So ASO, the organization that produces the Tour de France, has banned Astana from the 2008 race. Astana is the cycling team to which Lance Armstrong's former Discovery team fled last season after folding.
Haven't been following the cycling drama? Here's a quick recap:
1. Lance wins 6 Tours under U.S. Postal Service and then 1 under Discovery Channel. Johan Bruyneel is the "head coach" of both teams.
2. At the 2007 Tour, a rider who is a favorite to win le Tour and who is famous as a rock star in Kazahkstan crashes.
3. Just as its top rider has virtually locked up the win, the Rabobank team gets booted from the Tour because that rider gets caught lying (not doping, just lying).
4. The Kazahkstan rider gets caught doping. His entire team is booted from the Tour.
5. Disco wins the Tour and second place. Having lapped up 1 year and 1 win with Lance, Discovery Channel announces that it's ending its sponsorship at the end of '07.
6. Then, with a ludicrous story that no one in the industry believes, the Disco team management announces that, despite being the dominant team in the sport for nearly a decade, it will fold at the end of the '07
7. season because "the environment in cycling isn't right to bring a new sponsor into the sport". Bruyneel retires.
8. Meanwhile, more Astana team members are caught doping.
9. The Astana team, named after the capital of Kazahkstan and whose sponsors are an eastern European conglomerate of oil and natural gas extractors, fires more than half the team and management.
10. Bruyneel is successfully wooed out of retirement to become directeur sportif of the NEW and IMPROVED Astana team.
11. Bruyneel brings 80% of the former Discovery Channel team to Astana, including Tour winner Al-puerto Contador and Tour #2 Levi Leipheimer. Trek goes to Astana, too.
12. The "American team" in cycling is now sponsored by Kazahk oil companies. What dude?
Annoyed at last year's embarassing doping problems, the Tour de France has now banned Astana from the race. This despite the fact that Astana is almost entirely another team than the one that raced in 2007! Why? Because the French must punish the sponsors, I suppose. Or perhaps to stir up controversy, which they love.
So kiss the 2008 Tour TV/internet ratings and retail sales goodbye - the "American team" in cycling won't be competing. Is there any hope? Well, we can only hope that Slipstream gets invited to race.
I ask you, then, faithful reader: what's causing more damage to cycling, EPO or ASO?
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