Joining the elite club...

So another great athlete goes down in my book under 'Not a Fan Of'. The newest inductee to join this elite club, along with LeBron James and Derek Jeter, among others, is 2011 Tour de France winner Cadel Evans. I wasn't a big fan of him to begin with, but his response to Contador's suspension just sealed the deal. I'm just upset that my favorite rider, Hushovd, signed with Evans' team, BMC

Evans: Contador suspension shows cycling in forefront of anti-doping

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/evans-contador-suspension-shows-cycling-in-forefront-of-anti-doping) 

Disqualifying and banning the winner of the 2010 Tour de France shows that cycling is leading in the sports world's fight against doping, said Cadel Evans. The BMC Racing Team rider, who won the 2011 Tour de France, supported the decision to ban Alberto Contador for two years, while decrying the fact that the process took so long.

"I think the sport of cycling has done more than enough to prove it is doing the right thing," Evans said, according to Fox News.

"Now it is time for other sports to look at cycling and replicate what cycling does, so the fight against drugs in sport can maybe be beaten one day across all sports."

The Australian did not give an opinion on Contador's guilt or innocence.  "I don't know all that goes on behind there and what all the real facts are and so on.

"I go along and do my job and that's up to the authorities to decide.”

Like so many others, Evans got lost in the time-consuming twists, turns and delays in the case. "It was a case that dragged on for so long I had no idea what was going on and what was going to happen. I just read the newspapers like the rest of us."

 
However, on the other hand, Eddy Merckx had a much better response, at least in my opinion:

Merckx deplores "excessive" punishment in Contador ban

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/merckx-deplores-excessive-punishment-in-contador-ban) 

On Monday, the news of Alberto Contador's two-year ban spread quickly across the globe and triggered a variety of reactions. At the Tour of Qatar in the Middle East, race organiser and all-time champion Eddy Merckx was baffled at the CAS decision, blaming not Contador but sporting authorities for the bad news.

"It's very sad for him and for cycling in general. It's as if somebody wanted to kill cycling," Merckx told Eurosport. "I'm very surprised and disgusted. It's bad for everyone, for the reputation of cycling, for the sponsors."

He continued by insinuating that cycling's efforts to combat doping were excessive and that other sports did not apply the rules in the same way. "I think it's going too far - when a test result is like this one, 0.0000... it's only in cycling that this sort of thing happens.

"I'm the first to say that we need controls, but I think that we are going too far in cycling."

And finally, I guess its a little late for one to hope that, that Jan Ullrich's verdict will be just as swift:

Ullrich verdict set to be handed down by CAS on Thursday

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/ullrich-verdict-set-to-be-handed-down-by-cas-on-thursday)

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has announced that it will hand down a decision on the case concerning the International Cycling Union (UCI), and Jan Ullrich on Thursday.

The UCI appealed the Swiss Olympic Committee's decision to close the file on evidence linking Ullrich to the Operacion Puerto doping case. Ullrich retired after being implicated in the 2006 investigation, and was later linked to blood evidence by DNA testing.

A finding was due to be announced mid last month however, the case was again delayed having been filed at the end of March 2010.

Ullrich, 1997 Tour de France winner and five-time runner-up, retired in February 2007 having been implicated in Operacion Puerto the year prior. In July 2009, Swiss Olympic, which handles doping cases in the country, announced that it was officially opening an investigation. But again, it came to a standstill. Until February 10, 2010, when they announced that since Ullrich had quit his membership in the national federation in 2006, they had no jurisdiction over him, and the investigation was closed. However, both the International Cycling Union and the World Anti-Doping Agency appealed that decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and it’s this case which is now due to be resolved.

Thursday's announcement will be the latest in the big week of legal cases with United States Attorney's Office in Los Angeles close down a two-year investigation into allegations of fraud and doping that involved the US Postal Service Team and Lance Armstrong last Friday and then the CAS handing Alberto Contador a two-year sanction for his positive test for clenbuterol at the 2010 Tour de France.

Record Breaking World Series Game

I know this is a cycling blog, but I'd like to step back for a second and talk about Albert Pujols's insane night for game 3 of the World Series!

Pujols has landmark performance in Game 3 rout

(http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=sh-henson_pujols_records_world_series_game_three_102211)

ARLINGTON, Texas – Albert Pujols(notes) let his bat do his talking Saturday night. Loud. Clear. Historic. And devastating to the Texas Rangers.

Pujols, widely acknowledged as baseball’s best hitter, slugged three home runs in the St. Louis Cardinals’ 16-7 pummeling of the Rangers in Game 3 of the World Series. It might have been the best offensive performance in the history of the Fall Classic.

The three homers tied a series record achieved twice by Babe Ruth and once by Reggie Jackson. His five hits equaled the mark held by Paul Molitor of the Milwaukee Brewers. His six runs batted in tied the record set by the Yankees’ Bobby Richardson in 1960 and tied by Yankee Hideki Matsui(notes) in 2009.

Not bad company. Oh, yes, and Pujols set a series record with 14 total bases. And became the first player to get hits in four consecutive innings.

“It’s pretty special,” he said of equaling the feats of Ruth and Jackson. “Those guys were great players. To do it on this stage is amazing. At the same time, I didn’t walk into the ballpark thinking I’d have a night like tonight.”

What got into him? Sure, he’s a lifetime .328 hitter. His first 11 seasons match up with just about anybody who has ever worn a uniform. And he’s been just as good in the postseason, batting .331 with 15 home runs in 248 at-bats before Saturday’s onslaught.

But he was 0 for 6 in the first two games of this series. And he was called out for avoiding the media after his ninth-inning error cost the Cardinals Game 2.

He said that he was in the clubhouse dining area and didn’t realize reporters wanted to talk to him. Not a convincing alibi, but whatever he was eating, Cardinals manager Tony La Russa ought to order 25 portions and have every player chow down before Sunday’s Game 4.

This time, Pujols graced the interview room moments after the game.

“I felt I’d swung the bat well the last couple games,” he said. “That’s the way baseball is. You have to make sure you don’t get frustrated and bounce back the next day and help the team win.

“It’s not about me, it’s about our ballclub. It’s about representing the Cardinals.”

Others were in awe.

“The guy just got locked in,” Rangers manager Ron Washington said. “He’s a super player. There is no doubt about it. He certainly came to play tonight.”

Pujols’ performance overshadowed the fact that a taut, low-scoring series suddenly morphed into a shower of singles, doubles and home runs by a host of players.

Maybe it was the increase in temperature from a hand-stinging 47 degrees in St. Louis to a summerlike 80 in Texas. Perhaps the vaunted relief pitchers on both sides are finally tiring from overuse.

Or maybe a blown call early on was like twisting the cap off a shaken carbonated beverage. What should have been a rally-killing double play instead became a four-run Cardinals fourth inning, the beginning of their 13-run explosion over the same four innings in which Pujols had hits.

The Cardinals benefited when first base umpire Ron Kulpa called Matt Holliday(notes) safe even though Mike Napoli(notes) had tagged him before he reached the bag in the fourth inning. The Rangers didn’t seem fazed, answering with consecutive three-run innings.

But the Cardinals kept scoring, sandwiching three runs between those Rangers rallies. Then added four the next inning. And two the next.

The Rangers simply couldn’t keep up. They continued to produce baserunners – amassing 13 hits to the Cardinals’ 15 in the game – but stranded eight runners. Both teams finished with more hits than they had in the first two games combined.

“We fought, we tried to get back in that ballgame but it was a little too much for us,” Washington said.

The scoring began on a solo home run by Allen Craig(notes), whose clutch pinch hits in the first two games against hard-throwing Rangers reliever Alexi Ogando(notes) gave the Cardinals leads. Craig started in right field because the designated hitter is allowed in the American League ballpark; Lance Berkman(notes), the usual right fielder, served as the DH.

Ogando faced Craig again in Game 3 … and struck him out in the sixth inning. Not that Ogando celebrated for long: Pujols followed with a 423-foot, three-run home run off the facing of the club level, and each of the other five batters Ogando faced reached base.

Pujols also homered in his next two at-bats as the Cardinals extended their lead to the point of gluttony.

It was a night of slugging, a night of records and of milestones And one was accomplished by someone besides Pujols: La Russa moved into second place in postseason victories among managers, passing Bobby Cox and trailing only Joe Torre.

Pujols savored that mark as well.

“It’s special to share a special moment with Tony,” he said. “He’s been like a dad to me. Those are moments that when you are done with this game, you can take with you.”

Mark Cavendish, My Thoughts

I've been a fan of cycling since 2003 and from the beginning I have loved to watch the bunch sprints. Thor Hushovd and Tom Boonen have been my two favorites for the longest time.
When Mark Cavendish began his first Tour in 2007, I really didn't hear that much about him, but in 2008 when he began winning stages, I couldn't stand him. Here he was, taking wins away from my favorites. I found Cavendish very arrogant and egocentric; I hated every time he won. I never denied he was a great sprinter, but I just couldn't stand him.

However, about six months ago, I starting following him on Twitter. I wanted to learn more about this amazing cyclists that I didn't like, and hoped he would be able to prove me wrong in my feeling against him, which he has done. He is not egocentric as I originally thought. Cavendish makes sure to thank his team when he wins. He knows that while it may be his win, it is his team that helps.

Yesterday on the final stage of the Tour de France, and because I knew that Hushovd had no chance for the Green Jersey this year, I was crossing my fingers that Mark Cavendish could pull it off, and win for the third time in a row in Paris. Not only was he able to win, but he was also able to keep the Green Jersey that him and his team worked so hard to defend!

In fact, via Twitter, I recently found an article that also really helped me overcome my dislike for Cavendish.

Consistent Cav, an exceptional talent(http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/mattslater/2011/07/consistent_cav_the_great_briti.html)

Jeff Powell was on BBC Radio 5 live several days ago talking about David Haye's defeat by Wladimir Klitschko, a total embarrassment for British sport that pushed the veteran Daily Mail sports writer into full rant mode: Andy Murray, English football and Mark Cavendish, who had just finished fifth in the Tour de France's first bunch sprint. Losers, all of them.

Two days later, Cavendish won the race's fifth stage, delivering the perfect riposte to those who say he can't win without being delivered to the line by his team or when the finish isn't pancake flat.

But most of all he silenced the "ignoramuses" who wrote him off.

OK, I am being unfair. Powell is one of Britain's best boxing writers and his appraisal of Haye's hapless shift in Hamburg was knockout stuff. And neither can he really be blamed for stretching his argument about British inadequacy at the highest level to include the admirable but not-quite-good-enough Murray and England's self-evidently second-rate footballers.

But Powell's throwaway remark about Cavendish had me shaking my head at the radio.

When will they learn?

Cav's not the like the rest of them. He is an anomaly, a British sportsman who beats the best in the world, when it really matters, again and again and again.

Name another home-grown hero/heroine who has been so good for so long? Wayne Rooney? Nearly. Jess Ennis? Maybe next year. Alastair Cook? Let's see how he goes against India. Chrissie Wellington? OK but she is even further from the mainstream than Cavendish.

The Isle of Man-born phenomenon, now 26, has been blitzing sprints around the world almost from the moment he exploded onto the road racing scene in 2007.

Three more Tour de France stage wins have come in the last 10 days, taking his career haul to 19, good enough for joint seventh place on the all-time list, only three behind Lance Armstrong. There have also been notable victories in stellar races such as the Giro d'Italia, Milan-San Remo and Spain's Vuelta.

But it is not just the quality and quantity of his successes that set Cavendish apart from most British stars. It is how he succeeds that causes so much confusion.

Let's be honest, the majority of us still don't really get cycling - too many foreign locations, names and words for our Anglocentric tastes. How can Cavendish keep winning races and still be two hours behind the little Spanish chap in the yellow jersey? He's the winner, isn't he?

The short answer to that question - and it is one I frequently get in the BBC newsroom - is yes, Cavendish is not "winning" the Tour de France itself and he never will. Quite simply, he is the wrong shape to win a 2,000-mile, three-week slog that passes through two mountain ranges. No amount of training will ever change that.

But Le Tour is not like most sports events. There are different races, which appeal to different racers, within the main race. It is not a Test match, it is a series of T20 contests sprinkled throughout a Test and Cavendish is the master blaster who empties the bar every time he comes to the wicket.

His specialty, the bunch sprint, is supposed to be cycling's great lottery. A cavalry charge of colours and grimaces, there are few sights in sport that can match 100 riders or more arriving in a town centre at 45mph. Cavendish, however, has made the unpredictable predictable. After all, he can hit 48mph.

Over the last four years, he has won half of all the "flat" stages contested at the Tour de France, the one event in the calendar that every top rider turns up for in peak condition. And when you look only at the stages that actually finished in bunch sprints (i.e. you strip out the breakaway wins and stages affected by crashes), his success rate climbs to almost 90%. This is not supposed to happen.

Such is Cavendish's domination that his rare defeats become bigger news events than his victories. When former team-mate and verbal sparring partner Andre Greipel beat him to the line for the first time on Tuesday last week, Cav was the story. That he would avenge this loss on Wednesday, in emphatic fashion, was the least surprising sports result in France since New Zealand beat Portugal at the last Rugby World Cup.

This brings in another ingredient to the Cavendish mix: his ability to cope with expectation. The HTC-Highroad team has been put together to give him the best chance of success. But that brings with it extreme pressure. There are almost 80 team employees whose livelihoods depend on Cav's ability to deliver the media exposure the sponsors demand. It is his job to win - and he takes that responsibility seriously.

This partly explains why he sometimes comes across as an arrogant so-and-so. Put a microphone under his nose 30 seconds after he has won another sprint and what you get is a heart-pumping release of self-belief that can upset listeners of a more Corinthian persuasion.

But mixed up with all the bravado is usually a lot of respect for the race, gratitude for his team-mates and honesty about his performance. He knows he is good. To deny that would be to abdicate his responsibility to his team.

He is also - and this is becoming ever clearer - a bright spark with a great sense of humour. I will be surprised if there is a funnier post-race interview this year than the one in which he answered claims he was helped up a Giro d'Italia mountain stage by the team car. Cavendish invited his critics to join him at the back of the field with the marching band and ice cream van to see for themselves.

And yet despite the wins, occasional whines and frequent wind-ups, he remains a down-to-earth bloke from Douglas. As polite and softly-spoken off the bike as he is bold and brassy on it.

We probably won't hear much from the Manx mouth for a few days now but there will be a further chance for Cavendish to empty the bars: the final dash up the Champs-Elysees.

I think he will win that. He should also earn the green jersey, given to the Tour's most consistent finisher, a title he has held within British sport for the last four years.

Will this finally bring him the credit he deserves back in Blighty? Probably not but hopefully he won't be mentioned in despatches the next time another British hope conforms to type and comes up just short on the big stage.


So, I feel I owe a huge apology to Mark Cavendish for jumping to conclusions about him before I took the time to learn about him. He truly is one of the best sprinters, if not the best around.

Unfortunately, this wasn't the first time, nor will it probably be the last time that I don't like an athlete just because they are so much better than other. Derek Jeter, for example, I'm not a fan of; however, he just broke NY Yankees history with his 3,000th career home run. Lebron James, I'm also not a fan because I feel he's too arrogant, and while he's a team-player, I just never felt like he was as good as he thinks he is. Then add in the whole traitor issue, and I can go on forever. Although I can't argue that they are great athletes, I just don't like them. At least the Yankees have won championships with Jeter, both the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat have made it to the finals, but James choked both times.
However, while I'm still a HUGE Thor Hushovd fan, when a mass sprint comes up, and Mark Cavendish crosses that line first, I'll still smile. Cavendish now has my vote. And the bottom line is, Cavendish is as good as he knows he his!!

Congrats on your Green Jersey win! You deserved it!!