Astana team leader Alexander Vinokourov failed a dope test after winning Saturday’s Tour de France time trial, his team announced on Tuesday. They did not give any further details but a cycling source said the Kazakh, who has won two stages on this year’s Tour, tested positive for blood doping.
Alexander Vinokourov clinched his second victory of this year’s Tour de France with panache when he won the 196km 15th stage from Foix on Monday. The Astana rider, who lost all hope of winning the race when he cracked and crashed on Sunday’s 14th stage, went solo 15km from the summit of the Col de Peyresourde to beat Luxembourg’s Kim Kirchen.
South African Robert Hunter won a crash-hit bunch sprint to take the 182,5km 11th stage of the Tour de France on Thursday. The Barloworld rider beat Swiss Fabian Cancellara of the CSC team by half a wheel. Brazil’s Murilo Fischer came home third for the Liquigas team. ”It is very important to me to win a stage on the Tour de France. I am speechless,” said Hunter.
Norway’s Thor Hushovd claimed his first victory of the year when he clinched the fourth stage of the Tour de France, a 193km trek from Villers-Cotterets to Joigny on Wednesday. The Credit Agricole rider, who won the green jersey in 2005, launched the bunch sprint 350m from the finish line to edge Barloworld’s South African rider Robert Hunter for the win.
Pride and revenge are on Tom Boonen’s agenda when the second stage of the Tour de France takes the peloton from Dunkirk to Ghent on Monday. The stage is expected to end in another bunch sprint and having been beaten into third by Robbie McEwen in Sunday’s first stage, Boonen needs to shine in his home country.
Australian Suzuki rider Chris Vermeulen won his first MotoGP victory when he upstaged the favourites in a rain-hit French Grand Prix on Sunday. Vermeulen beat last year’s winner Marco Melandri of Italy on a Honda after coping perfectly with the tricky conditions on the 4,18km Le Mans circuit.
Spaniard Rafael Nadal won his third Monte Carlo Masters Series in succession when he extended his record winning streak on clay to 67 matches with a 6-4 6-4 defeat of world number one Roger Federer in Sunday’s final. The double French Open champion became the second player to win three straight titles in the principality.
No image available
/ 8 February 2007
Tour de France winner Floyd Landis has said he will not take part in this year’s race, the French Anti-Doping Agency (AFLD) announced on Thursday. AFLD said they had postponed their disciplinary hearing into Landis scheduled for Thursday after the American promised not to participate in any race in France until the end of 2007.
Italy’s Matteo Tosatto handed the Quick Step team and his country their first victory in this year’s Tour de France when he won the 18th stage on Friday. Tosatto, who was part of a long-range breakaway, outsprinted compatriot Cristian Moreni of the Cofidis team at the end of a 197km ride from Morzine to Macon. German Gerolsteiner rider Ronny Scholz took third place.