"This is a joke" - Controversy in Spain as presence of doping authorities see 130 out of 182 riders abandon local race
Cycling
The Interclubs Vinalopo organization in Spain organized an event this weekend in the town of Villena which caught a lot of attention for all the wrong reasons. After learning of the presence of anti-doping authorities, there was a mass abandon streak throughout the whole peloton.
The incident is as chaotic as it is a stain in the image of cycling, a sport that in the past was perhaps permanently marked by the heavy use of doping substances. In the 90-kilometer race organized in Spain 182 riders took to the start but only 52 made it to the finish. 130 riders abandoned the race. Many claimed punctures or crashes which are said to have not been seen. For other riders who finished the race and then underwent doping tests this scenario is seen as a complete joke.
“The withdrawals are due to the doping control afterwards," Alvaro Marza, one of the participants, wrote on social media. "It is not a complicated mathematical explanation, but it is the harsh reality. I hope action is taken because this is a joke. By the way, I took the doping test three times. Hopefully I will get the results soon and I can announce them.” The event followed the recommended anti-doping procedures and the presence of CELAD (the Spanish anti-doping commission) led to this.
“We want to organize an event that revolves around clean and fair cycling. We are committed to the fight against doping and believe it is essential to maintain the integrity of the sport and protect the health of cyclists," race organizers said following the event. "Doping is cheating that gives cyclists an unfair advantage over those who compete fairly. Not only is it disrespectful to the sport and its values, but it can also have serious consequences for the health of the riders. Furthermore, we adhere to the strict anti-doping rules of the International Cycling Union (UCI). All participants in the event will be subject to random drug testing both before and after the competition.”
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- lol yeahmij08-11-2026
- I know, their headlines can be so misleading. Pidcock had a great season with 5 wins. and some solid 2nds. no reason to take away from that with a fake headline.mij08-11-2026
- You can clearly see the the posture change from slightly sitting to again out of the saddle while changing of gears in the video of the sprintabstractengineer08-11-2026
- He has already beaten Pogi twice in the TDF. the achievement is over. He cannot beat Pogi now and he only has a few years left at the top. Win Giro and compete in the TDF, maximise palmares.abstractengineer08-11-2026
- Just looked again at the photo. Yeah I stand by that. If MS had fallen over in Brands direction I don’t even think she would have hit her. You must be a UCI race commissioner. I’ll be sure to check my sock height should I ever see you on a ride. Looks like everyone else on here sees what I see.mij08-11-2026
- I said looking at the photo it doesn’t appear she deviated. Chill out, not stating my word is the final judgement. Just commenting that based on the photo I don’t see it. And BTW the Dutch coach even said she didn’t impede her.mij08-11-2026
- Blah Blah Blah !frieders308-11-2026
- MS said she was changing gears so that caused her slight deviation. Nothing was intentional.frieders308-11-2026
- How can you use a photo post incident to judge the incident itself (which is not hard to find if you’re prepared to invest the same amount of time in searching as writing that comment? It’s harsh but technically right even though this or worse is not always sanctioned in every race. The two things that went against MS (who unfortunately for her would still have won without making her mistake) are that it was not a bunch sprint where there could have been an overlooked incident or mitigating circumstances explaining a deviation. Everything was focused on just those 2, Schreiber was riding beautifully balanced which made her sudden deviation look unnatural stroke as if it could have been in some part intentional whilst she was slowly drifting ever closer towards the barrier to a point that would have reached obstruction level. In her defence, it might have been the realisation she was heading towards that that made her react suddenly and caused the deviation involuntarily. In any case, congratulations to her for the ride of her life, in people’s minds she will be credited for it.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Good boy Obviously doesn’t need that much help dealing with pressure, as some have suggested. Wiser (and humbler) than many far further along their careers. About offering him the moon, recently someone came up with an explanation of the downfall of a football great (either referring to Maradona or Portuguese Ronaldo) saying it was kind of normal after coming back from the moon, except that others, including some who actually did go to the moon like Armstrong (Neil in case anyone is too switched off to realise) didn’t go through any of the same motions after coming back. A lot of how you deal with situations has less to do with the situation than with your character.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
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¡ COMUNICADO IMPORTANTE ! Nota de prensa sobre los controles antidoping aleatorios y la postura del Torneo Interclubs Valle del Vinalopo. interclubsvinalopo.es/el-torneo-inte… @dipuAlicante @fciclismocv
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