The International Cycling Union blasted the World Anti-Doping Agency on Wednesday for leaking a confidential Tour de France report and vowed to exclude the agency from upcoming races.
The UCI was furious it didn't get the chance to study and amend "certain inaccurate points" in the report before it was leaked to the press and published in Monday's edition of the French sports daily L'Equipe.
"The UCI observes once more that these information leaks are absolutely unacceptable, often originate from France, and always take cycling as a privileged target," the body said in a statement.
"The UCI is not willing to tolerate similar situations anymore.''
It demanded WADA open an official investigation into the origin of the leak.
"You don't publish a confidential document," UCI spokesman Enrico Carpani said.
"We want to know the reasons documents are continually being leaked and most regularly in France."
A WADA statement issued Wednesday denied the agency leaked the report, saying it was provided to stakeholders as a courtesy before the official release expected today.
WADA said its director general, David Howman, condemned the leaking of the report and had spoken to UCI president Hein Verbruggen.
"We share UCI's concerns over the leaks to the media and we will work with them and our other partners, such as the French Ministry for Sport, to make sure that those responsible are identified," Howman said.
UCI noted that WADA apologized but said its confidence in the agency had been dented.
"Until this is resolved WADA will not be invited to any UCI cycling races," Carpani said. "For now there will be no more WADA observers."
WADA president Dick Pound, who also is a senior IOC member, said future cooperation was crucial to combatting drug use in cycling.
"We want to continue to work with UCI to reduce the impact of performance-enhancing drugs in that sport," Pound said.
"I am confident we can work together again at future Tours."
UCI was angered by observations in the report that riders have time to cheat when they are notified of being tested.
For some, Cristiano Ronaldo remains the essential spearhead for Portugal’s FIFA World Cup bid, while others believe his presence would prevent Roberto Martinez’s strong side from flourishing. The debate around the five-time Ballon d’Or winner rages on, as it did at UEFA Euro 2024 and four years ago in Qatar — yet Ronaldo endures, ready to play in a record sixth World Cup. The 41-year-old remains a global superstar despite swapping the European elite for Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr, and is the leading men’s international goalscorer with 143 strikes. With 25 of those coming in 30 games under Martinez, the coach
Taiwanese tennis star Hsieh Su-wei on Wednesday advanced to the second round of the mixed doubles at the French Open, after she and German partner Mark Wallner defeated Slovenian Andreja Klepac and Briton Lloyd Glasspool in straight sets, despite temperatures exceeding 32°C in Paris, while Taiwan’s top men’s doubles player Ray Ho also reached the second round. Hsieh, who made it to the semi-finals in the mixed doubles at Roland Garros in 2024, and Wallner defeated Klepac and Glasspool 6-3, 7-5 in just more than an hour, converting three of five break points, while holding their opponents to just one conversion
FAST AND LOOSE: Despite command struggles, Ohtani has pitched his way out of trouble after falling behind in counts, which manager Roberts credited to his velocity Shohei Ohtani on Wednesday night tossed six innings of no-hit ball, gave himself an early lead with a home run and still was not satisfied with his performance. The Los Angeles Dodgers’ two-way superstar dropped some expletives that were picked up by the on-field mic as he struggled with his command in a 4-1 win over the Colorado Rockies. He struck out seven, walked four and gave up an earned run in the fourth inning while visibly fuming on the mound. Ohtani (5-2) earned his third consecutive victory. “Just command was off, and I just felt like I was battling the lack of
Taiwanese sprinter Chen Yi-cen on Friday won the silver medal in the women’s 400m final at the Asian U20 Athletics Championships in Hong Kong, with a time of 53.16 seconds. Chen, 15, was the youngest among the eight finalists, and her performance also met the qualifying standard of 53.50 seconds for the Nagoya Asian Games in Japan in September and October. Chen first made her mark at the National Games in Tainan in 2023, at the age of 13, winning the women’s 400m final in 55.55 seconds to become the youngest gold medalist in the history of the event. Meanwhile,
RSS