Vacansoleil’s Luke Roberts from Australia, left, sprint to win the third stage of the Vuelta a Murcia cycling tour between Las Torres de Cotillas and Alhama de Murcia, Murcia, Spain, Friday, March 5, 2010.
A French judge has issued a arrest warrant for Floyd Landis in connection with a computer hacking, after he was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France title because of doping. The Court wants to question Landis about his potential connection with the alleged hacking of the computer system at the French anti-doping facilities.
The hacking occurred at a time when Landis was trying to defend himself against the failed drug test. Landis, unable to prove his case, was ultimately banned from the sport for two years.
Lance Armstrong is going to race in the Criterium International in Corsica. That will pin him up against world road cycling champion Cadel Evans and Olympic gold medalist Samuel Sanchez – which will make for an interesting race.
The Criterium International is raced in three stages over two days — a medium mountain stage Saturday, and a flat stage and short individual time trial Sunday. This year’s race will be the first major professional race held in Corsica since the last Tour of Corsica was run in 1982.
Armstrong’s current main rival, reigning Tour de France champion and former teammate Alberto Contador, is not scheduled to participate in the event.
Corsica is a candidate to host the “grand depart” of the 100th Tour de France in 2013, and hosting the Criterium International is seen by some observers as a trial run for that. Prudhomme said the two races were so different that no conclusions could be drawn.
USA Cycling announced on January 22, 2010, the dates and venues for the 21 events that will comprise the USA Cycling Mountain Bike National Calendars.
In their fourth year, the three calendars will provide professional and elite level athletes with top quality racing opportunities across all disciplines of mountain biking: (1) cross-country, (2) gravity, and (3) ultra-endurance.
Consisting of 10 events in six states, the cross country calendar will kick off with the U.S. Cup Fontana in Fontana, Calif. on March 27 and wrap up on September 6 with the Laddies Loppet Stage Race in Callaway, Minn.
The eight-event gravity calendar will span five states, featuring downhill, 4-cross, super D, and dual slalom competitions. The series begins April 10 with the Santa Ynez Valley Classic in Buelton, Calif. and concludes September 12 with the Whiteface 5th Annual 5k Downhill in Wilmington, New York.
A five-race ultra-endurance calendar will give competitors the chance to duke it out in 12-hour, six-hour, 24-hour, and marathon events, starting with the 12-hours of Santos in Ocala, Fla. on Feb. 20 and ending with the USA Cycling Marathon Mountain Bike National Championships in Breckenridge, Colo. on the Fourth of July.
The Amgen Tour of California will kick off on May 16, 2010 and continue to May 23, 2010. It is the largest cycling event in American. The format of the race is a Tour de France style race.
The race started in 2005. The aim of the race is to raise awareness and funds to support services and programs for those with cancer.
The 2010 race will cover the following cities: Nevada City, Davis, San Francisco, San Jose, Visalia, Pasadena, Los Angeles, Sacramento, Santa Rosa, Santa Cruz, Modesto, Bakersfield, Big Bear Lake, and Thousand Oaks.
Stage 1: Nevada City to Sacramento
Stage 2: Davis to Santa Rosa
Stage 3: San Fransico to Santa Cruz
Stage 4: San Jose to Modesto
Stage 5: Visalia to Bakersfield
Stage 6: Pasadena to Big Bear Lake
Stage 7: Los Angeles
Stage 8: Thousand Oaks
Last week, the 26 rider lineup featuring Lance Armstrong was announced for 2010. The well balance team is made up of experienced riders and young talented riders. The team is currently in Tucson, Arizonia, where they will train together for the next two weeks.
The ultimate goal of the team is to compete in the Tour De France as well as other tour races. However, the teams ultimate goal will be to help Lance Armstrong win his 8th Four de France. That will be an extraordinary accomplishment for a man at the age of 37.
Of the 26 riders, at least three of them have ridden in El Tour de Tucson including Armstrong (in 1997), Chris Horner, and Matthew Busche. Busche finished 135th overall in this year’s El Tour de Tucson.
The team will make it debat at the 2010 Tour Down Under in Australia.
Italian cyclist Matteo Priamo was banned for 4 years for supplying doping productions to a teammate. The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that Priamo provided the endurance booster CERA to his teammate Emanuele Sella, on the CSF Group Navigare team. Emanuele Sella received a one year ban for cooperating.
Sella confessed to using CERA. The CERA was provided by Priamo. The Court of Arbitration for Sports, said that its panel of three lawyers had enough evidence to find Priamo’s violation.