All of your cycling news: May 17, 2010

In today’s bicycle racing news, quotes and reactions from the start of the Tour of California, Pellizotti appears before CONI, 14 days off bike seat for Sven Nys and more.

(c) Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

Tour of California:

• At the end of the 170km opening stage of the Amgen Tour of California, HTC-Columbia led their sprinter Mark Cavendish to victory with a perfect lead out around the streets of downtown Sacramento. “I’m really happy,” said Cavendish after the stage. “I thought it was going to be a bunch sprint and the team controlled it perfectly. When you’ve got eight guys giving 100% and all trusting each other it just works. Only one guy crossed with their hands in the air but it’s a team effort.”
• Tom Boonen (Quick Step) was caught in a crash near the finish. He’s a little brusied and bloody, but he’ll be back for today’s stage. “Tom has severe abrasions and burns to his buttocks, back, buttock and behind. It was a heavy fall, his helmet was damaged. Fortunately, he has not broken (anything) and that’s important,” said team manager Wilfried Peeters in a first reaction.
• Lance Armstrong and teammate (and 3 time race winner) Levi Leipheimer finished comfortably with the peloton.

Other Cycling News:

• Suspended Italian rider Franco Pellizotti appeared before the Italian National Olympic Committee today to answer to abnormalities in his biological passport. He calmly rejected doping suspicions and asked for an additional 15 days to review the paperwork that was provided by the UCI.
• The Dutch province of Antwerp Kapellen is looking forward to hosting no less than a million spectators for the opening of the 2010 Tour de France. “It should be a holiday,” said provincial Governor Berx.
• The Saxo Bank team has denied rumors that the U.S. IT company SunGard will take over the main sponsorship of the Danish ProTour racing team. “It is completely false that we are close to signing a contract with SunGard,” said Trey Greenwood, manager of the operating company Riis Cycling.
• Following the U.S. team’s successful showing during the road race portion of the Pan American Road and Track Championships, American riders broke two world records and earned an additional five medals in the track competitions last week. Sarah Hammer won continental titles in the individual pursuit and the omnium, and then joined Dotsie Bausch and Lauren Tamayo to earn another continental title in the women’s team pursuit. Additionally, Theresa Cliff-Ryan won the gold medal in the women’s points race while Cody O’Reilly rode to a silver medal in the men’s scratch race.
• Sven Nys’ summer of mountain biking has screeched to a halt after having surgery to remove a cyst from his buttocks. The cyst has been there for a while, but the problem apparently went from bad to worse after he rode the Fleche du Sud. He’ll have to rest 14 days before getting back on the bike.