Tour de France

Three of Only Four Americans at the Tour Riding for Garmin-Chipotle

Boulder, Colo, June 24, 2008 -- Team Garmin-Chipotle presented by H30 today announced its much-anticipated Tour de France roster, which features three of only four Americans in the entire Tour peloton. The riders that will represent Team Garmin-Chipotle in tackling the world’s toughest sporting event are:

* Magnus Backstedt
* Julian Dean
* Will Frischkorn
* Ryder Hesjedal
* Trent Lowe
* Martijn Maaskant
* David Millar
* Danny Pate
* Christian Vande Velde    » read more »

10 October 2007 -- Disgraced American cyclist Floyd Landis, who tested positive for steroids during last year's Tour de France, plans to appeal his doping case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Last month a combined U.S. and world anti-doping arbitration panel ruled 2-1 against Floyd Landis, upholding the finding that the cyclist used synthetic testosterone during his victory at the 2006 Tour de France.    » read more »

31 July 2007 (By VOA Sports) -- The T-Mobile cycling team has fired German cyclist Patrik Sinkewitz, following his positive drug test in June and his refusal to have his "B" sample tested.

T-Mobile spokesman Christian Frommert said when the 26-year-old Sinkewitz declined to have his backup sample tested, it counted as a positive doping test to the team.    » read more »

Paris, 29 July 2007 (By Anita Elash) -- Spanish cyclist Alberto Contador Sunday won the drug-tainted Tour de France. The Tour has been plagued by scandals over doping, and this was the worst year yet. Anita Elash reports for VOA from Paris.

The winner was 24 year-old Alberto Contador, a member of the American Discovery Channel team. Contador is the first Spaniard to win the Tour de France in more than 10 years, and the youngest since German rider Jan Ulrich won in 1997.    » read more »

17 July 2007 -- Colombian cyclist Juan Mauricio Soler Hernandez is the winner of the ninth stage of the Tour de France, with Michael Rasmussen of Denmark retaining the leader's yellow jersey after the last stage in the Alps.

The expected race contenders did not gain any ground on Rasmussen during the 159.5-kilometer course from the Val d'Isere ski station to Briancon, which Soler Hernandez covered in four hours, 14 minutes, 24 seconds. Tuesday's ride featured three difficult climbs.    » read more »

11 July 2007 -- Norwegian cyclist Thor Hushovd is the winner of the fourth stage of the Tour de France, and Swiss rider Fabian Cancellara maintains the overall lead for a fifth straight day.

Hushovd won in a sprint finish at the end of the mostly flat 193-kilometer ride that began about 75 kilometers northeast of Paris and went south, traveling from in Villers-Cotterets to Joigny. Hushovd's winning time was 4:37:47.

South African Robert Hunter was second, and Oscar Freire of Spain was third. Riders in the huge lead pack were all credited with the same time.    » read more »

10 July 2007 -- Swiss cyclist Fabian Cancellara has won the third and longest stage of this year's Tour de France to extend his lead and retain the overall race leader's yellow jersey.

Cancellara, who also won the prologue, outdueled a breakaway group of riders in a sprint finish Tuesday to complete the 236.5 kilometer trek from Waregem, Belgium to Compiegne, France in 6:36:15.

German rider Erik Zabel was second, while Italy's Danilo Napolitano was third, both credited with the same time.    » read more »