Team Astana's shameful legacy

[Dear Wiggo]

Actually, I like what MPCC is doing. They are aware that all of these positives are bull****

You would think, given how close they are to the scene, that their eyes are open to the reality of the possibilities that abound, based on past UCI performance, and the fact that Cookson was in fact part of the UCI during the reign of terror (rot) presided over by McQuaid.

 

[Mellow Velo]

Actually, I like what MPCC is doing. They are aware that all of these positives are bull****

Failing to act?
They are a joke.
Much like the conspiracy theories used to defend their lack of action.

The fear of how easily members can walk away (with the exception of the French teams) is what weakens a voluntary organization.

 

[del1962]

Failing to act?
They are a joke.
Much like the conspiracy theories used to defend their lack of action.

The fear of how easily members can walk away (with the exception of the French teams) is what weakens a voluntary organization.

Isn't it a means to a wt licence for certain teams though?

 

[Tonton]

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct...qYD4BA&usg=AFQjCNFzH0vQaZusPBFhNk3jxvp505RqLw

Astana robbing the stage coach

Good to see Woods call out the doper. And good to see the Chinese emerging as a true old-school cycling nation. Prizes cash with bills unmarked. Very '50s

 

[del1962]

Lets hope he is not like the last Canadian who called out a certain American Riders performances

 

[Ferminal]

Isn't it a means to a wt licence for certain teams though?

No, but ASO/RCS suggest they will only give wildcards to members. For a WT team it's PR value only.

 

[DirtyWorks]

Isn't it a means to a wt licence for certain teams though?

No way. The process granting a WT license is secret, and MPCC is a competitor to the UCI. Why would the UCI want to dilute their worldwide monopoly?

 

[DirtyWorks]

This means that the MPCC have sold out to Vino, right?

No. There's a huge difference between WT and lower. We just don't know what the UCI's plan is with the sanctions.

 

[del1962]

No, but ASO/RCS suggest they will only give wildcards to members. For a WT team it's PR value only.

Perhaps I am wrong, but I thought it was part of Katusha's ploy to meet UCI's ethical standards

 

[TailWindHome]

the Inner Ring ‏@inrng · 11m11 minutes ago
Gazzetta dello Sport says investigators have photos of Dr Ferrari's visit to Astana's Montecatini pre-season camp last year, h/t @cyclingpro

 

[TailWindHome]

the Inner Ring ‏@inrng · 1m1 minute ago
Padova case looks bad for many, not just Astana. Gazzetta piece says 90 riders named in 500 page dossier, including "some unexpected names"

the Inner Ring ‏@inrng · 1m1 minute ago
...but the paper says "there's not a line, nothing" to link Nibali to Ferrari in the file.

 

[Digger]

Frankie

With the sport changing for the better, the young athletes as well as the older athletes will be able to compete fairly. No longer will athletes have to line up knowing they are starting a mile behind the others despite standing on the start line together. We have seen younger cyclists competing at the top level and I believe a lot of their success is due to the sport being cleaner.

Greg

And the reason I took the spot at Eurosport was to be a part of the new system, with [new UCI president] Brian Cookson coming in. Looking at the data and the speeds of racing, they are within the realm of human performance. I thought a lot about doing the stuff for Eurosport. I can see how difficult it is for journalists, you get to know the riders, they are good people, they are not bad people, most of the riders… they are part of a team, and they get dragged into it. But I feel confident that the sport is going in the right direction, and work being done on new testing is great. Within three or four years, the testing will be infallible, which will make the sport completely credible.

Vaughters

“Culturally, it’s 180 degrees from when I was racing,” Vaughters said. “If you look at it today, the people that make the decision (to dope) are quickly ostracized. It’s not accepted. It’s not what the cool kids do anymore ”

And then finally from Ashenden - I know who I believe

I don’t care what broadcasters, op-eds, ‘journalists with access’ or the sport administrators themselves have to say about this. I know the cycling fraternity are afraid to speak out, because I witnessed it myself yesterday. Omerta is alive and well in September 2012.
Despite the self-serving data bending and associated propaganda to the contrary, I am led to believe that there are pockets of organised, highly sophisticated dopers even within ‘new age’ cycling teams. Personally, I don’t accept that the ‘dark era’ has ended, it has just morphed into a new guise.

 

[deValtos]

the Inner Ring ‏@inrng · 1m1 minute ago
...but the paper says "there's not a line, nothing" to link Nibali to Ferrari in the file.

Daniel Friebe @friebos
Gazzetta says Nibali not mentioned in Padova report linking Ferrari & Astana. BUT Nibali was present when Ferrari visited team in Nov 2013.

 

[whittashau]

Daniel Friebe @friebos
Gazzetta says Nibali not mentioned in Padova report linking Ferrari & Astana. BUT Nibali was present when Ferrari visited team in Nov 2013.

I've read the opposite

 

[deValtos]

I've read the opposite

Yea I've seen both written, decided to do some quick google research of my own.

Ferrari was supposedly seen at the 2013 Montecatini Terme training camp so first link that comes up was this http://proteam-astana.com/?attachment_id=555 from Astanas own website showing them go-karting.

I did some more googling and found a bunch of images showing Vincenzo Nibali most definitely present at the go-karting event here
He has the same jersey as the guys from Astanas own website so he was for sure at the 2013 november Montecatini Terme training camp.

Maybe he was not there at the same time as Ferrari but it seems he was for sure at this training camp unless I'm making a mistake and have the wrong training camp ? (plz correct me if i do )

 

[bewildered]

what does it matter whether Nibali was present or not? You think a clean guy is going to lead (and beat) a team full of dopers?

 

[the sceptic]

what does it matter whether Nibali was present or not? You think a clean guy is going to lead (and beat) a team full of dopers?

yeah it's absurd to think that.

Nibali is doping. But when he got destroyed by team sky he was cleans.

 

[Moose McKnuckles]

It appears Gazetta peered under Astana's hood and found some Ferrari engines.

 

[Escarabajo]

Come on guys, you are being very skeptical about this.

All I need is to look at Vino's eyes and see that he is telling the truth. Vino seems to be a very honest man.

 

[deValtos]

what does it matter whether Nibali was present or not? You think a clean guy is going to lead (and beat) a team full of dopers?

You're thinking too small. Irrespective of whether Nibali dopes or not, any hint of his involvement ups the ramifications for Astana tenfold. Though I'd like to think they're dead in the water right now ... this is pro cycling ...

 

[deValtos]

I've seen numerous times on twitter that apparently Paolo Slongo is linked in the report, though no sources ...

 

[neineinei]

http://www.vg.no/sport/sykkel/sykkel/ny-rapport-kobler-astana-til-dopinglegen/a/23351629/

VG knows that the Italian investigators discovered lists of a number of Astana riders when they raided the apartment of Stefano Ferrari, the doping doctors son. This happened in fashionable Monte Carlo, where his son for a while lived.

Phone tap

They also tapped telephone conversations between Vinokurov and Stefano Ferrari showing that Astana boss asked for Farraris assistance for twelve riders from his team. Tour de France winner Vincenzo Nibali is not among those mentioned, but so is instead his coach.

It is unclear where the information about the coach is from. La Repubblica is mentioned, but the information about the raid of Stefanos flat seems to be from somewhere else, "VG knows". And then the information about the phone taps in the next paragraph.

Back to Anders K. Christiansen again, one of the journalists Hushovd blacklisted. He has before written about the Ferrari e-mails seized from some server in Finland. He seems to have had a source who knew a lot about this investigation. He is the "Scandinavian journalist" mentioned here:

Nibali was asked: "Back in 2009 there were accusations about you an Michele Ferrari. Can you look us in the eye and tell us today if you have ever met this guy and where do you think these accusations came from?

After the question was translated into Italian, he looked the Scandinavian journalist who asked the question in the eye from just two metres away and replied.

"No. I've never personally met him," he said in Italian.

 

[thehog]

http://www.vg.no/sport/sykkel/sykkel/ny-rapport-kobler-astana-til-dopinglegen/a/23351629/



It is unclear where the information about the coach is from. La Repubblica is mentioned, but the information about the raid of Stefanos flat seems to be from somewhere else, "VG knows". And then the information about the phone taps in the next paragraph.

Back to Anders K. Christiansen again, one of the journalists Hushovd blacklisted. He has before written about the Ferrari e-mails seized from some server in Finland. He seems to have had a source who knew a lot about this investigation. He is the "Scandinavian journalist" mentioned here:

No wonder Cookson was holding off the announcement on the licence. And spending the extra cash on target testing.

 

[Samson777]

Come on guys, you are being very skeptical about this.

All I need is to look at Vino's eyes and see that he is telling the truth. Vino seems to be a very honest man.

Post of the day
Vino approves.

 

[sniper]

No wonder Cookson was holding off the announcement on the licence. And spending the extra cash on target testing.

this indeed.
seems UCI wanted to be (seen to be) ahead of the scandal.