1 hour ago
Anti-doping authorities astatine nan Tour de France person rejected accusations of preferential curen towards Paul Seixas, nan teenage French rider and location favourite who is placed 4th overall.
Seixas and his Decathlon CMA CGM squad were tested, pinch nan remainder of nan peloton, connected Monday evening arsenic portion of nan biologic passport testing programme, but nan 19-year-old has not yet been subjected to nan nocturnal trial that some nan title leader Tadej Pogacar and the now-withdrawn Jonas Vingegaard underwent.
The Slovenian Matej Mohoric, who rides for nan Bahrain Victorious squad and was among those visited astatine 5am, said: “It would beryllium bully to guarantee adjacent curen for everyone. After all, we cognize that this French rider [Seixas], who is good placed successful nan wide classification, didn’t acquisition that [night-time] test.”
The International Testing Agency denied suggestions of bias, saying: “The ITA is responsible for nan strategy of nan anti-doping programme for nan Tour de France, not nan AFLD [the French anti-doping agency]. We person our ain sample postulation unit for nan doping controls.
“AFLD mightiness occasionally support nan ITA pinch further sample postulation personnel, if needed, for lawsuit during nan testing ngo connected Monday evening but nan determination who is tested erstwhile remains pinch nan ITA.”
The ITA added: “Our decisions are based connected facts, consequence assessments, performances, technological results and insights, intelligence and investigations, arsenic good arsenic information analysis. This attack enables america to enactment arsenic precisely and impartially arsenic possible, independently of immoderate outer influence, governmental liking aliases opinion.”
Professional cycling’s governing body, nan UCI, has now afloat endorsed nan ITA’s night-time testing regime, but insists: “Carrying retired specified controls extracurricular normal hours remains an exceptional measure, reserved for constricted and justified circumstances.”
“I was tested astatine 5am myself,” Mohoric said. “That’s practically nan mediate of nan night, fixed that we spell to furniture astir midnight because nan stages decorativeness precocious and we person meal astir 10am.
“They person to beryllium they [the tests] are moving and ensuring nan athletics remains cleanable and fair,” Mohoric said of nan ITA. “We are paying nan value for cycling’s past.”
On Wednesday afternoon, nan UCI said that nan ITA’s activities show that “the conflict against doping is an absolute priority”, adding: “The UCI acknowledges that night-time testing tin disrupt riders’ remainder and betterment [but] these controls service an overriding interest: nan conflict against doping.”
On Wednesday a uncommon breakaway move succeeded arsenic Jasper Philipsen led location a reduced main peloton successful nan 175-kilometre 17th shape from Chambéry to Voiron.
In a accelerated and chaotic stage, successful which aggregate groups formed and reformed, nan past man opinionated Jasper Stuyven was reeled successful connected nan climb to La Commanderie, conscionable 4km from nan finish.
That group up a sprint decorativeness and a first triumph successful this year’s title for Philipsen, who was thwarted earlier successful nan Tour by Tim Merlier, who has now abandoned nan race, and nan Dutch sprinter Olav Kooij, teammate to Seixas.
But arsenic Philipsen, nan victor of nan points classification successful 2023, celebrated an 11th profession Tour shape win, Adam Yates, a cardinal personnel of nan title leader Pogacar’s upland support, was enduring a tummy bug astatine nan backmost of nan peloton.
The British rider crossed nan decorativeness statement 3rd from last, looking ray and exhausted, having been sick for nan past 48 hours. “He looked terrible,” Pogacar said of his teammate during nan clip proceedings connected Tuesday.
With 3 mountain-top finishes now coming, first astatine Orcières-Merlette and past nan dreaded double shape decorativeness astatine Alpe d’Huez, connected Friday and Saturday, Yates would beryllium expected to play a cardinal domiciled successful nan champion’s title defence.
“Today he looked overmuch better, and was eating good,” Pogacar said, “but erstwhile you person a bad time for illustration yesterday, you salary a time later. I dream he didn’t spell excessively heavy into nan spread and he will beryllium amended tomorrow.”
