Chris Froome wants salbutamol case resolved before Tour de France
23 May 2018 06:20
Chris Froome (Team Sky) has reiterated that he hopes his salbutamol case will be resolved before the Tour de France. UCI president David Lappartient admitted the case could drag on beyond July, and that there is a risk of Tour de France organiser ASO intervening by using their own race rules to stop Froome from starting on July 7. Lappartient was at stage 17 of the Giro d'Italia but avoided crossing paths with Froome at the podium area at the start in Riva del Garda. Froome and Lappartient have never spoken in person, and the French UCI president has apparently never had any direct contact with Team Sky Manager Dave Brailsford. Any dialogue is currently between the UCI legal team and Froome's legal team as they fight over every detail of his case. ASO could try to block Froome's presence at the Tour de France under rules in team contracts that strive to preserve the reputation of the race. It is unclear how those rules can be imposed if no verdict in the Froome case has been reached. ASO tried to stop Tom Boonen from riding the 2009 Tour de France after he tested positive for cocaine. However, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that the Belgian could ride.ADVERTISEMENT Lappartient suggested he would respect Froome's right to ride the Tour de France if no decision has been reached in his case, but Froome does not seem to trust Lappartient. "I want this resolved as fast as anyone," Froome told Cyclingnews and The Times after the finish of stage 17 of the Giro d’Italia in Iseo. "I want this resolved more than anyone else does, to be honest. I'd love this to be sorted out before the Tour de France, so that question isn't there anymore. Obviously, there's a process in place, and we're following that process." Hoping to finish on the final Giro podium in Rome
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