The Return of Vinokourov? All the Cool Kids are Doing It
by Jen See on Oct 4, 2008 12:22 PM EDT
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PrintAccording to an article published in l'Équipe on Saturday, Alexandre Vinokourov may return to racing next season. Sporza, the Belgian television channel, is expected to air an interview with the Kazakh rider on Sunday, in which he will reportedly confirm his plans.
Vino, suspended for blood doping during the 2007 Tour de France, announced his retirement last December. Though he would have been eligible to ride on 14 July of this year, he chose to retire instead. The Kazakh Federation had given Vinokourov a relatively short sanction, and many observers expected that the UCI would take the decision to TAS, rather than allow him to contest the Olympic Games in Beijing. According to l'Équipe, Bruyneel also played a role in discouraging Vinokourov's return, perhaps in an effort to protect Team Astana from potential controversy.
Now, Vinokourov has reportedly changed his plans. If all goes according to expectation, he will announce tomorrow his intention to ride again next season for Team Astana. But Vino has no interest in riding in Armstrong's support at the Tour de France. Instead, he would likely target the Giro d'Italia and the World Championships. L'Équipe speculates that Vinokourov's return to Team Astana could have a negative effect on the team's Tour de France chances. After all, the scandal surrounding Vinokourov's positive test at the 2007 Tour de France that in part resulted in the team's exclusion this year.
Source: l'equipe.fr.
Update thingy: Not so fast. L'Équipe reports that Pat McQuaid of the UCI is very displeased by Vinokourov's plans. In a brief statement, McQuaid said that Vinokourov must first serve a 2 year suspension for doping before he can return to racing. The UCI had challenged the Kazakh Federation's decision to shorten Vinokourov's ban to one year. Explained McQuaid: "The UCI had opened a file before the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS), that we only withdrew because he [Vinokourov] announced his retirement." The UCI would re-open the case, implied McQuaid, if Vinokourov sought to ride.
Honestly, this next season becomes stranger every day.
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Sorry for that.
Was the first sentence in my mind when I read it
Some say the best things in life, are one the inside.
it's no worries
I usually, though certainly not always, prefer to front page posts that are already written rather than start from scratch myself. Just trying to keep the front page fresh and interesting, when people show up to visit. In this case, I simply didn’t see the other post.
lol, don’t shoot the piano player, kids :-)
haha I wwouldn't dare
And you’re intro is a lot nicer then mine. To keep the customers satisfied ;)
Some say the best things in life, are one the inside.
Interesting
Interesting that CN yesterday had a brief article that states what Astana’s 2009 team would be….. Hey! Wait a minute! I swear they had an article that listed the team members and said that those guys were their final team and now its gone! It was the article where they announced the four Khazak neo-pros and one Jesus Hernandez (He’s a climber said Bruyneel) as the final additions to their team.
This is very fishy.
lol, i missed that
But very funny :-)
This sounds pretty much like a done deal to me. So bizarre all these comebacks.
Probably not coming back:
"As for his comeback, Ullrich said, "this option does not exist."
"I stopped racing under different circumstances than Lance," Ullrich said. "I suffered a lot of injustice and would only think about coming out of retirement if the same thing would not happen again. But at the moment, I cannot see that.""
How blimped-up is Ullrich now?
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
by fmk on Oct 4, 2008 4:06 PM EDT up reply actions
You know, he's not blimped up
There are some pictures of him at two events, one in August and one in (I think) June here: http://www.radstars.de/
The earlier one has a picture of him with what would appear to be his small son and a pacifier. Cute.
UCI steps in
googled
The projects back in the pack of Kazakh Alexandre Vinokourov could be thwarted by the International Cycling Union (UCI). Its president, Pat McQuaid, said Saturday that the former winner of the Vuelta (2006) would first observe the entirety of his two-year suspension, which would run until July 2009. ’UCI had opened a file before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), we have only withdrawn because he announced his retirement, McQuaid said. Vinokourov, 35, had already sentenced to one year suspension by the Kazakh federation after a positive test on the Tour de France 2007.
http://www.lequipe.fr/Cyclisme/breves2008/20081004_203636_l-uci-s-oppose-au-retour-de-vino_Dev.html
So does this mean UCI could reopen in front of CAS?
UCI had opened a file before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), we have only withdrawn because he announced his retirement, McQuaid said.
They never had a judgment. Is there a time limit to file the case and receive the initial judgment? Logic says there must be. If UCI can’t refile or reopen now (since CAS never ruled) that would represent a loophole that many might attempt to expliot. As much as I hate to use the Spanish word for
door
(rhymes with puerco) they still threaten action before CAS do they not? IS this similar?
I would so heart the ability to
a)proofread…
b)correct that last post…. sillly I button
BAH
by Christopher See on Oct 4, 2008 4:09 PM EDT up reply actions
What McQuaid said is that the case is filed. They just pressed pause on it to make sure he stayed retired.
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
by fmk on Oct 4, 2008 4:14 PM EDT up reply actions
hmm I read it differently, but hey that’s why we discuss right? I read it as they filed for judgment at CAS. Then Vino retired, so they withdrew the case filing. So my question stands, if they withdrew the original filing, can they refile for judgment?
by Christopher See on Oct 4, 2008 7:02 PM EDT up reply actions
yes
And the point of McQuaid’s comment is that they almost certainly will. The UCI is plainly opposed to Vinokourov’s return prior to serving a 2 year ban for blood doping. They withdrew the appeal, because Vinokourov retired, not because they changed their mind in re the merits of the case. The reason for the appeal still stands.
Vinokourov
no correrá con Astaná en 2009
http://www.todociclismo.com/noticia.asp?id=45337
Three 0ther teams ...
Cervélo? :)
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
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