News for December 10, 1999
IOC OK blood tests The International Olympic Committee has have given the go ahead for triathletes and cyclists to be subject to blood tests at next year's Olympic Games, it was announced today in Lausanne, Switzerland. Although they have lagged a long way behind the UCI in this area, the move is still a positive step towards cleaning up drugs in sport. It means that cyclists will most likely be tested before the games in order to determine that they are "fit to compete" and also to avoid embarrassing SOCOG and the IOC if they are caught during the games with abnormal blood values. This also opens the way for specific testing of blood-based drugs such as EPO to come into force before the Olympics, thereby avoiding the arbitary "50 % rule" that currently applies to rider's haematocrits. Additionally, it means that in cycling events conducted under IOC rules (not just the Olympics), basic hematocrit testing can be introduced. For example, in many high profile Australian events, blood testing is not the norm unless UCI officials are present to administer them. As Australia is not generally high on the destination list of UCI officials, blood tests do not happen often. Some exceptions were the women's Tour de Snowy and World Cup which were held earlier this year.
USCF National Cyclo-Cross Championships The 1999 Saturn United States Cycling Federation (USCF) Cyclo-Cross National Championships are slated for December 10-11 at The Presidio in San Francisco. The competition begins at 9 a.m. both days, and the finals of the SuperCup Cyclo-Cross Series are scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 12. The SuperCup Cyclo-Cross series is a seven-stop national cyclo-cross series. Alison Dunlap (Colorado Springs, Colo.) is the defending women's national champion, while Frank McCormack (Leicester, Mass) will try to win his second successive national cyclo-cross crown and third in the past four years. His brother, Mark, won the crown in 1997. Other riders to watch in the elite championships are Bart Bowen (Albuquerque, N.M.) and Marc Gullickson (Durango, Colo.), the latter currently leading the former in the SuperCup Cyclo-Cross Series point standings. Gullickson has competed in the past two world championships. Ann Grande (Seattle, Wash.) won four of the first five SuperCup events in 1999, and owns a comfortable lead over Carmen Richardson (Colorado Springs, Colo.) in the women's point standings. The women's cyclo-cross world championship makes its debut Jan. 29 in Sint-Michielsgestel, The Netherlands, along with the espoir men. The elite and junior men compete on Jan. 30. Matt Kelly (Colorado Springs, Colo.) is fresh off a SuperCup victory in Portland, Ore. last weekend. He captured the 1999 junior cyclo-cross world championship in Poprad, Slovakia in January. That triumph marked the first world cyclo-cross championship for USA Cycling in the 50 years of the event. Kelly has returned as a USA Cycling resident-athlete at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. A new champion will be crowned in the men's espoir event, as Tim Johnson (Middleton, Mass.) is competing in Europe this season. Johnson won the first-ever U.S. world championship cyclo-cross medal earlier this year, when he claimed the bronze medal. Liz Begosh (Brick, N.J) is the defending national espoir and collegiate women's cyclo-cross champion.and she has graduated from Rhode Island School of Design. Sarah Uhl (Perkasie, Pa.) won the junior women's national title a year ago in Fort Devens, Mass, and will be looking for her sixth junior national title of 1999. University of Colorado's Alex Candelario (Boulder, Colo.) won the 1998 collegiate men's title. The last time the USCF Cyclo-Cross National Championships were staged in California was 1993, when Sonora served as the site. In the Supercup series, which also concludes this weekend, Gullickson holds a narrow lead over Bowen, as mentioned. However, in the women, there will be no stopping Anne Grande, who has nearly double the points of her nearest rival, Carmen Richardson. In the espoirs category, Damon Kluck looks set to take out the series, with a 46 point lead after six rounds. He is also coming third in the elite standings, which must bode well for the future of this young rider. Finally, the junior category looks like being a lay-down misere for Justin Thompson, who has a large lead over rival Dameion Donias. Schedule: Friday, Dec. 10 Men's Beginner* - 9 a.m. Masters Women 30-39 - 10 a.m. Masters Women 40+ - 10 a.m. Masters Men 30-39 - 11:30 a.m. Masters Men 40-49 - 11:30 a.m. Masters Men 50 - 11:30 a.m. Collegiate Men - 12:45 p.m. Collegiate Women - 2 p.m. Messengers* - 3:15 p.m. Espoir Men 19-22 - 2:15 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11 Women's Intermediate/Beginner* - 9 a.m. Men's Intermediate* - 10 a.m. Junior Men 16-18 - 11:30 a.m. Junior Men 10-15 - 11:30 a.m. Junior Women 16-18 - 11:30 a.m. Junior Women 10-15 - 11:30 a.m. Elite Women - 12:45 p.m. Espoir Women 19-22 - 12:45 p.m. Elite Men - 2:15 p.m. * Not a national championship category. USOC awards finalists The United States Olympic Committee (USOC) announced it's finalists for the Sports-Man, Woman and Team of the year, today. The awards will be presented on Saturday, January 8th, 2000 in Indianapolis. The finalists for the 1999 USOC SportsMan of the Year award are (in alphabetical order): tennis' Andre Agassi; cycling's Lance Armstrong; and track & field's Maurice Greene. Finalists for the 1999 USOC SportsWoman of the Year award are (in alphabetical order): soccer's Michelle Akers; swimming's Jenny Thompson; and tennis' Serena Williams. The top three finalists for USOC Team of the Year are (in alphabetical order): USA Cycling's U.S. Postal Service Team; U.S. Soccer's Women's National Team; and USA Softball's Women's National Team. Gold medalists of the 1998 Olympic Winter Games swept last year's awards program, as skier Jonny Moseley was named SportsMan of the Year, skier Picabo Street was named SportsWoman of the Year and the 1998 U.S. Olympic women's ice hockey team claimed the Team of the Year honor.
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