A day without doping is like a day without thunderstorms. Unfortunately, it’s lightning and thunder today.

Ivan Basso successfully plea bargained to close a judicial inquiry into doping and Operation Puerto. He will pay a fine of around $15,000 USD instead of spending six months in jail (ESPN/Sportbild.de)
Bernhard Kohl has requested that his B-sample be tested. [...]

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I’ve been a little tied up with 2009 bikes lately, but the racing goes on:

Gerolsteiner’s Carlo Westphal took his first professional victory in the fifth stage of the Eneco Tour, but Andre Greipel of the Columbia team still sits in the lead with an 11 second advantage over Jose Ivan Gutierrez of Caisse d’Epargne. Here’s [...]

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Despite rumors to the contrary, there were no attacks on the yellow jersey today, and Carlos Sastre stood atop the podium on the Champs Elysee this afternoon. He was flanked by Cadel Evans, once again a groomsman, and Bernhard Kohl. Sastre is the third Spaniard to win the Tour in three years. Oscar Pereiro won [...]

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It was no surprise to hear this morning that Damiano Cungeo dropped out of the race overnight. After his third (and worst) crash, the injuries were just too much.
Today’s stage is a little shorter and flatter than what they’ve encountered in the past week or so. It’s just 163km with two mountains near the start [...]

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Today’s stage from Embrun to L’Alpe de Huez is said to be the toughest day of the race and it was expected to separate the men from the boys. The riders faced 3 HC climbs today as well as the unrelenting Alpine sun.
Inside the first kilometer, Rubén Pérez (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Rémy Di Gregorio (Française des Jeux) [...]

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