News for January 22, 1998

Palmans gather

Remaining with the team are Wilfried Nelissen and Hans De Clercq. Team leader Walter Planckaert, and managers Roger De Vlaeminck and Charles Palmans, hope that their 5th season will be even better than last year when the team won 16 races. The team has a budget of around 45 million Belgian francs.

Brain Doping the next thing for Dopes!

After a week of reading about the ridiculous Chinese swimmers who have finally been caught out big-time with illicit drugs, and Stasi dossiers about the years of systematic doping of sportspeople in East Germany, and the startling admissions made by Eddy Planckaert concerning his use of EPO, Debackere said: 'Man has gone a lot further than EPO. They are now finding a place for genetic manipulation and there is experimental synthetic morphines coming onto the market."

Endorphine is a morphine-like substance, that among other things alleviates pain. Sportspersons who use artificial endorphines will be able to reduce the pain of effort and experience abnormally extended motivation. Growth hormones are used to increase muscle mass, EPO has a positive effect on the oxygen carrying capacity, and endorphines influence the mind.

The pep pills in the time of Wim van Est seem like meagre "peppermints" compared to this new stuff that is available. The influence on the so-called neurotransmitters, material that has positive effects on the brain, has been the subject of intense scientific investigation over the last 10-15 years. Dr. Hartmut Hommel, an East German gynaecologist, said during an address to a Congress of Coaches, sponsored by the Dutch Athletics Union four years ago, that he had been investigation the manipulation of the brain in a sportsperson at the requests (demand) of the East German leaders.

Mac O'Grady, ex-coach of the Spanish golfer Ballesteros, has said that professional golfers using beta blockers, which effect the part of the brain that determines fear and fear of failure.

Dutch cyclists must ride the National Championships to ride the Worlds

The UCI has determined that each rider take out a licence in the land where he is living. Thus Dutch riders who have a foreign licence, for example, a Belgian licence, and who ride in that countries national championship will not be able to have a place in the Dutch World Championship team.

Lanarvillys, France, Cyclo Cross, January 20, 1998

 1. Danny De Bie (Bel)
 2. D. Willemsens (Bel) 		0.44
 3. D. Pagnier (Fra)    		2.41
 4. R. Duros (Fra)      		2.55
 5. Hans De Clercq (Bel)   		3.17
 6. Paul Herygers (Bel)   		3.17

11. Laurent Brochard (Fra)  		4.56

50 starters (including Laurent Brochard and Frederic Guesdon)

1999 Tour will begin in Western France

Santo Blanco and Banesto

Santi Blanco claims to be calm. He knows that Vitalicio will take care of the payment for his freedom. Giacomo Landi, president of Seguros Vitalicio, says that he also is calm. "They can ask for whatever they want", he says. "But one thing is to ask and another... We can't accept unreasonable offers, so I'm calm".

Banesto also claims to be calm, they have in their favor the fact that the UCI has not allowed Blanco to register and the possible urgency that Vitalicio will see in settling the matter. They all agree on something: nobody is giving any indication as to the amounts that will be talked about in the negotiations. One can't give any clue to the enemy. But they all disagree when the time comes to work out the numbers.

Banesto's conditions are simple and are based, according to them, more on the fact that they want to bring a little order and common sense to this chaos and not a wish for vengeance for Blanco's treason. There are various concepts that Banesto will use to calculate their due compensation. They will claim that the contract contains an image factor - a quantity for which the rider will have to pay. This compensation was set by the 1991 Oviedo pact - the team association reached an gentleman's agreement to penalize those teams that tried to hire a cyclist under the 1.006 clause - the penalty being 20 million pesetas ($US128,240) for each season that the rider spent with the old team. Vitalicio would have to pay this amount. If not, Banesto and the other teams would not allow them to enter the team association.

Since Blanco didn't have an annulment statement in his contract, a judge must decide on it. But if there is an agreement before this, it isn't expected that a judge will get involved. The value of the image contract with Banesto until 1999 is more subjective. Banesto will also put pressure on this, since Blanco has already posed with a jersey from Vitalicio and could use for that the 300 million pesetas ($US1,923,600) that he has with Vitalicio in his contract in case of contract annulment. So Banesto could ask for an amount around 400 million pesetas ($US2,564,800).

That doesn't seem to be the amount that Landi, who is doing the negotiations himself, considers realistic. He denies in the first place, the 60 million pesetas ($US384,720) from the team that would be required for Vitalicio to enter into the team association. "That would mean that they would be applying on us a retroactive measure", he says. "That is the law of the funnel", answers José Miguel Echávarri, from Banesto. "The Oviedo pact refers to a period of one year after the athlete moves for a 1006. And that is the running year". Landi, meanwhile says that at this point he has the backing of ONCE, Kelme and Euskadi. He also denies that Banesto can use the annulment portion of Blanco's contract with Vitalicio as a reference. "There is no other negotiation than an economic one", says Landi.

The negotiation, which should be long, would depend on the strength that each side brings. Banesto believes that everything is in their favor, although they don't necessarily want to stop Blanco racing. So they are counting on Vitalicio wanting to resolve the matter quickly. "We have been writing letters since September to start the negotiations", he says. "Banesto has decided to use the delaying tactic. It is their right, but we have to be patient. I know that I will have to pay something, but if they ask for a figure that's too high... I'm not in a hurry, because we don't need Santi Blanco until the Tour. Hurry is not a wise thing to follow".

Although Santi Blanco will present on Friday with Vitalicio, he won't be able to race until Banesto and Vitalicio reach an agreement. It could take months. Any athlete would be nervous with this perspective, but Blanco - who has gone from making 65 million pesetas ($US416,780) a year in his three years with Banesto to 300 million pesetas ($US1,923,000) with Vitalicio - says that ne isn't. "I'm stranger than the eucharist (holy host), no?"

But what is your opinion on this matter? -