They've done everything the Astana team - podiums in every race they enter, Alberto Contador winning the Giro d'Italia, then Andreas Kloden finishing second in the Tour de Suisse...etc. And let's get something clear. They also didn't get busted for organised doping. Alexandre Vinokourov and Andrey Kashechkin did, but that was on their own, while riding with the old Astana, before there was a wholesale revamp.
This is the list of victories this year. 17 in all to date:
17 Astana Cycling Team victories in 2008: Prologue Dauphiné Libéré (08-06) – LEIPHEIMER / Overall Classification Giro d’Italia (01-06) – CONTADOR / Overall Classification Tour de Romandie (04-05) – KLODEN / 3th stage (time trial) Tour de Romandie (02-05) – KLODEN / 1 st stage Tour de Romandie (30-04) – IGLINSKIY / Grand Prix of Istanbul (13-04) – RAST / Overall Classification Tour of Basque Country (12-04) – CONTADOR / 6th stage (time trial) Tour of Basque Country (12-04) – CONTADOR / 1 st stage Tour of Basque Country (07-04) – CONTADOR / Overall Classification Tour of Castilla y Leon (29-03) – CONTADOR / 4th stage Vuelta a Castilla y Leon (27-03) – CONTADOR / 1st stage (time trial) Vuelta a Castilla y Leon (24-03) – CONTADOR / Campina Ronde van het Groene Hart (23-03) – VAITKUS / 2nd stage Vuelta a Murcia (05-03) - RUBIERA / Overall Classification Tour of California (24-02) - LEIPHEIMER / 5th stage (time trial) Tour of California (22-02) - LEIPHEIMER / 2nd stage Tour of Algarve (21-02) - VAITKUS.
They even have this following note posted at the bottom of every official communication:
But despite having the defending champion, and only implications and indications of doping allegiances, they won't be riding in the Tour de France, while others who've done more still ride. Of course, I'm always against doping in sport. But will the ASO, WADA, the IOC or UCI prove either that the entire sport, all the rest of the cycling world, is truly free of dope. Is Astana doping to win this Tour de France? Did they dope to win last year's Tour? No concrete answers!
And yet you punish. What victory is this? Have you abolished dope from cycling by leaving the best rider of the day out of the biggest race? No. So, what will you achieve by this?
Asked some friends over in France, and they say "Astana will be okay for the 2009 Tour if there's no more doping scandal."!!!!!
1 comment:
Well written article.
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