Italian team Polti's French rider Richard Virenque - one of the central figures in last year's Tour de France doping scandal - has been excluded from this year's running, Tour organisers announced yesterday.
Two more French cyclists and the entire Dutch TVM team, as well as the director of Spanish team ONCE, are the other high-profile casualties as the Tour looks to restore confidence after the scandals that led to it being dubbed the "Tour de Farce" last year.
The action taken by Tour organisers looks set to trigger further withdrawals, with another leading French cyclist, Laurent Jalabert, also pulling out yesterday, apparently in support of his ONCE boss, Manolo Saiz banned for making disparaging remarks about the Tour. Virenque was the team leader of the disgraced Festina outfit expelled from the Tour last year after its masseur, Willy Voet, was arrested with a car boot full of drugs.
Tour director Jean-Marie Leblanc said: "Richard Virenque is not welcome at this year's Tour."
"Since last July Richard Virenque's name and image is the incarnation of doping - whether or not he is responsible for the situation is not for us to say.
"According to the evidence, his presence is incompatible to the image and reputation of the event we want to preserve."
The 1997 Tour runner-up and four-times King of the Mountains has been formally charged by Lille magistrates over the Festina affair and has also been quizzed by Paris police probing another scandal. His Polti team-mates may compete in the Tour, however.
Voet recently published a book with detailed descriptions of the treatments he says he gave Virenque but the rider and Pascal Herve are the only two members of the disgraced Festina team still to deny any wrongdoing. The rest of the team said there was co-ordinated doping. Virenque, whose denials in the face of overwhelming evidence have often been tearful and emotional, said he would quit cycling last year after parting company with Festina.
However, he signed for Polti in January and was confirmed as leader of his new team's challenge for this year's Tour.
At the time he said: "The Tour is my reason for living."
But he was fined £12,000 by Polti earlier this season after it emerged during questioning by Paris police that he had been seeking medical treatment from outside the team with a quack doctor who has since been remanded in custody over doping offences.
Ironically the Festina team have been invited, although all the key figures in last year's scandal have since moved to pastures new - or quit the sport.
Two other top French riders have been excluded for doping offences - they are the Casino team's Laurent Roux and Philippe Gaumont of the Cofidis team.
The Tour organisers said they had not considered the case of reigning Tour de France champion, the Italian rider Marco Pantani. They said Pantani had indicated he would not compete this year. However, if the Italian reconsidered they would examine the case again.
The entire TVM team, from Holland, has been banned. TVM director Cees Priem said: "We hoped to be able to continue at the Tour de France the good beginning to the season and our good show in the Tour of Italy. I am disappointed." Jean-Claude Killy, president of the Tour de France society, said there was no question that the Tour would not take place this year. It will start on July 3rd at Puy-du-Fou in the Vendee region.
