Team Garmin-Transitions CEO Jonathan Vaughters said he is standing behind cyclist David Zabriskie despite his name being included in Floyd Landis’ sweeping accusations of doping Thursday.
“I have no intention of pulling David Zabriskie from this race nor do I have any intention of pulling him from our team,” Vaughters said late Thursday night from California, where Zabriskie is in second place after Friday’s sixth stage of the Tour of California.
Landis lost his 2006 Tour de France title after testing positive for synthetic testosterone. He mentioned Zabriskie along with seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong and Johan Bruyneel, the team director when they all rode for U.S. Postal Service, as those who used or approved the use of banned substances.
Zabriskie’s name was not mentioned in Landis’ detailed letter to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, but was included in an story in which Landis confessed he doped for several years.
Zabriskie, who would not comment, was Landis’ U.S. Postal teammate from 2002-04 and has been with the Boulder-based Garmin-Transitions since 2008. Vaughters said he did not discuss the allegations with Zabriskie when word of the letter broke Wednesday night.
“Dave and I had a very short conversation,” Vaughters said. “I basically said we have to concentrate on this race and that I know his behavior on this team has been impeccable.”
Garmin-Transitions began in 2007 on the basis of weekly drug testing and has been nicknamed Team Clean. Vaughters said there has never been a question about Zabriskie’s honesty. Vaughters said Zabriskie has done more than 100 urine tests and 40 to 50 blood tests while with Garmin-Transitions.
“Everything with his drug testing, his blood analysis and everything else on this team has been impeccable,” Vaughters said, “and I have no doubt he will win this race clean.”
Zabriskie, 31, is the only American to win stages in all three Grand Tours.
Team director Matt White, another U.S. Postal teammate of Landis, was mentioned by Landis in a New York Times article. White is directing Garmin-Transitions’ other team in the Giro d’Italia and could not be reached for comment.
Vaughters took solace in knowing none of the accusations came while his two employees were with Garmin-Transitions.
“The foundation of this team and since the inception of this team has been that we are going to race clean,” Vaughters said. “That has been the fact. That has been something that can withstand any level of scrutiny that’s out there. And that will continue to be the case, win, lose, fail, succeed from here forward.”
John Henderson: 303-954-1299 or jhenderson@denverpost.com
