Dude, what the hell is going on here? This was supposed to be a great year for the Tour de France. This year was first time that http://www.lancearmstrong.com/ wasn't going to be riding since 1999, and it was set to be a doozie. Jan Ullrich, who is in the twilight of his career, and Ivan Basso, who's given everyone a run for their money lately, were both looking awesome as the top two contenders. And on top of that there was a whole slew of other riders who were going to make sure that the pressure was kept on. I've been looking forward to this since the end of July last year.

And then this news came out...

Ivan Basso, Jan Ullrich and Francisco Mancebo, the three outstanding favorites to win the Tour de France when it gets underway in Strasbourg today, were sent home yesterday after their names were linked to a drugs syndicate in Spain.

Guilty by implication rather than any solid proof, the three riders have all denied any association with the drugs bust five weeks ago which was known to Spanish police as Operacion Puerto. There names appear on an official list sent to the Tour organizers late on Wednesday.

Spanish police investigating doctor Eufemiano Fuentes, who is accused of trafficking in all types of performance enhancing drugs including growth hormones and the blood booster EPO released the list which contained up to 58 names of riders who are accused of visiting his premises in Madrid... [MORE]

Now So!s all down in the dumps that her Italian's not there to represent, and I'm majorly bummed that an American's probably going to win it just because these two dudes got yanked. There better be some real proof on this crap, because pulling the top two contenders out of this race due to "allegations" is a pretty serious thing to do. I'll still be watching like the Tour de Phreak that I am, it just won't be the same.