Steegmans out of the Dauphine? Nope.. But it was a close call
Steeegmans out of the Dauphine.. He refused to sign an anti-doping paper which was made after Pfannenberger tested positive.. He refused to sign it so Katushya didn't let him start. He's playing with fire.. Also for the Tour de France.
Edit: Steegmans: I like to start here but they say I can go home. I will do everything I can but I still haven't signed my number. What's the clause about anyway? If we get in discredit we have to pay 5 years salary! You can like Rutger Beke, get in discredit when you are innocent but that doesn't matter. You're failliet/bankrupt after that"
"We've come up with a 'counter-proposal'(?) where you have to pay the squad compensation if you are tested positive. We just have to wait now. I hope I can ride the Tour but the situation now is far from ideal"
Edit 2- Kenny de Haes and McEwen are also refusing to sign
Edit 3- Had to look up Rutger Beke, the person he names as someone who falsely tested positive—Belgian triathlete who came up pos for EPO and successfully argued bacterial contamination of the sample. -Majope-
Edit 4- It's going to be a game. Due sportwereld.be he may start again. Why or how I have no idea..
-edit 5 He's out again.. Was he out? He's starting.. It's getting confussing..
More to follow
over 2 years ago
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What a mess.
I’m all for anti-doping initiatives, but 5 years’ salary is a bit draconian. Which makes it a labor issue: another reason the riders need a strong union to back them up.
Long day--bad grammar. That's the way it works.--Lance Armstrong
Agreed 100%
These policies, whether coming from races (TDF) or teams are getting utterly absurd. I also understand the point about sponsor loss and the danger to an entire team, but that’s also why there are sponsorship contracts, and those contracts are enforceable.
Instituting a ridiculous policy like this smacks of overreaction and an attempt to shift all the blame for this crap onto the riders. We’re innocent, really we are, look at this totally insane thing we’re making our riders do so we can crucify them publicly the next time one tests positive. I’d be like, thank you I we have a contract. You can pay it all year and I’ll sue your ass from here to next tuesday if you don’t, even if you don’t let me race b/c I won’t sign some new contract.
What a joke.
5 years salary is a lot
But I’m not sure that it’s too much. I don’t see the point with Rutger Beke as an example since they overturned his suspension; false positives are violence inherited in the system. Maybe the contract is poorly written so it doesn’t specify when the money should be payed, but it seems to me that there are ways to get around the Rutger Beke problem.
Bork, bork, bork!
Well...
Who can afford to pay 5 years’ salary after a false positive and then wait for an eventual overturn? As Steegmans says, even if you’re innocent, you end up bankrupt (“faillet” above should presumably be “failliet,” “bankrupt”). Sure, they’ll pay you back, but it sure would suck in the meantime.
Long day--bad grammar. That's the way it works.--Lance Armstrong
Indeed!
I sure as hell wouldn’t sign anything like that, rather pick up my stuff and leave. (“So Ted, that nifty little code fragment of yours we used in the software that made us millions, well it appears you nicked it from Knuth. This would reflect very badly on us. Kindly pay us 5 years’ salary as per your contract.”)
But as I write
It’s a problem with when you have pay the money. If you have to pay before you have had the chance to overturn the decision, before going to CAS or whatever, then it’s a problem. The false positive as such is not very interesting.
Bork, bork, bork!
by TheFigurehead on Jun 7, 2009 8:44 AM EDT up reply actions
So this is a Katushja request/rule
not a Dauphine / Pro Tour / or UCI thing?
sometimes life is a false flat
Hey, whatever happened to complaints about the Rabobank rules?
This fine is worse then anything they concocted but such over-recation is understandable from Katusha considering one of their “stars” betrayed them.
Mon coeur appartient à les forçats de la route.
Well the Rabobank rules were and are foolish too...
But this kind of thing is beyond the pale in any sport I can think of. Not even Michael Vick was suddenly fined by his team 5 times what they’d paid him in any given year, though they did try to get back some bonuses paid as damages.
The next question is why does anyone think that punishments so Draconian that they’d never be enforceable anyhow will actually stop doping?
Steegmans, de Haes, McEwen
Interesting. We have a conspiracy of the Belgian Sprint Mafia… and we haven’t heard from the ringleader (give him a minute, LOL).
Dear Katusha
you are a scumbag p.o.s. team.
If you want to protect the team, don’t try to shift all blame over to the riders. Instead, start by not hiring people you, like everyone else, pretty much know to be dirty (like Herr Pfannberger).
This is just yet another version of letting the riders take all the shit you help cause while keeping your own fat arses safe and sound. Please make real efforts to discourage riders from doping rather that spew this kind of selfrighteous PR bullshit.
Maybe the others haven't had to sign yet, as not racing at the moment..
Will be interesting to hear Pippo’s thoughts….
and YaY Kenny, Gert and Robbbie….
"the rest was over 30. And that doesn't mean old and useless, but experienced and with the stamina"
Jens! Voigt, Crit Intl Interview, 2009
Robbie's not racing--still healing from his messed up knee/broken tibia.
Besides, I’m pretty sure the press reports say everyone else has signed.
Long day--bad grammar. That's the way it works.--Lance Armstrong
True... Hhmm
"the rest was over 30. And that doesn't mean old and useless, but experienced and with the stamina"
Jens! Voigt, Crit Intl Interview, 2009
The Dutch/ Belgian media report they haven't signed
Crashdan: "Veni Vidi Vici beats Wing Kong Exchange... … and I’ll change my signature to a backwards smile for a month."
Frining "It's what he thinks.. But he always do.. I eat my shoe if he ride top 15 in le Tour" about Devolder
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