News for October 14, 1999

Ted to back "Lance - the movie"

According to a report in the Los Angeles Times, the US cable television network TNT, established by Ted Turner, has given the green light to a movie about 1999 Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong.

However, it's still early days and the film is yet to be cast or a budget set. The Times also reported that the Armstrongs' new baby Luke had quite a long wait before being introduced to the world. Kristin Armstrong became pregnant using in-vitro fertilization with sperm her husband had stored late in 1996, (before starting chemotherapy). Kristin gave birth to Luke David on October 12, a healthy 7 lb 9 ounce boy. The lad is already showing good form, as he was born two weeks ahead of term.

Pantani's blood to be DNA tested

In what could become the most important scientific test in professional cycling, the public attorney of Trento in Italy has decided that the blood sample taken from Marco Pantani on June 5 in Madonna di Campiglio during the Giro will be subject to DNA analysis, according to RAI Televideo.

The analysis will be carried out by university Professors Rizzoli and Meglioli. The two scientists will attempt to determine what natural and artificial substances can be found in Pantani's sample and in the samples from the other ten cyclists that were tested that fateful day when cycling was shaken to its core. The other riders include Marco Velo, Paolo Savoldelli, Laurent Jalabert, Niklas Axelsson, Oscar Camenzind, Gilberto Simoni, Daniele De Paoli, Ivan Gotti and Roberto Sgambelluri.

The other reason to do the test is to also verify that it really is Pantani's blood, and not a mistake in the testing. The samples from June 5 have been kept in liquid nitrogen at a temperature of -194 degrees Celsius.

In June the "pirate's" lawyers presented a defense where the toxicologist Rino Froldi and haematologist Sante Tura expressed doubt over the methods used for the test where a haematocrit level over 50 per cent was found. The case continues.

US selects World Track squad

With the World Track Cycling Championships to be held in Berlin later this month, USA Cycling has announced a 17-rider team. Leading the assault on the World's are three-time world champion Marty Nothstein and 1999 UCI world cup winners Christian Vande Velde and Erin Veenstra.

"The World Championships are always important for us but these Worlds are particularly important because of the Olympic qualifying aspects," said USA Cycling's Director of Athlete Performance Sean Petty.

Nothstein will be joined by Marcelo Arrue and Johnny Bairos in the Olympic Sprint. This is the same trio that won the gold medal at the Pan Am Games. Giddeon Massie will also compete in this event, after placing fifth in the Olympic Sprint at the Junior World Track Cycling Championships in Athens, Greece in August. Massie, 18, is the youngest member of the USA Cycling squad.

Vande Velde posted a win at the EDS World Cup of Cycling in Frisco, Texas in May, and two months later helped Lance Armstrong to victory at the Tour de France. Vande Velde placed 10th in the individual pursuit at the 1997 Worlds after earning fifth-place honors in the team pursuit in 1996.

Vande Velde's US Postal teammate Dylan Casey will also compete in the individual pursuit after claiming the gold medal at the Pan Am Games. In addition, 1996 Olympian Mariano Friedick will be the third US competitor in the individual pursuit.

The team pursuit squad for the United States will be comprised of Vande Velde, Friedick, Adam Laurent, Derek Bouchard-Hall, Tommy Mulkey and Mike Tillman. The quartet of Friedick, Laurent, Mulkey and Bouchard-Hall earned the Pan Am gold medal in the team pursuit. Jame Carney rounds out the USA Cycling men's roster and will compete in the points race.

Meanwhile, Erin Veenstra posted her finest season to-date in 1999 with a victory in the individual pursuit at the EDS World Cup of Cycling, and gold medals at the Pan Am Games (individual pursuit, points race). Veenstra finished sixth in the points race at last year's worlds. Megan Troxell joins Veenstra and is making her World Championship debut in the individual pursuit.

USA Cycling's women's sprint squad includes Tanya Lindenmuth, Jennie Reed and Becky Quinn.

The US will not field representatives in two men's events: the kilometre time trial and Madison.

Road and track team selection venues for Sydney 2000

USA Cycling will host its 2000 Olympic Trials for road cycling at Jackson, Mississipi, location of the UCI-ranked Tour LeFleur. On May 18 next year it will hold the individual time trial and on May 20 the road race. The ITT is a national championship event, where professionals are eligible to compete. In the road race, the first amateur to cross the finish line is the national champion, while the first overall rider is the winner of an automatic spot on the Olympic squad.

The 2000 Track Trials are to be held at the Superdrome in Frisco, Texas, between the dates of April 25 and April 29. The two year-old Superdrome is used by the American track team for training throughout the year, and has hosted a World Cup event and two national championships (elite and masters) during it's existence.

Clinger correction correction

Finally, we have the official word that Mercury's David Clinger has signed for Festina next year and will not be riding for Mercury, Saeco-Cannondale, Tacx-Giant or whoever. He announced this before the World Championships in Italy recently. One source of the latest confusion is that Michel Klinger (Swi) is on the UCI stagiaires list for Festina.

Transfers

Mark Vanlombeek, who has been the sports commentator of the Belgian public TV-station for 25 years, is moving to Flemish commercial TV. Mark is well known for his cycling reports, even in the Netherlands, where a lot of cycling fans watch Belgian TV instead of Dutch.

Polti's speedster, Fabrizio Guidi and Polish winner of the GP Zurich, Grzegorz Gwiazdowski (Cofidis) are leaving their current teams to go to La Francaise des Jeux. Polti however, are gaining Jeroen Blijlevens who will be a more than ample replacement for Guidi.

Armstrong updates

Mature baby

The Armstrongs' new baby Luke has had quite a long wait before being introduced to the world. Kristin Armstrong became pregnant using in-vitro fertilization with sperm her husband had stored late in 1996, (before starting chemotherapy), giving birth the other day to 7 lb 9 ounce Luke. The baby must have got impatient, as he was born two weeks ahead of schedule.

Lance - the movie

In another Armstrong tidbit, the Lance Armstrong TV movie is set to be made by American cable TV network TNT. No details as yet as to who is playing Lance or, for that matter his bike.

'Cowboy' creates sprint havoc

As a follow-up to our report on the Sluitingsprijs - Putte-Kapelle, Cat 1.4, the last race on the Belgian calendar, Danny Daelman has a broken nose and bad consussion due to a bad fall in the final sprint, some 600 metres from the finish. The crash was apparently due to an amateur making "an oscillation", according to reports.

Although no rider was named, the same amateur was already in the picture because he rode "like a cowboy" in the peloton.

The race was won by Palmans rider Dave Bruylandts from Steven de Jongh and Koen Beeckman. The 177.24 km race was covered in 3.47, at an average speed of 47.41 kmh. It was also the final road race in the career of Dutch legend Adri van der Poel, who won Liege-Bastogne-Liege in 1986, the Ronde van Vlaanderen in 1988 and the Amstel Gold race in 1990. He still intends to ride at least one more cyclocross season.