Wednesday Roundup

News
NY Times covers Brooklyn Event (registration req'd). Landis says he only has enough money for 2-3 months, with the hearing scheduled in almost exactly 3 months, and that the events don't raise much money, but help awareness.

Henson conference call this morning is reported as saying the USADA/AAA hearing is scheduled for May 14. Coverage in our separate article.

CBS Sportsline is reporting an AP story that the AFLD hearing will take place as scheduled tomorrow,as does the Boston Globe, and that the delay by Lamour is not on the table:

At Thursday's hearing, Landis' lawyer can argue a final time before the panel -- which includes French magistrates -- before the AFLD meets to decide its verdict.

"All the perspectives exist," Bordry said. "The college is serene."
Last week, World Anti-Doping Agency vice president Jean-Francois Lamour -- also France's sports minister -- requested a postponement of the hearing.

Lamour said Friday that it would be "preferable" to wait until after a March hearing on the case by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which has yet to begin -- leading to critical comments from Prudhomme, who feels the case is dragging on.

Lamour was expressing his own opinion as a WADA official, and not as a French minister.

"He intervened as a member of WADA," Bordry said. "That's good, because it would be strange that a minister demands not to apply French law."

Landis has denied any wrongdoing and argues that the Chatenay-Malabry laboratory which carried out the tests is unreliable -- a view shared by seven-time Tour champion Lance Armstrong

It is not clear if this is really going to be a full hearing, or where expected motions are made for a stay and entertained. It could be that Bordry is posturing it is The Hearing for PR purposes. In a comment to yesterday's roundup, Tom Fine suggests maybe the ASO's solution is to have an quick decision against Landis. With news of the USADA hearing date, maybe the agencies have decided to stop putzing and go for the kill.

Bloomberg covers that day's events, noting Landis' US lawyers are en-route to France, and that the proceeding will be closed with a statement released at the conclusion.

CyclingNews for tomorrow covers all of todays events in good summary, with little of their usual axe-grinding.

Corrspondent Marc translates an AFP story from L'Equipe as saying:

Having tested positive during his victorious 2006 TdF, Floyd Landis us going to begin his defense--through his layers--in front of the AFLD, with which he's been struggling for months.

It will be the 9 members of the AFLD's executive committee--among whom are some judges--who will begin the hearing and will decide Landis' future in France. The American Antidoping Agency (USADA) is the only organization which has the power to suspend Landis worldwide--fort two years, if following the norm. Fot its part, the International Cyclists Union has sole authority to strip him of his title as winner of the 2006 Tour.

Under pressure in the last few days, the AFLD could follow the advice of the World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) which, through its president Richard Pound and its vice president Jean-François Lamour, has pled for a postponement by the AFLD of the Landis case. The postponement would last until the end of the USADAA procedure, scheduled to begin March 7.

Landis' attorneys will unroll the arguments they presented before the USADA, and which rest on the "negligence of the French lab at Châteay-Malabry," "an analytic error" committed during "a customary establishment of fact"*, "contamination of the analysis sample", and "non-application of the WADA models for good practice," in carrying out of the analysis. Landis, who claims he has naturally high testosterone is surrounded by an armada of lawyers and doctors to help refine his defense.

* which could mean chain-of-custody. They get the hearing wrong, because it won't be March 7th, and Landis is not claiming naturally high testosterone. Those errors make one question the correctness of the remainder of the report as well.

Sportingo expands on the idea that Landis is in the middle of a tug-of-war between agencies.

Cyclingnews in it's "new arrivals" section posts that BMC has found a new home with Astana, but cannot do so without a snarky comment about Landis.

NYVeloCity had a "roller" event with a special guest...


The other picture looks like more of the facility's product has been tested.

Blogs
Bicycle Racers are Coming your Way titled his blog entry from tonight's event in Brooklyn "Floyd Landis and Beer" Seems apropo but, Floyd does NOT want o be associated with shoplifting celebrities! Who does? What's more to the point is that a great time was had by all.



Spinopsys says that FL now has his dates with destiny, and they have always been in the hands of the French.

BitchKittie is adorable, and her heart is in the right place (heck she even named her dog for Floyd) but she has Michael Henson representing FL in France tomorrow and we don't think that's the case. Maybe she meant Maurice Suh

Tidbits and More posts that Tyler Hamilton is back and believes in FL (be that good or bad).

Dugard is "calling in sick" and this must explain the fact that he has gotten the date of FL's AFLD hearing wrong. It's not next week, it's tomorrow!

Steroid Nation cites a Spanish paper is saying the AFLD will hand down a two year ban as if it's preordained conclusion, before there is a proceeding tomorrow. That sounds like the USADA Review Board. Do they know something, or are they just speculating?

ProBikeWrench knows that things are changing, but really wants to brings an FFF fundraiser to a town near him.

The Boulder Report tends to think that comments such as those Bradley Wiggins made earlier this week are more refreshing and honest than ones that mimic Sgt. Shultz (such as ones made last year by Landis):

I continue to take a wait-and-see approach on Floyd. From a purely legal standpoint, the burden is on USADA to prove its case (this is a point that many Floyd-backers seem to ignore) and it has not yet done that. But I have to say that comments like Wiggins’ – which are less broad-brush than they might seem – are a lot more refreshing than the Sergeant Schultz routine we so often get.

Comments to yesterday's Steroid Nation post about who is causing delays, USADA or Landis' money grubbing attorneys present a defense of USADA and a flame-thrower response.

FeelSomeThink seems to think he's guilty, but doesn't seem to be keeping up, really.

Thought for the Day

What is it that makes a complete stranger dive into an icy river to save a solid-gold baby? Maybe we'll never know." -jh-

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