News for June 18, 2000

Tournant's new world record

The biggest news on day one of the Mexico City round of the track World Cup was that French kilo genius, Arnaud Tournant broke the comparatively long standing world record for the event, setting 1.00.148 seconds (59.85 km/h). Tournant eclipsed Shane Kelly's 1995 record (1.00.613), also set at altitude in Bogota, Colombia. An amazing ride, and Tournant could well be the first man to go under a minute for the kilo in future.

Former record holder, Shane 'minute man' Kelly, said that he was disappointed but not surprised that the record had been broken by Tournant. "I had just come back from breakfast when I found out and I sat on my bed in silence for a bit and didn't know what to think," said Kelly from his training base in Germany.

"There's no doubt I'm disappointed but I'm not surprised because records are made to be broken and Arnaud's been trying to break it for more than 12 months," he said. "I had it for five years though and that makes me pretty happy."

Kelly's time was ridden at 2400m altitude on a 250 metre concrete outdoor track and Tournant's at 1800m altitude on a 333 metre concrete outdoor track. Kelly believes Tournant's performance will put added pressure on the Frenchman in Sydney.

"He's now got the tag I had in Atlanta," said Kelly. "He's the current world champion and world record holder so everyone's expecting him to win. The only time I want to face him this year is in Sydney and I'm going in as the underdog again which suits me fine."

According to Kelly, he is training quite well and is perfectly on track for Sydney, his big career goal. Tournant might have something to say about that though.

Jalabert and Olano renew

Spanish team, ONCE's top riders, Laurent Jalabert and Abraham Olano have extended their contracts for the next two years, according to reports in the Spanish press. Their new contracts will cost ONCE quite a bit - in the order of 160 million Spanish pesetas ($US 1 million) each per year. Olano and Jalabert have won 20 victories between them for the number one Spanish team, including wins and stages in several 'hors categorie' ranked stage races.

Olano (30) and Jalabert (31) will both ride the Tour de France this year, and they both have ambitions for the yellow. With the strongest field in recent years expected this year, ONCE need the luxury of two GC riders. The ONCE team, funded by the Spanish Blind Society, has had Jalabert since 1992, and the Swiss based Frenchman is quite comfortable there. Olano migrated from Banesto at the beginning of 1999, and has shown an improvement in his racing this year.

Banned Møller will ride championships

By Tomas Nilsson, cyclingnews.com correspondent

Claus Michael Møller will ride the Danish championships although he is banned from Danish national races, according to news paper Politiken. Møller received a two year ban from the Danish Cycling Union in accordance with the rules of the Danish sports federation that organizes all sports in Denmark. However, the UCI didn't accept the long sentence and lifted the ban after one year according to its rules. Thus the DCU was stuck between its international organisation and the national sports federation.

The solution was to allow Møller to race internationally only while he was banned from national Danish races and the Danish national team. He is allowed though to race in Denmark in races on the international calendar. His Portuguese team UC Maia-MSS has however not been invited to any Danish races, but no one could stop him from racing in the championships since they are on the UCI calendar.

The sports federation is now considering to withdraw its official medals from the Championships. Danish champions in all sports get the same medals from the sports federation.

"I understood that there would be some excitement if I entered the race, but this is not a provocation. I am quite busy with Portuguese stage races before as well as after the championships, so I go to Denmark simply because I want to ride the race, and I believe that I have a chance to do a good result," said Møller who has raced once outside of Portugal, in Spain, this season.

Pantani and others take it easy

As the Tour de France draws nigh, Marco Pantani joins some of the other favourites in not doing any more racing until July 1. Lance Armstrong already announced his withdrawal from the Route du Sud recently, and Pantani will take a similar approach. He will not even ride the Italian National Championships next weekend, as he wishes to use the same leadup program as in 1998 when he won the Tour.

In other news, Italian sprinter Mario Cipollini looks more uncertain for the Tour after he fell last weekend in a training accident, as well as still suffering from asthma. Should he not start in France, the Vuelta and the Olympics will be his main goals.

Hematocrits OK in Switzerland

Although the new urine test for EPO will be introduced shortly, the UCI are currently still applying their "50% rule" to riders' hematocrits. In the Tour de Suisse yesterday morning in Fribourg, all 132 riders were tested using this method. None were found to be above 50% though.

Celestino suffering

Last year's late season classics revelation, Mirko Celestino (Polti), is not having the best of seasons this year. A knee injury has forced him out of serious competition for most of the year, and he has spent the best part of the last two months with no racing. His options aren't good: either rest more and hope it gets better, or have surgery to correct it and definitely spend another month or two off the bike. He will probably go for the surgery option, and try and return to racing in the late season.

Zabriskie the comeback kid

By John Alsedek, cyclingnews.com correspondent

One year ago, David Zabriskie was one of America's hottest young rising stars, only to be sidelined by injury. After having won the Junior (ages 15-17) National Time Trial and placing fourth in the Junior Worlds in 1998, his '99 season was interrupted by achilles tendonitis in both legs. However, Zabriskie put that behind him, as he won the 24-mile Under-23 National Time Trial Championship with a time over ninety seconds faster than second-place finisher Michael Creed (7 UP/Colorado Cyclist).

"After having raced in Europe for the past month-and-a-half, I felt re-energized when I set foot back on American soil." Zabriskie and Creed, winner of a record seventeen national titles as a junior rider, were the standouts in an otherwise very competitive field that included defending champion Ryan Miller (Nutra Fig). Third-placed Brandon Lovich (DeFeet/LeMond) trailed Creed by an additional ninety seconds, with the next half-dozen racers finishing within just a minute of one another. Defending champion Miller finished sixth, 3:33 behind Zabriskie, a Utah native who competes for the 7 UP/Colorado Cyclist racing team.

Said race promoter John Eustice afterwards, "It was a great ride by Zabriskie, and a great day of racing. I'm looking forward to Sunday's road race now more than ever!" The U-23 National Championships continue on Sunday with the 116-mile U-23 National Championship Road Race, held in the town of St. George.