As we previously reported, Oscar Pereiro was named the winner of the 2006 Tour de France by the UCI a couple of weeks ago. Yesterday, the Amaury Sport Organization (ASO), the organizer of the Tour de France, declared Pereiro as the official winner.

Race Director Christian Prudhomme, reality distortion field solidly in place, said that “Finally, we have a winner and it is Oscar. Oscar, you have won the Tour out on the road.”

Now don’t get me wrong here. I’m not denying that, for now, pending more long painful litigation, Pereiro is the winner of the race and deserves to have the yellow jersey. That said, calling him the winner “on the road” is going a little far. Furthermore, the poor guy deserves better than the lamely photoshopped “official” photograph published by the ASO. This looks like one of those signs they have at the county fair that you stick your head through. This blog poster (Sara at The First 100 Miles) had some good comments about the photo.

Hey, kids! You, too, can look like the winner of the Tour!

Will the ASO suck it up and re-declare Floyd Landis as the official winner if he wins his appeal to the CAS?