Riis has a plan B if Contador is banned
- Monday, 11 October 2010
- 8 Comments
Alberto Contador and Bjarne Riis, August 2010
Saxo Bank team manager, Bjarne Riis revealed he has a plan B in place for next year if he loses Tour de France winner Alberto Contador to a doping ban for Clenbuterol.
"I've thought of a plan B," he said yesterday. "But what it involves, I will not go into here and now."
Contador announced on September 30 that at the Tour de France he tested positive for Clenbuterol, a drug to help breathing and weight-loss. Later that day, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) said that it is investigating the positive and that it provisionally suspended Contador.
Contador had already ended his season with team Astana following his third Tour de France win on July 25. However, if the Spanish Federation bans him then his new boss, Saxo Bank's Riis will be in a jam.
Riis announced he signed Contador for the next two years on August 3, a week after his star Tour de France riders Fränk and Andy Schleck announced they were leaving to race for a new Luxembourg-based team. Andy Schleck was the only cyclist to match Contador at this year's Tour de France, and he finished second by only 39 seconds.
In addition to the Schleck brothers, Riis loses Fabian Cancellara, Stuart O'Grady, Matti Breschel, Jens Voigt and Jakob Fuglsang at the end of the year. To help beef his one-day classics team, he announced on Saturday that he signed Belgian Nick Nuyens.
"Nuyens is a good outsider. A typical underdog," said Riis. "I hope to get him back to the level he had before."
But what is the Riis' Tour de France plan B? Who will replace Contador?
No one can match Contador's Grand Tour record, he has won the last five three-week races that he has entered (three times the Tour de France and in 2008, the Vuelta a España and the Giro d'Italia). Riis will rely heavier on Gustav Larsson, Richie Porte and Chris Sørensen, supported by the Spanish riders he signed for Contador.
Australia's Porte finished seventh and won the young riders classification at the Giro d'Italia this year, his first year as a professional.
Riis has time to plan as he waits for the UCI to decide on Contador's case. Though, on Friday he and Contador heard some bad news. Italian professional Alessandro Colò received a one-year ban due to his positive for Clenbuterol. As with Contador, Colò claims the substance entered his body via contaminated meat. A urine test revealed he had 200 picograms in his body, four times more than Contador at 50pg.
"Right now it's just waiting for what comes from the UCI on the Contador case," added Riis. "We can not do anything about it."
Last week, for the first time since August, Riis met with Contador to discuss the case and its implications.
"I have no reason not to believe in him," he told Denmark's DR. "I am afraid that it will end up in a political game, and that is not what I hope because then it will be extremely unfortunate for all parties."
The UCI will reportedly announce its decision this week.
Related links
Tension rises over Contador's clenbuterol case
Seven more Spanish cyclists under investigation for doping
Contador case splits experts' opinions
Reader comments
Add your commentsOctober 11 15:41
nosferatu
does Bjarne's plan B involve jacking himself up with contador's blood and getting back on the bike?
October 11 16:36
STEVE
I like the bit about "beefing his one day classics team" ho ho!
October 11 16:37
armitage shanks
I would not be surprised. One cheat joins another. If Contador cared about Pro Cycling he would not join with Riis in the first place. The fact that Mr 60% is allowed to have a team at all when he was known doper, says enough about how rotten cycling is. It is ridiculous. Take a look at Riis racing results, he never won anything of significance except the Tour....
October 11 20:46
Andy D
The smiles on these two guys faces in this article make me feel ashamed when I tell people I love cycling. Pack of Liars, cheats and phoneys the lot of them.
October 12 07:03
Rob
Maybe plan B involves employing one of Bruyneel's doctors and turning one of his domestiques into a thoroughbred?
October 12 16:11
Mike
At least Riis owned up to doping, unlike most caught recently, and offered his Jersey back.
I have finaly forgiven Millar his cheating, as he held his hands up, but only after being grilled by the police for hours.
I think its time to lay off Riis, he was doing what most were at the time, and, to use a convenient excuse, he never tested positive. (ha ha)
October 12 17:25
Ken Evans
"But what is the Riis' Tour de France plan B?
Who will replace Contador?"
Rasmussen ??
October 13 01:52
Steve
Just got wind of the news -- Plan B involves signing Floyd Landis.