Giro d' Italia Follies

Poor Floyd Landis is being attacked by the UCI, again. A lawsuit is filed against Floyd Landis for impugning the integrity of the anti-doping crusaders, who claim never to protect performance enhancing drug abusing cheaters, neither suspected clenbuterol user Alberto Contador or suspected Michele Ferrari supercharged blood transfused seven time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong! Indeed, who would ever suggest that these two entirely clean, upstanding examples of cycling purity would need protection against alleged accusations of doping?

Not Pat McQuaid, who denied ever knowing that a clenbuterol positive for Alberto Contador taken during the Tour de France ever existed! If an enterprising German television reporter had not learned of this positive [through a verboten laboratory leak?] the world would live in ignorance and Alberto Contador would be allowed to continue to race, even to compete in the Giro d' Italia with the blessing of Angelo Zomegnan himself!

Good old Angelo Zomegnan who has decided, as a professional medical scientist, that he should determine the amount of time needed for a rider to return to a "normal" physiological level. According to Angelo Zomegnan, some riders return to a "normal" physiological level at an unusually rapid pace, and this suggests manipulation of "abnormal methods" that leads to "normal" results. Whatever that means. Of course, with everyone these days, with the exception of Floyd Landis who endures daily verbal attacks from the cycling establishment, Angelo Zomegnan refuses to comment on the Spanish Cycling Federation exoneration of Alberto Contador, who is innocent until proven guilty! What a change from the days when Angelo Zomegnan threatened to refuse to allow Alberto Contador and Team Astana to ride the Giro d' Italia, the team was relaxing on the French Riviera, drinking cerveza and scoping out lovely mademoiselles, instead of training rides and power bars, bewildered because Angelo Zomegnan was accusing former USPS director sportif Johan Bruyneel of running an organized team doping program with Astana. Nevertheless, under tremendous pressure and at the last moment, Angelo Zomegnan collapsed and invited Alberto Contador and Team Astana to participate in the Giro d' Italia, which Alberto Contador won. It is interesting that Angelo Zomegnan can accuse Johan Bruyneel and the USPS Professional Cycling Team of doping to the gills and testing positive in repeated tests, the results of which were suppressed by WADA and the UCI, and face no sanctions or lawsuits, but when Floyd Landis makes the same claims, he is sued to the gills by WADA and the UCI.

These Floyd Landis lawsuits by WADA and the UCI are a little premature are they not? The Jeff Novitzky investigation is still ongoing is it not? The Federal Grand Jury still hearing witnesses and evaluating testimony are they not? Zut alors!