Armstrong urges rigid whereabouts system
By JEROME PUGMIRE AP SPORTS WRITER
PAU, France -- Lance Armstrong has no sympathy for cyclists who fail to report their whereabouts for drug tests, no matter where they are or what time of year it is.
"It's 2007, everyone's accessible by cell phone, e-mail or Blackberry," Armstrong told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "I declared where I was 365 days a year. Everybody has to play by the same rules."
The seven-time Tour de France champion weighed in on the case of current Tour leader Michael Rasmussen, who was dropped from Denmark's national team last week for failing to tell anti-doping officials of his whereabouts for drug tests.
Rasmussen received a warning on June 29 from the International Cycling Union because he missed random drug tests on May 8 and June 28. Anti-doping officials sought to contact Rasmussen but he had not informed them of his whereabouts. He said he was training in Mexico.
Armstrong feels controls need to be stricter.
"The answer is a whereabouts system where they know where you are," Armstrong said. "It definitely should be tighter."
Rasmussen said he did not have a computer in Mexico and that he sent the UCI a fax on April 2. The UCI won't confirm whether they received it.
"It's a minor deal. I know that a lot of riders in the peloton receive warnings for not informing or not giving updated information to the UCI," Rasmussen said. "I'm just one out of many, and I just happen to ride with the yellow jersey right now."
On Monday, cycling chief Pat McQuaid said "the last thing this sport needs is more speculation about doping," adding that the Danish rider has "broken no rules, so from that point of view ... you have to give him the benefit of the doubt."
Armstrong, who retired after his seventh straight Tour win in 2005, points out that despite all the brouhaha and speculation concerning Rasmussen, one fact stands out.
"In the current system, Rasmussen is not in violation," Armstrong said Monday, speaking from Iowa while watching Alexandre Vinokourov's stage 15 victory on television. "The system in place is what it is. I'm not taking a position on it."
Armstrong is no stranger to the doping controversy surrounding cycling. Though he never tested positive and has vigorously denied all allegations, the Texan has come under fire in several books that allege he took performance enhancers.
Former teammate Frankie Andreu and his wife, Betsy, have also come out against Armstrong, alleging he told doctors treating his cancer in 1996 that he had used performance-enhancing drugs. None of the claims has ever been verified.
One thing is clear: Armstrong likes what he sees in Alberto Contador and believes the Spanish cyclist can win the Tour - perhaps even this year. Contador, who rides for Discovery Channel - Armstrong's former team - is in second place behind Rasmussen. He trails by 2 minutes, 23 seconds with one tough mountain stage and one time trial representing the best chances he has of closing that gap.
"I think he's the revelation of the Tour," Armstrong said of Contador. "But I wouldn't say we're surprised. He won the Paris-Nice race. When we did reconnaissance in the Alps he was so much stronger than anyone else.
"He's a young guy, so you don't want to put too much pressure on him," Armstrong added. "The way things are right now, he could win the Tour. He's a smart kid, a great kid."
On Sunday, the 24-year-old Contador beat Rasmussen in a mountaintop sprint finish that bore more than a passing resemblance to how Armstrong beat Germany's Andreas Kloeden up to Le Grand Bornand in the French Alps three years ago. Both had gone toe-to-toe in the hills all that afternoon, before Armstrong destroyed Kloeden in the sprint. Contador couldn't shake Rasmussen, but Armstrong liked what he saw.
"I mean the similarity (between us) is the acceleration, his ability to accelerate," Armstrong said. "I think he was taking stock and looking at the other guys then the next thing you know he was pulling away."
However, Armstrong still feels Rasmussen - who resisted three attacks from Contador in Monday's final climb up Peyresourde - is in a commanding position.
"He's time-trialed better than we thought," Armstrong said. "If they don't drop him, and he time trials like he did (on Saturday), he's going to win."
Armstrong paid tribute to Vinokourov, the Kazakh rider who has ridden most of the Tour with up to 30 stitches in both knees but still managed to win two stages.
"Vino's a tough guy and he always has been," Armstrong said.
However, the Texan feels "Vino" may lack the consistency needed to be a complete Tour rider.
"To win the Tour, you have to time trial and climb. You can't pick and choose." Armstrong said. "It was the same in the Dauphine (Libere). He did well in the time trial and was dropped on Mont Ventoux. I think he lacks the balance.
However, Armstrong qualified that statement by reminding that Vinokourov "had a serious crash."
Armstrong enjoys watching the race from his television set these days. However, he expects to visit Contador and the rest of the Discovery team prior to the race's end in Paris on July 29.
"We'll see what happens after the Pyrenees. It's looking more likely," he said.
Armstrong is confident both Contador and Levi Leipheimer - currently fourth - will be on the Champs-Elysees podium.
"I think that's a real possibility," he said. "I do."
By JEROME PUGMIRE AP SPORTS WRITER
PAU, France -- Lance Armstrong has no sympathy for cyclists who fail to report their whereabouts for drug tests, no matter where they are or what time of year it is.
"It's 2007, everyone's accessible by cell phone, e-mail or Blackberry," Armstrong told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "I declared where I was 365 days a year. Everybody has to play by the same rules."
The seven-time Tour de France champion weighed in on the case of current Tour leader Michael Rasmussen, who was dropped from Denmark's national team last week for failing to tell anti-doping officials of his whereabouts for drug tests.
Rasmussen received a warning on June 29 from the International Cycling Union because he missed random drug tests on May 8 and June 28. Anti-doping officials sought to contact Rasmussen but he had not informed them of his whereabouts. He said he was training in Mexico.
Armstrong feels controls need to be stricter.
"The answer is a whereabouts system where they know where you are," Armstrong said. "It definitely should be tighter."
Rasmussen said he did not have a computer in Mexico and that he sent the UCI a fax on April 2. The UCI won't confirm whether they received it.
"It's a minor deal. I know that a lot of riders in the peloton receive warnings for not informing or not giving updated information to the UCI," Rasmussen said. "I'm just one out of many, and I just happen to ride with the yellow jersey right now."
On Monday, cycling chief Pat McQuaid said "the last thing this sport needs is more speculation about doping," adding that the Danish rider has "broken no rules, so from that point of view ... you have to give him the benefit of the doubt."
Armstrong, who retired after his seventh straight Tour win in 2005, points out that despite all the brouhaha and speculation concerning Rasmussen, one fact stands out.
"In the current system, Rasmussen is not in violation," Armstrong said Monday, speaking from Iowa while watching Alexandre Vinokourov's stage 15 victory on television. "The system in place is what it is. I'm not taking a position on it."
Armstrong is no stranger to the doping controversy surrounding cycling. Though he never tested positive and has vigorously denied all allegations, the Texan has come under fire in several books that allege he took performance enhancers.
Former teammate Frankie Andreu and his wife, Betsy, have also come out against Armstrong, alleging he told doctors treating his cancer in 1996 that he had used performance-enhancing drugs. None of the claims has ever been verified.
One thing is clear: Armstrong likes what he sees in Alberto Contador and believes the Spanish cyclist can win the Tour - perhaps even this year. Contador, who rides for Discovery Channel - Armstrong's former team - is in second place behind Rasmussen. He trails by 2 minutes, 23 seconds with one tough mountain stage and one time trial representing the best chances he has of closing that gap.
"I think he's the revelation of the Tour," Armstrong said of Contador. "But I wouldn't say we're surprised. He won the Paris-Nice race. When we did reconnaissance in the Alps he was so much stronger than anyone else.
"He's a young guy, so you don't want to put too much pressure on him," Armstrong added. "The way things are right now, he could win the Tour. He's a smart kid, a great kid."
On Sunday, the 24-year-old Contador beat Rasmussen in a mountaintop sprint finish that bore more than a passing resemblance to how Armstrong beat Germany's Andreas Kloeden up to Le Grand Bornand in the French Alps three years ago. Both had gone toe-to-toe in the hills all that afternoon, before Armstrong destroyed Kloeden in the sprint. Contador couldn't shake Rasmussen, but Armstrong liked what he saw.
"I mean the similarity (between us) is the acceleration, his ability to accelerate," Armstrong said. "I think he was taking stock and looking at the other guys then the next thing you know he was pulling away."
However, Armstrong still feels Rasmussen - who resisted three attacks from Contador in Monday's final climb up Peyresourde - is in a commanding position.
"He's time-trialed better than we thought," Armstrong said. "If they don't drop him, and he time trials like he did (on Saturday), he's going to win."
Armstrong paid tribute to Vinokourov, the Kazakh rider who has ridden most of the Tour with up to 30 stitches in both knees but still managed to win two stages.
"Vino's a tough guy and he always has been," Armstrong said.
However, the Texan feels "Vino" may lack the consistency needed to be a complete Tour rider.
"To win the Tour, you have to time trial and climb. You can't pick and choose." Armstrong said. "It was the same in the Dauphine (Libere). He did well in the time trial and was dropped on Mont Ventoux. I think he lacks the balance.
However, Armstrong qualified that statement by reminding that Vinokourov "had a serious crash."
Armstrong enjoys watching the race from his television set these days. However, he expects to visit Contador and the rest of the Discovery team prior to the race's end in Paris on July 29.
"We'll see what happens after the Pyrenees. It's looking more likely," he said.
Armstrong is confident both Contador and Levi Leipheimer - currently fourth - will be on the Champs-Elysees podium.
"I think that's a real possibility," he said. "I do."
