Frank Schleck today has a tougher road ahead that he otherwise thought when he woke up yesterday morning. Photograph: Pascal Pavani/AFP
A rest day wouldn't be a rest day in the Tour de France if all the riders and it's pack of following hacks just tookt he day to rest. No, the rest day is the day the Tour uses to get out some scandal filled news bites while the riders are tucked into the safe confines of their hotel rooms rather than out on the road. And in particular when the said rest day is in Pau ... that sleepy little Pyraneen town loves a good doping scandal as Alberto Contador found out to his peril in 2010. You can bet nobody was eating beef last night, but you can also bet that everyone was on edge just waiting to see who they hammer would fall on. At some time in the early evening of yesterday, it came down on Frank Schleck.
The drug of choice this time was another one that none of us had heard of and left many scrambling for their Google search engines to find out what it was all about. Last time it was Clenbuterol for Contador and the tainted meat excuse, this time it appears to be a substance called Xipamide for Schleck who confirmed this morning that should his B Sample come back positive, he'll be going with the "poisoned" excuse.
From the little I have learned so far, it would seem this substance, Xipamide, is a banned diuretic, and diuretic's tend to aid in weight loss which certainly wouldn't be the reason a stickman like Schleck would be into it. On the other hand it's also a method for concealing the presence of a 'proper' performance enhancer when it helps flush traces of it from the body through increased urination. Xipamide itself isn't on the banned list that would see Schleck given a two-year ban, and hence why he was 'asked' to leave the Tour, as opposed to being kicked out, but it seems serious enough that he will have to put forth an acceptable reason as to why he had it in his system to avoid some kind of punishment.
“I categorically deny having taken any banned substances. I cannot explain the positive result of this test and I insist on my right to see the B Sample analyzed,” said Schleck shortly after coming to terms with the news, though denial alone will not get him off the hook. He could however use his position in the general classification as a good reason that he isn't doping ... his performances in this years race either suggest he wasn't performance enhancing, or that if he was, then what on earth was he taking last year when he managed to finish third?
“If this analysis confirms the result of the first test, a formal complaint will be lodged for poisoning,” confirmed Schleck, clearly unaware that such an excuse will surely not fly either. Schleck sounded much like Floyd Landis circa 2006 with his denials though his teams spokesman, Philippe Maertens, claims the shock of the rider alone should be enough to confirm his innocence: "I saw his face when he heard the news… he went very pale. It wasn’t the face of someone who’s guilty." I'd disagree.
If Schleck is found guilty it would be yet another rider in a line of riders who have come under Johan Bruyneel to test positive, putting further spotlight onto the man who has been linked to the charges against Lance Armstrong by USADA for doping practices throughout his career. Indeed, another notch on the belt.
For Schleck though it's been a nightmare Tour even before this came to the fore. He has struggled to stay the pace with the big names in the mountains and, like the rest of his team mates, has failed to be paid his wages throughout the Tour. Perhaps this was a last ditch effort for a result and the prize money that comes with it to feed his family and may be just the excuse he is looking for.
