad, Hilton took the win following aweek of top-10 finishes in the Jayco Bay Classic series.  The 5-dayseries is one of the most popular racing events in Australia and regularlyattracts many of the best racers as preparation for next week's Tour DownUnder.  Clarke was in 5th place in the General Classification cominginto the final

The team formerly known as the U.S. Postal Service entered a new era onMonday when Lance Armstrong and Company unveiled its new look and identityin Silver Spring, Maryland. In a flashy introduction ceremony at the AmericanFilm Institute’s Silver Theater, just outside of Washington D.C., and acrossthe street from its new corporate sponsor, the most successful pro cyclingoutfit in the U.S. was officially introduced as the Discovery Channel ProCycling Team. After taking the stage, one team veteran marveled at how far the teamhad come since its inception nine years ago. “Back at our first team

No questions here: Ullrich is aiming for the Tour

Phil Liggit

Liggett to host TIAA-CREF/5280 dinner in Denver

Liggett to host TIAA-CREF/5280 dinner in Denver

Liggett to host TIAA-CREF/5280 dinner in Denver

Liggett to host TIAA-CREF/5280 dinner in Denver

Liggett to host TIAA-CREF/5280 dinner in Denver

Liggett to host TIAA-CREF/5280 dinner in Denver

Liggett to host TIAA-CREF/5280 dinner in Denver

Liggett to host TIAA-CREF/5280 dinner in Denver

Liggett to host TIAA-CREF/5280 dinner in Denver

Liggett to host TIAA-CREF/5280 dinner in Denver

Noble won the men's overall

Wong took the women's crown

A new kit. Will Armstrong have a new schedule, too?

These TV guys can put on a real show

Armstrong fields questions about '05

Bruyneel will still be at the tactical helm

Savoldelli is on board

Hincapie is back for another season

Rabobank’s Sven Nijs has captured one of the cyclo-cross world’s most regardedtitles – that of Belgian national champion – for the third time in hiscareer on Sunday. Nijs dominated Sunday’s championship, finishing nearly a minute aheadTom Vannoppen and Ben Berden on the course in Wachtebeke. Defending nationalchampion, Bart Wellens, finished fourth at 1:21. The national title is the most significant in a discipline dominatedby Belgians on the world scene. Belgians consistently sweep the podiumat the world championships – even taking the top five spots at the world’sin Monopoli, Italy in

Americans Rebecca Quinn and Jenny Reed won medals Sunday, the final day of competition at the third round of the track cycling World Cup.Quinn won the silver behind Australian Katherine Bates in the women's scratch race, with France's Virginie Moinard third.Reed claimed the bronze in the women's Keirin, which was won by Belarus' Natalia Tsylinskay. Germany's Susann Panzer took the silver.The British trio of Chris Hoy, Jason Queally and Craig Maclean won the team sprint in the final event of the World Cup leg at the Manchester Velodrome on Sunday to give the hosts enough points to win the

Nijs makes his move and that's it.

Hoy

That had to hurt... but Hayles was able to recover

Wellens: Can't celebrate 4th place when wearing this jersey

Enrico Franzoi won the Italian national cyclo-cross championship on Saturday. The 22-year-old finished more than a minute ahead of runner-up Marco Bianco on the course in Rovato, near Brescia in northern Italy. Third-placed Derik Zampedri claimed the U-23 title. In women's racing, Annabella Stropparo took the elite championship in 43:52, with Vania Rossi winning the U-23's in 47:40. Italian national cyclo-cross championshipsRovato, Italy. January 81. Enrico Franzoi, 1:01:492. Marco Bianco at 1:183. Derik Zampedri 1:47 Kupfernagel wins German titleHanka Kupfernagel won the women’s national

The British Guardian newspaper reported Saturday that Lance Armstrong had scored “a significant victory” in his libel suit against The Sunday Times and its chief sportswriter, David Walsh. The suit stems from a Times article published in June 2004 that repeated allegations made in the book, “LA Confidential: The Secrets of Lance Armstrong,” co-written by Walsh and Pierre Ballester and published in France. A judge in London’s high court struck down the newspaper’s defense, that the article was true, saying that the tone of the article was “sensational” and intended “to stir things up,”

Colby Pearce grabbed a share of the overall World Cup lead on Saturday in the men's points race with a bronze medal effort behind Vasil Kiryienka (BLR) and Nikita Eskov (RUS) at the penultimate stop of the four-race series. Pearce scored points in half of the 12 intermediate sprints and lapped the field once to score 35 points. Silver medalist Eskov also scored 35 points but bested Pearce in the final sprint to take the tiebraker. Kiryienka scored 39. Pearce's performance moves him into a tie for the overall world cup lead with 2004 Olympic gold medalist Russian Mikhail Ignatiev. The

Former Belgian cycling great Johan Museeuw took the blood-boosting drugs EPO and Aranesp in the 2003 season, the Belgian media reported on Friday, quoting judicial sources. The Belgian television station VRT and De Morgen newspaper carried excerpts from the official record of the prosecutor in the case that probed text messages sent between Museeuw and veterinary surgeon Jose Landuyt, who is under investigation for trafficking illegal drugs. "In the exchange of faxes and SMS (text messages), interrogations and admissions of Landuyt and other people, it is established that Johan Museeuw took

This is the start of a new year, and the start of this new column, so I thought it appropriate to start at the beginning. The beginning of what, you may ask. Well, the beginning of the chain of events that led to bike racing as we know it in North America. With today’s panoply of communication tools bringing you instant news of Americans winning races in the remotest corners of the world, with two Americans having won nine of the past 19 Tours de France, and with a roster of almost 20 professional teams in this country, it’s easy to forget that America was a distant member of the world

The South Asian Games, scheduled to be hosted by Sri Lanka in August, has been postponed as the Indian Ocean island nation concentrates on rebuilding after the recent tsunami tragedy, the sports minister said Thursday. Jeewan Kumaratunga, the minister of youth affairs and sports, said the eight-nation games would be pushed back by a year. Originally scheduled for August 15-25, the games are now being planned for the same period in 2006. “This is not a time to host the games with big celebrations so we decided to wait for another year," said Kumaratunga. "Once the country overcomes the

Oval Concepts expands its selection of high-end aero bars with its new super lightweight clip-on. The A910’s light weight is achieved with simple 26.0 forged aluminum clamps, carbon extensions with one-bend, and new oval-shaped armrest plates made of carbon. The new Oval pads provide 20 percent more surface area compared to the original rectangular pads, which remarkably improves comfort. Carbon pad holders absorb road shock and even allow angular adjustments. Replacement pads are available in 5 (standard), 8, and 10mm thickness. Extensions are upgradeable: choose from straight, double or

Wiggins wants to pursue his options on the road

The enterprising Percy Stallard, who revived massed-start racing in Britain

Museeuw at his final race

The A910

Record six-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong has hinted again that he may not bid for a seventh yellow jersey on the race this July as he wants to beef up his honors list with one-day classics wins. Armstrong, 33, will continue his hugely-successful career with his new Discovery team, the nucleus of which comes from the U.S. Postal team, when the season begins. However since eclipsing the likes of Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Indurain - all of whom won the Tour five times - Armstrong's desire to bid for a record seventh victory seems to be on the

AUSTIN, TEXAS - A former personal assistant of Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong who has been sued by the cyclist fired back Wednesday, accusing the cyclist of fraud, breach of contract and causing him severe emotional distress. Mike Anderson, 33, on Wednesday filed his counterclaim to a lawsuit Armstrong filed last month in Travis County District Court. In the original lawsuit, Armstrong said Anderson wanted $500,000 and other benefits under a claimed employment contract. Anderson said Armstrong's lawsuit ruined his reputation as a bike mechanic and publicly humiliated him. He is

Fuji Bicycles Joins the Tsunami Relief EffortDonates 50 Mountain Bikes to Health Care WorkersPhiladelphia, PA (January 6, 2004) – Fuji Bicycles joins theworldwide tsunami relief efforts by donating mountain bikes to the emergencyand disaster relief workers in Southeast Asia. Recognizing both the immediateand long-term requirements of this relief effort, Fuji will donate 50 bikeseach year for the next three years. Fuji hopes these bikes will help nursesand health care service providers reach the more remote and disaster-riddenareas in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and the other countries whose

UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS TO HOST 2005-2007 COLLEGIATE ROAD NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPSJanuary 6, 2005 (Colorado Springs, Colo.) – USA Cycling has namedLawrence, Kan. as the site for the 2005-2007 Collegiate Road National Championships.Hosted by the University of Kansas and the Lawrence Sports Corporationand managed by KLM Marketing Solutions, this year’s event is scheduledfor May 13-15.The event was originally intended for New Haven, Conn., but when thepromoter ran into some unforeseen issues, the ’05 Nationals were left withouta host. The KU Cycling Club and KLM Marketing Solutions admirably

First off, a while back in (almost) sunny Southern California for Christmas, I managed to pull Shimano PR guy Jasen Thorpe out of his cubicle for a morning of off-road riding and tech chit-chat. Thorpe came to the famed Aliso Viejo riding trails armed with one of his truly fish-out-of-water bicycle creations–a one-size-too-small GT Ruckus hardtail fully equipped with 2005 Shimano Hone components. “It is too early in the year to start riding fast, so I’d rather stick to my hucking bike for general trail riding,” Thorpe offered. Oddball or not, the point of the Ruckus was to show off

Tech Report: Hone-ing in on Shimano; High-fiber braking

Tech Report: Hone-ing in on Shimano; High-fiber braking

Subway team gears up for 2005McKenzie Bridge, Oregon, USA (January 4, 2005) – The Subwayteam returns this year as a US Continental Team with a mix of young talentand veteran racers. The team will kick off its season with a camp in Merced,California, February 25 - March 7, which will be open to additional guestsfrom March 1-7. The camp will also overlap the first NRC race of the yearMcLane Pacific, which will serve as the team’s first official race outing.Although managed by Express Racing and associated with the Express RacingClub, the team will shorten its moniker to Subway from last year’s

When Noel gave me the “time to go” nod from across our expansive 28-person table (all the riders, staff and their spouses/families) at the camp’s final steak-and-frite dinner, it seemed abrupt. The hour was early and we hadn’t yet seen the Belgian dessert tray. Ah, but this is cycling and late nights a la mode aren’t part of the plan. In fact, the end of Euro Cross Camp II took on very much the feel of unfinished business. In this case, some guys were staying on to prepare for a race in Spain two days later, and many of us were flying trans-Atlantic imminently, with the business end on our

JP throwing down in the Baal GVA Series race