Another doping scandal brewing in Le Tour?

[Baclava]

yeah - it's the Telegraph...but WTF Team Sky?

Tour de France 2015: Chris Froome’s ride for glory under threat in data spying storm



Sky consult lawyers over hacking of training files as the team braces for its leader to face doping questions

Team Sky are consulting their lawyers following what they believe to be the potential hacking of Chris Froome's training data files in order to suggest he may be using performance enhancing drugs.

The British team revealed the suspected theft on Monday as they prepared to face the inevitable doping questions which are sure to accompany any big performances from Froome in the Tour de France’s mountain stages in the Pyrenees and the Alps in the next fortnight.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/cycling/tour-de-france/11737387/Tour-de-France-2015-Chris-Froomes-ride-for-glory-under-threat-in-data-spying-storm.html

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deny deny deny

[jberryhill]

1. "deny deny deny"

And the evidence for Froome doping is... what?

[snooper2]

2. he doesn't sweat and his eyes look like the 7th hour of good shrooms

LOL

[Baclava]

14. I'd steal for one of those bikes

[jberryhill]

26. Meh. No lugs for a cargo rack.

Bike's no good. Can't hang panniers on it.

[Orrex]

46. Can't put baseball cards in the spokes, either.

[TexasProgresive]

3. Well it is

le Tour de dope, right.

[jberryhill]

4. Not anymore

These guys are human pincushions from all the blood samples that are taken.

[TexasProgresive]

11. If there's a way to cheat some will figure it out.

I don't don't know how but just think about all the test Lance passed. How was that done?

[cwydro]

38. Lance and his fellow losers managed to make that work

for years.

[Baclava]

7. I'll check in on the race coverage tomorrow and let you know.

could just be rumors

but why would the British tabloid press be swallowing this?

do they not like Froome?

[jberryhill]

10. hacking, doping... what's not to like

It sells papers.

I'm surprised they haven't brought up the asthma inhaler again.

[Baclava]

18. All good entertainment, I say

I watched a motorcycle crash into a ditch in the middle of the peloton - first time for that.

You never know what can happen

[jberryhill]

21. Shit happens

And on the TdF, there is no end to the weird shit that can happen.

Hoogerland and Flecha getting rubbed out by a VIP car is a tough one to top:



But my all time favorite is Gilbert v. Dog:



And, whatever you do, do not taunt Thomas Voeckler:

[Baclava]

22. oh yeah! - I remember that guy going into the barbed wire fence

nasty!

[jberryhill]

24. He finished the damned stage, too

[Baclava]

25. this race has been rough too

Race leader Tony Martin abandons with a broken collarbone



and more

Fabian Cancellara abandons 2015 Tour de France with fractured vertebrae

Read more at http://roadcyclinguk.com/racing/fabian-cancellara-abandons-2015-tour-de-france-with-fractured-vertebrae.html#UpD8ZGXAsQH3UF7x.99

Several riders were badly injured within the final 60 kilometers of Stage 3 of the Tour de France after two large crashes, and the stage was stopped at the foot of the Côte de Bohissau, 105 kilometers into the 159.5-kilometer race.

The pileups included Fabian Cancellara, the bearer of the Maillot Jaune. According to Sky Sports, Tom Dumoulin, Simon Gerrans, William Bonnet and Dmitry Kozonchuk have all abandoned.

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/cycling/tour-de-france-2015-tony-martins-crash-injuries-show-multiple-pileups-are-an-unpleasant-feature-of-the-race-10383097.html

[jberryhill]

27. Slippery when wet....

[Baclava]

28. Doesn't matter

Last edited Tue Jul 14, 2015, 12:13 PM - Edit history (1)

It's all over now

[taught_me_patience]

9. A relative no name that came from nowhere to blow away the field two years ago

raises a lot of suspicions, especially given the history of bike racing. If I were a betting man, I'd bet he's doped.

[jberryhill]

12. He did not come from nowhere two years ago

He signed with Sky in 2009 and came in second in the 2010 (UK) national time trial championship. He put in an exceptional performance in the 2011 Vuelta.

[taught_me_patience]

34. Today erases any doubt that team Sky is doped to the gills

Porte catching Quintana after putting in the work was "US Postalesque".

[ileus]

5. It's been a good tour so far this year....maybe AC is back to his old tricks also.

[Baclava]

6. Pyrenees, here we are!

We'll see who has the oxygen

[jberryhill]

8. Unless you are on the Orica Greenedge squad

They are down by three riders.

We could have done without Tony Martin catching a wheel the other day, too, but at least that was his own fault.

Tinkoff-Saxo just lost Ivan Basso, who was diagnosed with testicular cancer today. So that's one less pulling for Contador. It's not as if Sagan is going to pull Contador over the Pyrenees and Alps.

But it is kind of interesting that Armstrong is pretty much Voldemort, while Contador can come back in, and everyone on Astana _except_ Nibali can race with a prior positive test.

BMC is working like a machine.

What I'm looking for is some dealmaking. Quintana and Nibali are pretty far back in the GC, but would still want stage wins. There was a stage in the Tour of Colorado a few years back where Van Garderen and Quintana were in a two-man breakaway coming into the final climb. Van Garderen wanted the time split over the other GC riders and Quintana wanted the stage win, and they basically cut a deal where they would work together to the line as long as Van Garderen let Quintana take the stage. There are a couple of GC riders who are far enough back to be motivated to work with Tejay against Froome.

[Baclava]

13. Some sad news...Ivan Basso drops out - cancer

Tour de France 2015: Ivan Basso cancer diagnosis rocks cycling

(CNN)—Italian cyclist Ivan Basso has been ruled out of the Tour de France halfway through the competition after being diagnosed with testicular cancer.

The 37-year-old, who races for Russian-owned Tinkoff-Saxo as a teammate of former champion Alberto Contador, announced his withdrawal during an emotional press conference on Monday, shortly after receiving the diagnosis from a doctor.

"For a few days I felt a small pain," he said in Pau, France, the site of the tour's first rest day. "Yesterday our doctor spoke with the doctor of the Tour and we decided to go to make a special analysis to the hospital."

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/07/13/sport/ivan-basso-cancer-tour-de-france/

[jberryhill]

16. Meanwhile, back in the Tinkoff team car...

https://twitter.com/olegtinkov/status/619986574583963648

[seveneyes]

15. This has me so torn up ...

Are we not children of the lord, but we are short on salvation ...

[Baclava]

17. We got Teejay Van Garderen in the mix - he is our salvation

Tejay van Garderen: Welcome to the ‘fab five’

PAU, France (VN) — Fab four? Make it five.

Tejay van Garderen (BMC), left out of the ‘fab four’ group of favorites prior to the Tour de France and ranked as a second-tier contender for the overall, has ridden his way into the Tour’s elite in its first week.

Van Garderen’s chances have always been discussed in the vocabulary of podium potential, not victory. But speaking at a press conference on the Tour’s first rest day, he slotted himself firmly into the group that will fight for yellow in Paris.




http://velonews.competitor.com/2015/07/news/tejay-van-garderen-welcome-to-the-fab-five_377976



no big crashes this year, so far

[seveneyes]

19. You got that right ...

But then the big black bull comes like A Caesar ...

[Baclava]

20. Nice tunes! but Contador is a Vampire?

What was the question?


Tour de France: Contador loses valuable seconds to Froome in Plumelec

Spaniard looks ahead to the Pyrenees

Alberto Contador and his Tinkoff-Saxo team took somewhat of a blow during the team time trial on stage 9 at the Tour de France, losing valuable seconds to stage winners BMC, and more importantly to yellow jersey Chris Froome (Team Sky).




http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/tour-de-france-contador-loses-valuable-seconds-to-froome-in-plumelec/

[jberryhill]

23. The ten second time bonuses add up

I wouldn't put Quintana out of contention.

The time bonuses make a defensive game harder to play.

[Baclava]

39. Ha! 6:30 am drug test for Mr Froome, he says

Pouring icy rain on final summit

Teejay holding podium position, Contador tried a halfhearted attack to no avail, they all survived the Pyrenees

[jberryhill]

40. It's like watching piranhas

They broke Porte and attacked when Geraint Thomas was pretty much done.

Most of BMC was hanging back and I'll bet they have fresh legs today (I watch later in the day, so no spoilers please).

Valverde, Quintana, Contador, Nibali and Van Garderen are going to run him ragged in the Alps.

[muriel_volestrangler]

41. It wasn't much of an attack, seeing as Thomas finished in the group of the leaders

Valverde gained one second on the others. That was it.

[jberryhill]

42. it was about the way it played out on the hill

Thomas had to work extremely hard.

There's a whole nother mountain range ahead. The rest of this race is "Tour de Attack Froome", but they are going to have to work together across teams, and it looked as if that's what they were doing yesterday - taking turns to wear out Porte and then going after Thomas.

Astana should have kept Fugelsang back.

[Baclava]

43. Quintana was the only one capable/willing to match Froome's accelerations, I'd keep an eye on him

no spoilers, but Jean-Christophe Peraud had a nasty crash

Leaving all your skin on the highway makes me cringe everytime I see it

[Baclava]

44. Froome calls out 'irresponsible' Tour de France reporting

Last edited Sun Jul 19, 2015, 03:17 PM - Edit history (3)

"I saw the guy appear on a drag with 50-60km to go," Froome said of the incident. "I had teammates around me. I was boxed in a little bit on left. I saw a guy peering around and I thought, 'That looks strange.' He launched a cup at me and said 'dopée.' No mistake, it was urine."

"I certainly wouldn't blame the public for this. It really is the minority of the people out there ruining it for everyone else out here," Froome said. "But I would blame some of the reporting on the race that has been very irresponsible. Having said that, those individuals know who they are."

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/froome-calls-out-irresponsible-tour-de-france-reporting/
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so throwing pee is a new Le tour tradition?

[longship]

29. When will Le Tour allow horses?

[jberryhill]

30. In Spain, they let bulls chase the peloton

First, they get a rabbit.

Then, the dog chases the rabbit.

Then, the cyclists chase the dog:

After that, they release the cheetahs.

[longship]

31. Gonna have to look that one up. nt

[longship]

32. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Bloodbath. Nt

[Baclava]

33. It's over - he just crushed the field

First Contador, then Teejay cracked

Tour de France 2015: Chris Froome makes huge statement with stage win

• Froome bursts clear to extend general classification lead to 2min 52sec

Team Sky’s Chris Froome blew the peloton apart to take a significant stride towards a second Tour de France victory with a breathtaking win in stage 10 as the race entered the Pyrenees.

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/jul/14/chris-froome-tour-de-france-team-sky-cycling

[olddots]

35. I usually get very doped to watch the tour

oh and those bicycle guys are really weird with their shaved legs and all .

Okay another bad joke but its a known fact that bike racing since the early nineties is huge business and the doping won't leave unless there are some huge shake ups

[Baclava]

37. I vote to let them all juice up! We demand entertainment!

Unless a big crash happens, it's gonna be follow the leader for the next 1000mi.

The race is already over from one superhuman climb yesterday. I'd check his pee again.

tomorrow will probably crack the field even further

[GreatGazoo]

36. Eventually the riders will just be sponsored by steroid makers with logos like NASCAR

Thank you Sheryl Crow for pulling the plug on the BS that was Lance "Lie Strong" Armstrong and the whole Tour du 'Roids.

[spanone]

45. shut it down or level the playing field by giving them all dope.

[Baclava]

47. Spectaor throws urine in Froome's face, calls him 'doper' - Froome blames French media

Tour de France: Chris Froome says urine was thrown at him

Froome, who extended his overall lead to three minutes 10 seconds, said the attack happened early in the stage.

"Unfortunately, someone threw a cup of urine into my face and shouted 'doper', which is extremely wrong on so many different levels," he said.

Froome: "A lot of the reporting on the race has been very irresponsible - the individuals know who they are"

http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/cycling/33581524

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Richie Porte, a team-mate of Tour de France leader Chris Froome, claims he was punched during this year's race as spectators rounded on Team Sky.


http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/cycling/33578004

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meanwhile, Quintana passes Teejay in overall standings for 2nd podium spot

[Baclava]

48. Bummer! Tejay van Garderen abandoned the Tour de France on stage 17 after falling ill.

The BMC rider lost contact on the 161km stage from Digne-les-Bains to Pra-Loup.


Bonked? The shits? Poisoned?