No Tour for Astana

Eldrack

To me this whole thing smells too much like propaganda with a strong hint of double standards. ASO banning Astana makes it look like they are anti doping but that's crap, because if they were really anti doping they'd ban a whole load of other teams as well. Got a problem with Bruyneel? Then you should ban CSC as well, after all Riis has admitted taking drugs and was involved with Basso (who had EPO coming out of his ears). If you don't want Astana in because of the positive tests from last year then ban all the teams that came up with positive tests last year. ASO can't claim any puerto arguements against Levi/Contador because they allowed them to compete last year.

Astana obviously has a large target painted on it because of last years **** fest but they've made changes, booted out the dirty riders (at least the ones that got caught) so really they're no worse than any of the other teams at this point. I.e full of dopers who haven't been caught yet.

whiteboytrash

Well they were hardly going to keep the ones who were caught !

Aquamarinos

Why do you follow Pro cycling???

It doesn't matter how you bent it, leaving the past Champ out of the Tour is NOT good for cycling, no matter how you feel about Contador/Astana...

TheDarkLord

Except that they came with the same story last year ("have made changes, blah blah blah").

TheDarkLord

Why shouldn't he follow pro cycling??? What does that have to do with the past champ being left out?

Anyway, Prudhomme has said that Contador can come to the Tour if he changes team, and guess what? He has no plans of doing any such thing. That could be due to two reasons: (a) outside Astana, he will not get a contract with any team, or (b) outside Astana, he will not get his dope, and poof...there goes your "champ". Ok, to be fair to Contador, his contract probably doesn't have an escape clause.

earth_dweller

This is all about minimizing risks for ASO and bitch slapping UCI in the process.

ASO needs to keep the sponsors happy, especially the media sponsors. They cannot afford another tour like last year, and the tv rights will start to decrease, and that is way too risky. So they chose the riskiest - and at the same time safest as far as team sponsor - team to broadcast a clear message too all parties.

Make sense to me.

Bro Deal

Compare Bruyneel to Riis. Riis was the first in the ProTour to set up an independent anti doping program. He admitted what he did. Bruyneel still insists and seems to enjoy telling the Big Lie about his past.

__________________
"You are like the wind and I like the lion. You form the tempest. The sand stings my eyes and the ground is parched. I roar in defiance but you do not hear. But between us there is a difference. I, like the lion, must remain in my place. While you like the wind will never know yours." -- Mulay Hamid El Raisuli, Lord of the Riff, Sultan to the Berbers, Last of the Barbary Pirates

Bro Deal

The Tour did pretty well last year without FLandis. This year the race looks to be wide open. The racing should be great. The Tour is much much greater than any rider.

Condador is a big boy. He made his own decision to go with Astana and Bruyneel. Now he pays the consequences.

__________________
"You are like the wind and I like the lion. You form the tempest. The sand stings my eyes and the ground is parched. I roar in defiance but you do not hear. But between us there is a difference. I, like the lion, must remain in my place. While you like the wind will never know yours." -- Mulay Hamid El Raisuli, Lord of the Riff, Sultan to the Berbers, Last of the Barbary Pirates

Andrija

I wonder how Klodi feels now...
He should leave the team when he could.

__________________
"Soldiers! Heroes!

The supreme command has erased our regiment from its records. Our regiment has been sacrificed for the honor of Belgrade and the Fatherland. Therefore, you no longer have to worry for your lives - they do not exist anymore.
So, forward to glory! For King and country! Long live the king! Long live Belgrade! "

earth_dweller

I wonder why he stayed, it's not as if he was made to feel welcome. Wonder if maybe he didn't get any other offers.

Rolfrae

"I do not understand the world any longer," a furious Kloeden told sid.

"I was tested five or six times last year - always negatively. "I am suffering because of the fact that others dope, get caught and we all get it in the neck."

Kloeden was angry enough when he was forced to withdraw from the 2007 Tour, so news he will miss out in 2008 has bitterly frustrated the German.

carbonfiend

it makes pro cycling look stupid and prudhommes comments are full of inconsistencies and non sense as. Ban the team but you have no problem with the riders??? He doesn't make sense and also to attack Contador without any eveidence in fact if anything he has been completley cleared of any involvment in operation puerto. I wonder how many would hang him if he road for slipstream etc I completely agree with the comments that this ban was taken to flex muscle with the UCI and JB and that the consequence would be worth taking and also had a much to do with TV advertising/rights etc. Also there's something a bit darker if you ask me - would they have banned Astana if they were French??? Its really easy to pick on country that has little or no strenght when it comes to matter of politics in cycling - why haven't Cofidis/High Road/RabobanK been banned. It truly stinks and we are apparently now finding people guilty by association - if thats the case lets look at Cadel Evans - hell man he rides for a Belgium team and look the history of them in the past and he has just hired Popovych as his right hand man he rode for JB - bang he must be doping - BAN HIM

earth_dweller

So why, if um clean, aren't the riders lashing out against the dopers? No, they play the poor little ol' me card, and go back to being silent.

TheDarkLord

They can't because that would be like blowing a hole in a boat with you in it along with others. In other words, everyone would sink!