11 octobre 2003
By John Wilcockson
VeloNews editorial director
This report filed October 11, 2003
A pall was thrown over Canadian cycling Saturday morning when its star rider Geneviève Jeanson, 22, a favorite to win the afternoon's world women road race title, was declared "inapt" to compete. An early-morning blood test was given to 14 riders from the Netherlands Germany and Canada, with Jeanson's hematocrit test coming out above the women's accepted level of 47 percent.
A spokesman for the UCI told VeloNews that a follow-up blood test was being performed on Jeanson to test for any presence of the banned blood-boosting drug EPO. ""We will know the results within a few days," he said.
A source close to the Canadian team told VeloNews that Jeanson is explaining her high hematocrit level to sleeping in an altitude tent - a common practice among top riders, including Lance Armstrong. Should Jeanson's EPO test prove positive she could be suspended for two years; if it is negative, she will undergo a further blood test in two weeks, and should her hematocrit level be below 47 percent, her racing license will be reinstated.
The bad news about Jeanson is unfortunate for her team sponsor, Rona, a national Canadian chain of stores similar to Home Depot in the U.S. Rona is also one of the sponsors of these world road championships.
Jeanson was seen in tears in an elevator at the Howard Johnson hotel in downtown Hamilton on Saturday morning by Dean Golish, the American coach who is married to former world time trial champion Mari Holden.
"[Jeanson] was in street clothes," he said, "and this was only a half-hour before I came over here [to the start]. She seemed very upset."
At the same time, the Canadian coach Yuri Kashirin was pacing slowly next to a black Subaru outside the Howard Johnson hotel, lighting up a thin cigar. His anguish is being reflected by many in Canadian cycling. Besides hoping that Jeanson's EPO test comes out negative, her teammates Lyne Bessette and Sue Palmer are hoping to give their country a good outcome to the world's in Saturday afternoon's road race.
page mise en ligne le 11 octobre 2003 par SVP
