Astana Licence to be withdrawn?

[frenchfry]

Re:

After this Giro, anyone who thinks the "biopassport" works needs to have their head examined.

Cycling is as dirty as it has ever been. Astana putting two guys on the podium, winning stage after stage = Vino and Kash from years back = Ricco and Piepoli at Saunier.

Just a huge FU to the entire cycling world.

For a time I had the feeling that the passport limited the doping experience to a "reasonable" level.

Now I have a tendancy to agree with you, it has become pretty much worthless.

 

[SeriousSam]

Vino wants Aru to do the Tour. Recovery surely won't be a problem for such a young, gifted rider. Perhaps Astana will do a 1-2 Ax3.

 

[slosada]

Re:

Aru was clean today - effort on his face tells the story.
Hesjedal also clean, Hesjedal is actually always clean - just look on his face and body language.
Uran was clean today (effort on his face). But couple of days ago when he lost 10 minutes, he was doped to gills - looked too calm,
Kruijswijk - definetly dirty. Compare to Aru, Aru facial grimaces, breathing heavily, mouth open. But Kruijswijk, very calm, no effort.

May the UCI hire your facial-meter for the reminder of the season? I think it can be a valuable tool to detect and your opinion in court is decisive.

 

[Electress]

Re: Re:

After this Giro, anyone who thinks the "biopassport" works needs to have their head examined.

Cycling is as dirty as it has ever been. Astana putting two guys on the podium, winning stage after stage = Vino and Kash from years back = Ricco and Piepoli at Saunier.

Just a huge FU to the entire cycling world.

as I suggested in the stage thread: it looks like Astana was allowed to continue on the condition they won't attempt to win a GT - so they were just showing how powerful they are, winning stages, getting max allowed in GC (2nd and 3rd), swapping their guys at random, and trying to look as stupid as possible tactically (look at today's stage forum) so that people will finally get it (that this is not normal)

I don't necessarily agree with this bit (but then I wouldn't) but it sure does look like they have basically been given the big ole green light. I wonder why given the 'last chance saloon stuff'?

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Re:

This Giro has been hilarious in the fact that a short while ago - Team Astana was almost kicked out of the sport.

Now we are done with the Giro and they have won 5 stages, the team competition, team points competition, best young rider and have 2 of the 3 podium spots. (Oh, and their best rider didn't even compete)

If this isn't the Biggest FU, I don't know what is.

Correct answer, Sir.

 

[The Hitch]

They won 5 stages and got 2nd and 3rd in the gc of the Giro. WOW.

That's got to be like the most ridiculous team performance ever. The only thing more dodgy I could think of is if some team some day did like 6 stages and a 1st and 2nd on the gc, at the Tour de France, but I don't think that could ever happen.

 

[The Hitch]

Eagerly awaiting andrew hood's (he's a journo so everything he says must be intelligent and based in fact right?) piece tommorow about how there is good reason to believe everything is clean.

 

[veganrob]

Kind of hard to make such a mockery of the sport of cycling but Astana has managed it quite well. Fuq me.

 

[The Hegelian]

It's chutzpah
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=chutzpah

+

a very large middle finger extended to the UCI, you, me, and everyone not wearing light blue.

 

[HiroAntagonist]

Re:

Eagerly awaiting andrew hood's (he's a journo so everything he says must be intelligent and based in fact right?) piece tommorow about how there is good reason to believe everything is clean.

My expectations about Hoodie dwindled years ago. The journalistic omerta never ceases to amaze. In for a dime, in for a dollar I suppose.

 

[mrhender]

Re:

They won 5 stages and got 2nd and 3rd in the gc of the Giro. WOW.

That's got to be like the most ridiculous team performance ever. The only thing more dodgy I could think of is if some team some day did like 6 stages and a 1st and 2nd on the gc, at the Tour de France, but I don't think that could ever happen.

Has anyone got a hold of Cookson to ask him how he feels about the Giro performance of Astana?

I can't really find anything..

Wonder if that is because no-one is asking -or he has gone full hiding/ignore-mode, hoping things blow over by themselves..

 

[ebandit]

mr hender i'm sure cookson would answer questions honestly...........remember he was the one who wanted astana to lose their licence

........even more frustrating for him than others

Mark L

 

[Tangled Tango]

Let´s see what the media says or if they say anything at all. Both Cyclingnews.com and Velonews.com need to step up and write about this. One can only hope they will address this most dubious Astana performance. In most conspiracies, corruption and or illegal activities it is the media that break the story, expose it and bring it to the general public. There is little evidence that this will happen in the case of Astana, but one can hope. Odds are Italy and Spain will keep their media mouths shut on this one, but perhaps the French media will take up the slack as they have no winners in this years Giro and a lot to lose come the Tour de France. If no press brings this up, we can look forward to a very alien *** Tour: Astana vs Sky vs Movistar and lastly Tinkoff.

 

[mrhender]

Re:

mr hender i'm sure cookson would answer questions honestly...........remember he was the one who wanted astana to lose their licence

........even more frustrating for him than others

Mark L

Not entirely sure stripping the licence was the end goal..

I agree that he can't be happy with what he is seing.

Hence the point why has no-one asked him, I'am sure a journo would get quite a lot hits to such story...

And if he refuses to comment, then such refusal can be part of a (plenty-hits) story as well...

I guess the overall point is that either 1) I'am wondering about is the seemingly lack of interest in pursuing the issue just because the case is formally "closed"...
Or 2) Cookson has taken a defeat and try to avoid the issue contrary to the level of rhetoric and visibility he ensured from the get-go...

 

[Dear Wiggo]

Re: Re:

They won 5 stages and got 2nd and 3rd in the gc of the Giro. WOW.

That's got to be like the most ridiculous team performance ever. The only thing more dodgy I could think of is if some team some day did like 6 stages and a 1st and 2nd on the gc, at the Tour de France, but I don't think that could ever happen.

Has anyone got a hold of Cookson to ask him how he feels about the Giro performance of Astana?

I can't really find anything..

Wonder if that is because no-one is asking -or he has gone full hiding/ignore-mode, hoping things blow over by themselves..

The best I could do was suggest he'd have to do some significant navel gazing.

 

[veganrob]

Astana has called out Cookson at the "Last Chance Saloon". lol.

chirp, chirp, chirp

 

[Moose McKnuckles]

4 Astanas in the top 10 on the Sestriere stage. LMFAO. 2 Astanas on the podium. 5 stage wins. Team classification.

Astana have rung up the mother of all bar tabs at the Last Chance Saloon, and they have no intention of paying it.

 

[meat puppet]

I'd say they did a hostile takeover of the saloon itself.

Interesting to see if this was giro only or do they keep going at the tour plus prep races.

 

[zlev11]

6 riders in the Top 25 GC

 

[IndianCyclist]

Re:

4 Astanas in the top 10 on the Sestriere stage. LMFAO. 2 Astanas on the podium. 5 stage wins. Team classification.

Astana have rung up the mother of all bar tabs at the Last Chance Saloon, and they have no intention of paying it.

There was a gunfight at the Saloon and guess what there were UCI dead bodies everywhere

 

[Alcanelo]

Nibali's veins will have veins come July.

 

[BYOP88]

Wow! What would they have done if they weren't in the last chance Saloon?

 

[doperhopper]

Re:

Let´s see what the media says or if they say anything at all. Both Cyclingnews.com and Velonews.com need to step up and write about this. One can only hope they will address this most dubious Astana performance. In most conspiracies, corruption and or illegal activities it is the media that break the story, expose it and bring it to the general public. There is little evidence that this will happen in the case of Astana, but one can hope. Odds are Italy and Spain will keep their media mouths shut on this one, but perhaps the French media will take up the slack as they have no winners in this years Giro and a lot to lose come the Tour de France. If no press brings this up, we can look forward to a very alien *** Tour: Astana vs Sky vs Movistar and lastly Tinkoff.

Well, realistically, we can rather get yet another New Clean Era piece from Andrew Hood where he praises the fact there are no more crazy accelerations traded between contenders, nor huge attacks with 50kms and two cols to go... so they deserve at least a "benefit of doubt"


http://velonews.competitor.com/2013/05/news/road/analysis-nibalis-giro-win-represents-quandary-of-new-cycling_289152
http://velonews.competitor.com/2015/04/news/analysis-the-curious-case-of-alejandro-valverde_368078

 

[Mr.White]

Re:

This Giro has been the biggest joke i have seen in quite a while.

Bigger jokes were Tour's 2012 and 2013

 

[pastronef]

Re: Re:

Bigger jokes were Tour's 2012 and 2013

5 stage wins with 3 riders and six riders in the top 25 for the evil team too?