New route announced for 2012 Amgen Tour of California

 

AEG, the presenter of the 2012 Amgen Tour of California, has announced the 13 host cities for the 750-mile race that will begin in Santa Rosa on May 13 and finish at L.A. Live on May 20.

Among the highlights, the race will return to San Francisco and there will be mountain finishes at Big Bear Ski Resort and Mt. Baldy.

This is the seventh consecutive race; Chris Horner was the 2011 winner. Because of financial considerations, the popular Solvang time trial has been replaced by a Stage 5 that ends in Bakersfield.

[Updated at 9:10 a.m.: An earlier version of this post incorrectly said the defending champion is Dave Zabriskie.]

Sonora is a new host city, and riders will traverse part of the Sierra Nevada before heading south to Clovis.

The host cities for the race include: Stage 1, May 13, Santa Rosa; Stage 2, May 14, San Francisco to Santa Cruz County; Stage 3, May 15, San Jose to Livermore; Stage 4, May 16, Sonora to Clovis; Stage 5, May 17, Bakersfield time trial; Stage 6, May 18, Palmdale to Big Bear Lake; Stage 7, May 19, Ontario to Mt. Baldy; Stage 8, May 20, L.A. Live.

Check out the event's official website for more details.

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Photo: Cyclists make their way past Big Bear Lake while competing in the 2010 Amgen Tour of California. Credit: Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times

 

Alberto Contador says he may appeal ban but won't retire

Alberto Contador says he is considering an appeal of the two-year ban he received Monday for testing positive for a banned substance. One thing the Spanish cyclist is not considering, however, is retirement.

At a news conference in Madrid on Tuesday, Contador reiterated that he is innocent and that he "totally disagreed" with the decision that stripped him of his 2010 Tour de France title by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

He vowed to continue with his cycling career, even though he had previously hinted that he might quit the sport if he were banned.

“If this is not resolved favorably and in just fashion, then I would have to consider whether I would ever get back on a bike,” Contador said in 2010.

He has claimed that he tested positive for clenbuterol during the 2010 Tour because he ate contaminated meat, a notion that was shot down by the CAS.

The three-time Tour champion said Tuesday that his lawyers are looking into whether an appeal is a good idea. If the ruling stands, Contador will be able to start competing again Aug. 6 because the sports court backdated its ban.

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Photo: Alberto Contador attends a news conference in Madrid on Tuesday. Credit: Alberto Martin / EPA

Alberto Contador stripped of 2010 Tour de France title

Alberto Contador has been found guilty of doping and was stripped of his 2010 Tour de France title Monday by sport's highest court.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport also suspended the Spanish cyclist for two years, rejecting his claim that he tested positive for the banned substance clenbuterol because he ate contaminated meat.

“Unlike certain other countries, notably outside Europe, Spain is not known to have a contamination problem with clenbuterol in meat,” the three-man panel said in a ruling that upheld appeals by the International Cycling Union and the World Anti-Doping Agency after a Spanish cycling tribunal exonerated Contador last year.

“Furthermore, no other cases of athletes having tested positive to clenbuterol allegedly in connection with the consumption of Spanish meat are known.”

Contador continued racing after testing postive on a rest day during the 2010 Tour.

He will be stripped of all results after Jan. 25, 2011, the day the Spanish federation proposed a one-year ban.

The sports court backdated its ban, leaving the three-time winner of the Tour de France ineligible to compete until Aug. 6. That means he will be able to compete in the Spanish Vuelta but will miss such events as the Giro d'Italia, the Tour de France and the London Olympics.

Contador has made no comments since the decision but is expected to hold a news conference Tuesday.

Andy Schleck of Luxembourg stands to be elevated from second to first place in the 2010 Tour.

Contador is only the second Tour champion to be stripped of victory for doping, following Floyd Landis of the U.S.

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Photo: Alberto Contador during the 2010 Tour de France. Credit: Nicolas Bouvy / EPA

Lance Armstrong: Federal prosecutors drop investigation

It appears the latest threat to Lance Armstrong's controversial legacy as one of the era's greatest sportsmen is over.

Federal prosecutors announced Friday that they have dropped their investigation into whether the seven-time Tour de France winner and his former teammates took performance-enhancing drugs.

U.S. Attorney Andre Birotte Jr. announced in a news release that his office was closing its "investigation into allegations of federal criminal conduct by members and associates" of a team partially owned by Armstrong. He also confirmed that no charges will be filed.

Armstrong's lawyer Mark Fabiani described the decision as "great news" in a statement. "Lance is pleased that the United States Attorney made the right decision, and he is more determined than ever to devote his time and energy to Livestrong and to the causes that have defined his career.”

Since winning his first Tour de France in 1999 after nearly dying from testicular cancer, Armstrong has made a side career out of denying every allegation that he used performance-enhancing drugs.

Over the last decade, several former teammates and colleagues -- including former teammates Floyd Landis and Tyler Hamilton (both of whom failed drug tests) -- have accused Armstrong of doping. Another former teammate, Frank Andreu, and his wife, Betsy, also say Armstrong used drugs during his career.

“Our legal system failed us,” Betsy Andreu told the Associated Press in regard to the decision. “This is what happens when you have a lot of money and you can buy attorneys who have people in high places in the Department of Justice.”

While the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency said the government's decision will not prevent them from continuing their ongoing investigation into allegations Armstrong used drugs, it may be a little too late for Armstrong to repair his reputation as a cyclist following years of allegations from all corners of the cycling world.

But what do you think? Do you think Armstrong cheated or do you think he's the victim of a series of meritless attacks?

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Photo: Lance Armstrong pulls himself up the final ascent to win Stage 15 of the 2003 Tour de France. Credit: Christophe Ena / Associated Press

Greta Neimanas, Laura Sobchik aim for Paralympic Games

   

This post has been corrected. See note at the bottom for details.

The Olympics aren't the only games in London this summer. The Paralympic Games follow the Olympics in August, featuring disabled athletes from around the world competing in 20 different sports.

Two Southern California cyclists are among those hoping to go the distance. But first, Greta Neimanas of Cardiff and Laura Sobchik of Santa Monica have to do well at the World Track Cycling Championships Feb. 9-12 at the Home Depot Center Velodrome in Carson.

In the video above, Neimanas and Sobchik are training with Team USA for Track Worlds. They are riding fixed-gear bikes without brakes -- that's because if you tried braking on the Carson velodrome's 45-degree banked track, you'd slide off. You'll also slide off if you go too slow. But when you go fast, you can feel the G-force pushing you up track.

Both Neimanas and Sobchik ride time trials -- racing against the clock over fixed distances. A 500-meter race is two laps around the track, for example.

For Neimanas, who rides with a prosthetic arm, making it to London would mean coming full circle. She won an essay contest and a trip to the Athens Games in 2004. The first event she saw was track cycling.

"I thought people were absolutely nuts to race around the velodrome on a bike with no brakes and one gear and super-skinny tires and [at] 35, 40 miles an hour," she said. "And naturally I wanted to try it."

Track Worlds is free to the public.

[For the Record, 11:58 a.m. Jan. 20: An earlier version of this post said a 500-kilometer race is two laps around the track. It should have said a 500-meter race.]

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Floyd Landis convicted in French court

A French court convicted American cyclist Floyd Landis in absentia Thursday for his role in hacking into the computers of a French doping lab.

Landis, who was stripped of the 2006 Tour de France title for doping, was given a 12-month suspended prison sentence.

The WADA-accredited lab in the town of Chatenay-Malabry south of Paris uncovered unusually high testosterone levels in Landis' samples from the 2006 Tour.

Prosecutors argued that Landis and coach Arnie Baker masterminded a plot to hack into the lab's computer system to obtain documents as part of an effort to defend the cyclist's name.

Landis, in an email to the Associated Press after the trial opened last month, wrote that he had no information about the case except through the press, and was never summoned or contacted by the court, despite its claims to the contrary. He denied any connection to hacking.

In an email to The Times last year, when the arrest warrant was issued, Landis said: "I can't speak for Arnie, but no attempt has been made to formally contact me. It appears to be another case of fabricated evidence by a French lab who is still upset a United States citizen believed he should have the right to face his accusers and defend himself."

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Photo: Floyd Landis. Credit: Dianne Manson / Associated Press.

Amgen Tour of California keeps going, but HTC team will disband

On the same day that Amgen announced it would remain for two more years as sponsor of the Amgen Tour of California, the country's largest stage cycling race, Riverside native and telecommunications millionaire Bob Stapleton took part in an emotional conference call in which he announced that his cycling team, HTC, would disband at the end of this season.

HTC has finished as the top-ranked team in the world the last five seasons while producing the charismatic and world's best sprinter, Mark Cavendish, as well as the 2010 Amgen Tour of Caiifornia winner, Mick Rogers, and Edvald Boasson Hagen, who won a Tour de France stage this year, and one of the most promising young American cyclists, Teejay van Garderen.

Stapleton, whose team was based in San Luis Obispo, is one of the most respected men in the sport. He was prominent in developing a women's team that was also best in the world and was outspoken in his belief that cycling could be cleansed of the doping scandals that has plagued it over the last decade.

Stapleton had been chief executive of a company called VoiceStream Wireless and eventually held a seat on the board of T-Mobile, which owned a German cycling team that was home to perennial runnerup to Armstrong, Jan Ullrich. The T-Mobile team eventually disbanded because of a number of doping issues with the team and Stapleton started his U.S.-based team in 2007 with the very public ideal of running a clean operation. Stapleton originally called the team High Road Sports to emphasize what direction he was taking. Stapleton funded the team himself at first, but soon attracted major sponsors such as Columbia, the sports outfitting company, and HTC, the mobile phone company.

Bradley Wiggins crashes in Tour de France

 British rider Bradley Wiggins has pulled out of the Tour de France after getting caught in a big crash that took down several riders late in Friday's seventh stage of the Tour.

Wiggins was one of about 20 riders caught near the back of the peloton with 38 kilometers to go in the 218-kilometer flat stage from Le Mans to Chateauroux.

Wiggins, who was holding his left arm, grimaced in pain after the crash as he walked around in small circles, looking disoriented. Organizers announced Wiggins had pulled out several minutes later. He was then taken away in an ambulance.

The 31-year-old Wiggins had made a bright start to the race, helping his Sky team finish third in Sunday's team time trial. He was in sixth place overall heading into stage 7.

Wiggins finished fourth in the 2009 Tour, his best-ever finish, and had won the pre-Tour Dauphine Libere stage race to further boost his confidence heading into the Tour.

Veteran American rider Christopher Horner was also caught as several riders went down in the crash, but the 39-year-old RadioShack rider was able to continue.

Sprint ace Tyler Farrar, winner of Monday's third stage, also went down but the Garmin-Cervelo rider seemed unharmed as he clambered back on to his saddle moments later and sped off.

The first week of the Tour has seen several crashes, with three-time defending champion Alberto Contador of Spain fortunate to escape with minor cuts and bruises after crashing on Wednesday's fifth stage.

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Former cycling chief denies Lance Armstrong doping cover-up

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Photo: Bradley Wiggins. Credit: Guillaume Horcajuelo / European Press Agency.

Question of the Day: Whom does the public believe, Lance Armstrong or his detractors? [Updated]

Writers from around Tribune Co. discuss seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong, who has been accused of using performance-enhancing drugs. Check back throughout the day for more responses, vote in the poll and weigh in with a comment of your own.

Philip Hersh, Chicago Tribune

Lance Armstrong's tweeted defense of "500 drug controls ... Never a failed test.  I rest my case'' is absolutely meaningless, as the case of Marion Jones and the confessions by Tyler Hamilton, Frankie Andreu and many other cyclists have shown.

But as damning as Hamilton's "60 Minutes'' interview was, it still did not provide the piece of evidence -- a document, photo, video or audio -- to "convict'' Lance of doping. That leaves us with the "he said, he said" situation that has existed for several years, even if the amount of circumstantial evidence against Armstrong threatens to crush his reputation -– especially coming from longtime Lance loyalists like Hamilton and George Hincapie, undoubtedly scared straight (unlike Jones) by being subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury.  

So much smoke, even without a smoking gun, makes it impossible to believe Armstrong.

Former cycling chief denies Lance Armstrong doping cover-up

Former International Cycling Union President Hein Verbruggen said Monday he knew nothing about suspicious drug test results by Lance Armstrong, denying nationally televised allegations by Tyler Hamilton of a cover-up by the UCI.

Hamilton, an Olympic gold medalist and former teammate of Armstrong, said in a "60 Minutes" interview that aired Sunday night that Armstrong used the blood-boosting hormone EPO to prepare for the 2001 Tour de France, and that Armstrong said the UCI helped him cover up a positive test at the Tour de Suisse, a warm-up event, that year.

"There has never, ever been a cover-up. Not in the Tour de Suisse, not in the Tour de France," Verbruggen said in a telephone interview with the Associated Press. "I don't know anything about suspicious tests. I was not aware of that."

In the interview, Hamilton admitted for the first time publicly that he doped throughout his career. He also had plenty to say about Armstrong, including that he saw the seven-time Tour de France champion take performance-enhancing drugs and that Armstrong encouraged other members of the U.S. Postal Service team to take them.

Tyler Hamilton hands over gold medal to U.S. Anti-Doping Agency

Tyler Hamilton has relinquished his 2004 cycling gold medal to the United States Anti-Doping Agency, according to a statement the agency released Friday.

In a "60 Minutes" interview that aired Thursday, Hamilton admitted that he had used banned substances and accused Lance Armstrong and other members of the U.S. Postal Service cycling team of doing the same.

The International Olympic Committee investigated Hamilton for doping in 2004, but the case was dropped after his backup sample was erroneously frozen.

The 40-year-old retired from cycling in 2009 after failing a doping test for the second time in his career, though he said the results were influenced by medication he was taking for depression.

Viatcheslav Ekimov, Hamilton's former U.S. Postal Service teammate, is expected to be upgraded from silver.

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Photo: Tyler Hamilton holds up his gold medal after winning the men 's road individual time trial at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. Credit: Eric Risberg / Associated Press.