News for October 8, 1999Worlds News Blood tests Today prior to the U-23 men's and Junior women's road races, the UCI blood tested 33 riders from Germany, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, and Australia. None however were over the legal hematocrit limit. Two sick Danes - one reserve The Danish squad in Sunday's road race is reduced to eleven riders. First, Christian Andersen withdrew on grounds of bad form, and Søren Petersen Team Acceptcard, was called in. Then Nicolaj Bo Larsen got the flu, was isolated on a separate hotel and then went home. No reserve will be called in. Nicolaj hopes to be OK on Monday when Home Jack & Jones flies to Australia to gather more points in Sun Tour to try and score a place in the first division. Lisbeth in bandages Only one rider abandoned the women's ITT. Danish cyclist Lisbeth Simper fell and hurt thigh and elbow. She had tests on Thursday and will start in the road race. Dutch down to five With Leontien Zijlaard-Van Moorsel's pulling out of the Women's road race on Saturday, the Netherlands will start with five instead of six riders. Reserve(?), Edith Klep didn't want to replace Van Moorsel. "Last Monday, coach Jean-Paul van Poppel said Leontien should start. I've dreamed for a long time about the idea about starting or not. And Wednesday I was able to start! This is not the way to have a serious preparation for the World Championships. That's the reason I declined the invitation now." Well, the weather's at least nice, and she can cruise around the course watching the others doing the hard yards up the Torricelle.
French police investigate crash from last year By Tomas Nilsson, cyclingnews.com correspondent
The police in Versailles have opened an investigation into a cycling accident one year ago when a 21 year-old amateur from the Aubervilliers (Seine-Saint-Denis) crashed and died during a criterium in Montereau (Seine-et-Marne). The police suspect that drugs might have been involved and the rider's sports director Stéphane Gaudry, and soigneur, Stéphane Gicquel have been taken into custody for 24 hours. The two may be accused of "manslaughter, transport, transfer and acquisition of poisonous substances and facilitation of use of narcotics". In investiging the circumstances of the accident, it was found that the bicycle was free of any mechanical defects which may have caused it to occur. On the other hand, the autopsy revealed traces the banned corticoid dexaméthasone, which may have caused the rider to black out and lose control of his machine. Indeed, witnesses say they saw him slump over the handlebars before he hit the pavement. Then again it could have been an as yet undiscovered medical condition in the rider that resulted in momentary loss of consciousness. The drugs may or may not have exacerbated this, but such cases are certainly not unheard of and the symptoms can come with no warning at all. The Aubervilliers club chairman, Jean Sivy denied any club involment with the doping of the rider "I strongly affirm that the direction and the framing of the club did not have anything to do with the death Sebastien Grousselle. If the runner took doping products, he must have obtained them elsewhere", he told AFP. The owner of the club believes that Grousselle " could have become a very good cyclist without taking prohibited products". "But there is sometimes impatience in young people", he added. "One needs results to turn professional. That may lead some of them to succumb to the temptation of prohibited products ", he stated.
Pregnolato reported to federal justice in Italy Gabriella Pregnolato, who together with Lithuanian Diana Ziliute, was caught with too much caffeine in the Tour de France Feminin in August might be charged in court. The Italian Olympic Committee has reported her to the federal justice authorities after having studied documentation and questioned involved persons. EC supports anti-doping agency The European Community has declared that it is prepared to support the international anti-doping agency (WADA). Some questions must be answered though, according to an official statement after the meeting of German minister for internal affairs and the EU commissar Vivianne Reding in Luxemburg. The commissar will soon contact the International Olympic Committee to clear any remaining obstacles. The IOC Executive Committee decided last Sunday to found the agency by the end of October. A working group with representatives for international sports federations and multilateral organizations like the EU are invited to take part in the founding.
Calendar for 2000 The UCI congress has decided the racing calendar for 2000. Due to the Olympics in Sydney the Vuelta will be somewhat earlier and the World's later than usual. Here are the World Cup, Grand Tours and Championships for the elite men: March 18: Milan-San Remo (Ita) Verbruggen hangs on Hein Verbruggen, president of the UCI has announced that he has changed his mind about stepping down when his mandate expires in 2001. He has long promised that his experience with cycling would finish with his term of office and that he would make way for younger, fresher minds. Now he intends on running for another term, will he be able to convince the other UCI officers of the wisdom of this choice?
No six-days in Leipzig Financial problems have stopped the six-day race at Leipzig, scheduled for November 10 to 16. Since the main sponsor hasn't observed it's payment duties, they have been forced to cancel the race, said the organizers in a statement on Thursday. The tradition-bound race came back on the Calendar in 1997, but debts left behind from these earlier races were too much to bear. Still, at the start of the week, plans for a new track, a new sports and entertainment concept and a high grade field for the race were announced. According to local newspaper "Leipziger Volkszeitung" the organizers ran out of time to buy and build the used track from Copenhagen in the famous "Leipziger Messe" to the tune of 150,000 Deutschmarks. "Since the debts from last year aren't paid I will not open the hall", said project leader Walter Ebert at the Messe. Spokesman Winfried Holtmann in the organizing company said that the race preparations were on schedule, but that the debts from 1998 were the reason to stop. An attempt to move the race in the calendar to February 2000 was in vain: "We have made the mistake to trust old partners too long, so now we have no alternatives, but there will, under any circumstances, be races in Leipzig in the future. November 15 to 20 is reserved in the calendar for 2000," said the race's managing director Peter Zander.
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