Belgian Winners: 1966 Beasain (Spa) Eric de Vlaeminck 1968 Luxemburg Eric de Vlaeminck 1969 Magstadt (Ger) Eric de Vlaeminck 1970 Zolder (Bel) Eric de Vlaeminck 1971 Apeldoorn (Ned) Eric de Vlaeminck 1972 Praag (Cze) Eric de Vlaeminck 1973 Londen (GB) Eric de Vlaeminck 1974 Vera de Bidasoa (Spa) Albert van Damme 1975 Melchnau (Swi) Roger de Vlaeminck 1980 Wetzikon (Swi) Roland Liboton 1982 Lanarvilly (Fra) Roland Liboton 1983 Birmingham (GB) Roland Liboton 1984 Oss (Ned) Roland Liboton 1989 Pontchateau (Fra) Danny de Bie 1994 Koksijde (Bel) Paul Herijgers 1998 Middelfart (Den) Mario de Clercq Dutch Winners: 1981 Tolosa (Spa) Hennie Stamsnijder 1990 Getxo (Spa) Henk Baars 1996 Montreuil (Fra) Adri van der Poel
The team was formed from its predecessor Ros Mary, and will have a lineup containing several impressive names. The Russians Eugeni Berzin and Viatcheslav Ekimov, Frenchman Armand de las Cuevas and Italians Stefano della Santa and Claudio Chiappucci will be the main figures in the team. Luc Leblanc could also arrive soon. Claudio Chiappucci hasn't yet signed his contract, but looks certain to be given a final chance at glory.
After the Spanish sponsor officially signs their agreement the Spanish riders will join the team: Carlos Golbano and Antonio Colón, together with Miguel Moreno. Moreno has retired after leaving Festina and will be one of the team's sport directors. José Manuel Muñoz, will be his assistant for the Spanish races. The team will have a different image when racing in Spain compared to when it is racing in other countries. When in Spain, the name Costa Almería will be the primary name on the jersey.
Armand de Las Cuevas, the French connection on the team said at the presentation that Costa de Almería-Amica Chips-Plastimer is "a balanced team, with a good blend of younger riders and the more experienced."
If you want to see the new team colours - thanks to Kai Uwe Bohn.
The team now has a new image. The riders now look like "grey mice". Priem gave interviews at the presentation about his time in custody and the future. He said that the future the team will be aggressive and classy. He was emotional about the period he spent in custody in France after he was was arrested during hotel raids following the Tour de France doping revelations.
He said with "damp eyes": "I did not see myself as being a hero. I felt pretty much like I am - a normal person like anyone else. I can now enjoy small things again, an xmas tree, a bird, a child."
Priem, who loves cycling, went through the darkest period of his life in 1998. His friends have seen the costs and have responded. "I have had a lot of support. A great deal of it. I have received many cards and letters. Two children sent me letters and I have brought them to the team presentation. Our riders are very close now. We must focus on the team. Above all, cycling remains a beautiful sport for me."
The riders and colleagues have banded together around Priem. He said: "It was a friendly team before but now it is moreso. Theo de Rooy knows what I was trying to achieve. He and I have a great relationship. He rang me before the presentation to pass on his best wishes."
He has passed the day to day running of the team over to Steven Rooks. Priem will still not be missing many races. But he will not go to France. The riders are now going to be given very careful instructions about doping. Cees Priem is careful here. All the riders know the house rules. The medical staff have been briefed.
Mas said: "Spain is a priority but the Spanish provincial races are also important to us." Kelme, which started their training camp on Wednesday, will count on eight new riders, amongst them Koke Uría, coming from Italian Ros Mary and Castelblanco, coming from Colombian Avianca-Telekom. For the 1999-2000 season, Kelme has not gone looking for foreign riders, instead looking for young Spanish talent like Aitor González, Angel Vicioso and Francisco León.
Allan and Dave fly out to Malaysia on Saturday. Ben will be staying with Chris Lillywhite for a week or so, then going up North for some time with Adrian Timmis. After our training camp in Benidorm, Spain, which is scheduled to take place over the two weeks after Langkawi, they will be based in Ghent.
Another character I am involved with who you may be interested in is Dave Berkeley. He's a Kiwi riding for Sigma Sport here in the Old Country, and has high hopes of winning a Premier Calendar race this year. With our top six premiers all carrying UCI points this year, this would be a significant achievement. Dave's one of two guys from NZ on the British scene, the other being Gordon Macauley of Harrods. Dave is a former NZ Thai kick boxing champion who rejoices under the name of Bruce Grub in the bunch - they all pull his leg, but he's a very, very popular bloke over here. This will be his third season and doubtless his best yet if pre-season form is anything to go by. He's been training with all the McCartneys and "Kicking their .....," if you choose to believe him! He's hoping for a ride at the Prutour, but the NZ Federation aren't certain to be fielding a squad this year.
I also asked John whether the claim that the team is the first all-vegetarian was actually sustainable. He replied:
"All the riders have signed contracts that commit them to vegetarianism; however, their health is paramount and thus the management and sponsors don't force anything too draconian on them. For instance, if a rider wants to be vegan then that's fine, but likewise, he wouldn't be frowned at for eating a boiled egg for breakfast if that was part of a balanced diet."
"It's no big deal to them - they knew the score before any talks got beyond the preliminaries, and anyway, I don't know of any that would eat much red meat as part of a carbo/protein diet. It's just a short step to leaving chicken and fish from there. Many of them are vegetarians by nature from some time back. For instance, Sean Yates has ridden twelve Tours de France as a veggie, so it's no hardship - most of them see it as a lifestyle choice rather than a career move. I'll ask a couple of the guys for their comments on it. It doesn't bother me either - all team staff are on board as veggies too!"
Thanks John. I hope that answers all the queries I have been getting about this. Forza the vegetarians!
Aim of the study
For this study two main goals were set. Firstly, the study was performed to determine the knowledge and attitude of elite athletes about doping, doping tests and drug use. In the second place this investigation was pointed towards the opinion of the elite athletes regarding the education program of doping. Therefore, the following questions were formulated: a) How do elite athletes evaluate the doping education program? b) Are the elite athletes familiar with the Netherlands Centre for Doping Affairs (NeCeDo) and the doping guide and how do they assess this guide? c) Which groups (e.g. age, level of sport) need extra education concerning doping?
Methods
The study was performed by means of a questionnaire. A total number of 1332 elite athletes, registered in the files of the Dutch Olympic Committee (NOC*NSF), received a questionnaire.
Results
Subjects: A response rate of 44.7% was obtained. Most of the subjects were aged between 18 and 25 years (56.8%). The cooperating elite athletes performed their sport mainly at the A- (40.2%) or B2- level (44.8%). The majority of the respondents was supported by a national coach (59.8%), the individual/club trainer (55.5%), the individual/club coach (54.6%), the parents (44.5%) and a physical therapist (44.0%). A great part of the respondents (53.2%) had never experienced a doping test.
Knowledge: 69.7% of the respondents did not know that, even if the athlete doesn't agree with the doping test, he or she always has to sign the doping test form. 21.2% of the athletes were not aware that a refusal of a doping test may lead to a ban of the athlete. A majority did not know that dietary supplements (37.5%), cough mixture (19.2%), natural food products (41.4%) and drugs on doctors prescription (27.9%) may contain substances of doping.
Attitude: Sixteen subjects (2.7%) admitted to have used a doping substance in the past. Nineteen respondents (3.2%) admitted to consider the use of performance enhancing drugs. One third of the respondents did not examine their own drugs with respect to doping regulations. A vast majority of the respondents (87.2%) indicated that there were no pressures present to use performance-enhancing drugs. In addition, a large majority (72.4%) indicated that there was no pressure concerning not using doping in the Netherlands. Most elite athletes advocated an increase in the number of doping tests (54.5%), of out-of-competition doping tests (46.2%) and of doping tests during important competitions (68.3%). To the opinion of most respondents (67.9%) the punishments after a positive test result had to be more severe.
Education: Most elite athletes had received information of doping, doping tests and drug use from the NOC*NSF (51.3%), the national sport association (36.6%) and the NeCeDo (33.8%). The respondents were not well informed about the doping rules in the sport (52.1%), the procedure of doping tests (49.7%), use of drugs (64.2%) and about dietary supplements (74.2%). The youngest athletes (younger than 18 years) admitted to feel informed badly. For information about doping related subjects, the majority consulted to the doctor of their national team (44.2%). Older athletes (31 years and older) consulted their general practitioner about doping more frequently. The elite athletes appreciated to receive more information about doping regularly.
NeCeDo/Doping guide: Half of the respondents had never heard of the NeCeDo before they received the questionnaire. Those who knew the NeCeDo before, were made familiar by the NOC*NSF (75.1%). A majority of the athletes (53.4%) did not know how to contact the NeCeDo. Almost 55% of the respondents were familiar with the NeCeDo doping guide in a fan-shaped formation. 84% of them had received this doping guide, mainly via the NOC*NSF. Three quarter of the cooperating athletes was satisfied with the quality of the doping guide. Again the youngest athletes were less familiar with the NeCeDo and the doping guide.
Conclusions
Overall, it can be concluded that the general knowledge of elite athletes concerning doping is not optimal and needs to be improved. Most of the athletes supported the idea of a more severe doping policy regarding the number of doping tests and penalties. Not all the respondents felt well informed about doping. Certain items, like dietary supplements and the use of drugs, need more attention. The NeCeDo was not very well known in the group of athletes. Not everybody knew how to contact the NeCeDo. The doping guide was evaluated rather well although several topics should be added or extended. Especially, the youngest group of elite athletes (below 18 years) requires more education.
Recommendations
To increase the response rate of the survey it will be better to send the questionnaire to the elite athletes in the months November/December. Those months are quieter concerning competition or tournaments. A great part of the athletes supported a more severe doping policy. The NOC*NSF and Dutch government have started a more sever doping policy. The youngest athletes (younger than 18) and the athletes of the lowest sport category are not well informed. Those groups need more information about doping. This might be realized by informing these groups about doping as soon as they receive their official B/C license of the NOC*NSF. An important way to inform the athletes seems to be via the sports associations (e.g. the associations magazine), at training hours and tournaments. Up to date information can be provided by a newsletter for the athletes supported by the NOC*NSF. The education program has to be objective and practical.
The NeCeDo doping guide in a fan-shaped form provides a lot of information. According to the respondents the guide has to contain up to date information. This may be realized by releasing a new edition every year or by releasing some pages with the latest developments, which can be added to the doping guide. The terminology should be simple and unequivocal. Because the athletes would like to receive a lot of information about doping and the fan-shaped doping guide should stay handy-sized, it might be an interesting idea to release a more detailed book besides the doping guide. Furthermore, a number of athletes indicated interest in improving their knowledge about doping by means of a symposium or course.
The education program should also be directed towards coaches, doctors et cetera. Most of the athletes will first contact these persons with questions about doping. The NeCeDo is not very well known by the athletes. Therefore, the name and address of the NeCeDo should be written more prominent on the distributed information.
Navigare Gaerne team manager Roberto Reverberi, who flew in with his cyclists yesterday, said they were ready to prove their worth.
"Most of my riders have some international experience, and, combined with their young age and drive, they may just pull off a few surprises in the Tour. With each of them having raced in some international circuits for at least a few years, I believe they can pull off a major surprise."
The team includes last year's eighth stage (Port Dickson) winner Pieri Dario and newcomer Degano Enrico. The others in the team are Cei Luca, Petacchi Alessandro, Glomser Gerrit and Panetta Stefano.
Roberto said he had brought a sprint team for the Tour as he found that nine out of the 12 stages were possible sprint routes. He picked Enrico, Gerrit and Luca as good bets to win a few stages on the Tour.
Italy's Cantina Tollo and the New Zealand national team are scheduled to arrive today with the US Saturn team. Canada and China's national teams are expected to arrive tomorrow.
MROZ from Poland, South Africa, Russia, Indonesia, Japan and the Philippines are scheduled to arrive on Saturday while the Linda McCartney Racing Team from Britain, Agro Adler Brandenburg and Gerolsteiner, both from Germany, and the South Korean national team are expected to arrive on Sunday.
About 150 cyclists from 25 teams have entered for the 1,773.5km race.
