Ghent, Belgium – Former rider Raymond Poulidor thinks Alexandre Vinokourov is tough enough to block out the talk about his relationship with Italian doctor Michele Ferrari and focus on winning the Tour de France.
Last year, Ferrari was cleared by an Italian appeals court of distributing health-threatening doping products to athletes. He has always denied he dispensed illegal substances.
Vinokourov, who was third on the 2003 Tour, claims to only use Ferrari as a physical trainer and not for medical purposes.
Nevertheless, cycling chief Pat McQuaid said their relationship damages the sport’s credibility.
Poulidor thinks Vinokourov should not be cast as a cycling villain.
“You know so many things are said,” Poulidor said Monday.
“Are they real? Are they based on anything? Now, what happens in cycling, even if it is a young rider or an old rider, there’s always doubt that creeps in. We need to get over all that.
“I think he’s stronger than that. He has the morale to block this out.” The 33-year-old Vinokourov is among the favorites to win the race. He placed fifth in 2005 and missed last year’s race after several of his teammates were kicked out because of their links to a Spanish blood-doping investigation.
“He’s invested everything for the Tour de France,” Poulidor said. “He was very disappointed not to start last year.” Poulidor, who took part in 14 Tours from 1962-76, knows what it’s like to get close.
He finished in second place three times and was third five times – never getting the better of five-time winner and rival Jacques Anquetil. Vinokourov could never best Lance Armstrong.
Marked man
Mark Cavendish is just three days into his first Tour and has already crashed twice.
The British rider fell for the second consecutive stage Monday when he was one of around 30 riders to fall in mass pileup some 1.24 miles from the end.
The 22-year-old Cavendish, who comes from the Isle of Man and rides for the T-Mobile team, crossed the line with other injured riders. His shirt was ripped and blood was pouring from his knee.
On Sunday’s first stage from London to Canterbury, he and Robbie McEwen both tumbled.
Thoughtful Thor
Although focused on winning the green jersey for the best sprinter in the Tour, Thor Hushovd can still spare a thought for Credit Agricole teammate Saul Raisin.
Raisin crashed in April last year on the Circuit de la Sarthe race in central France, fracturing his face, hip and collarbone. He then slipped into a coma and doctors feared for his life.
Hushovd became a close friend as Raisin recovered and the two have been in regular contact recently.
“I talked with him just before the Tour de France,” Hushovd said. “He’s happy, he’s going to ride the national championships.
I just hope he’s going to come back and be a normal rider again.” The coma left Raisin unable to walk or talk at first, but seven months later he was back riding his bike again – stunning his doctors.
“It’s impressive to see how fast he recovered,” Hushovd said.
“Anyway, he made his main goal just to come back normally. Even if he can’t win a race again, that’s not important compared to how bad he was.” Hushovd was one of several riders caught in the main crash.
“Now, I just have to get points every day,” the Norwegian rider said.
Close call
American rider Chris Horner was just behind the group of riders who crashed near the end of Monday’s stage.
“Everybody went down, Thor (Hushovd) went down, (Fabian) Cancellara down, (Francisco) Ventoso went down, two guys from my team – Leif (Hoste) and Freddy Rodriguez – both crashed,” Horner said. “I was behind it … I started backing off.”
Grin and bear it
Even before a crash, Robbie McEwen rode Monday’s stage in pain.
“My knees are hurting and it felt like I was sitting sideways on the bike,” McEwen said after finishing the sprint stage in sixth place. “But I tried anyway … I’m still in the race.”
McEwen, who finished as the best sprinter in 2002, ’04 and ’06, has eyes on a fourth green jersey.
