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Vino’ says he will be on Astana … or heads will roll – VeloNews

Alexander Vinokourov said Wednesday he intends to ride for Astana later this year or there will be serious consequences for those who keep him from riding on the Kazakh-financed team.

In a press conference held in Monaco in advance of Saturday’s Tour de France start, Vinokourov, whose suspension for homologous blood doping ends on July 24, said there’s no possibility that he would ride for any team other than the one he helped establish in 2006.

Vinokourov assembled a coalition of Kazakh sponsors to take over the ProTour license of his old Liberty-Seguros squad after that team folded on the heels of the then-breaking Operación Puerto scandal.

“I will resume my career as a professional on July 24,” he said. “I cannot imagine being on a team other than Astana. The Kazakhstan cycling federation wants me on team, I am currently negotiating with Johan Bruyneel and I think we will reach agreement in the next week.”

Later in the article:

Vinokourov suggested on Wednesday that Bruyneel has little choice but to respect the wishes of his Kazakh sponsors.

“This team was created for me and thanks to my efforts,” Vinokourov said. “I have served my suspension and I do not see why I could not return. If Bruyneel does not want me, it will be Bruyneel who is leaving the team.”

Part of me is looking forward to seeing Vino come back, because his attacking style of racing is a flat-out joy to watch.

Part of me is thinking, “man, this guy’s got a lot of nerve thinking he’s gonna come back to a ProTour team and possibly have the director fired when he’s been banned for two years from racing … and whatever happened to the additional two-year ban from the ProTour?”

I’m looking forward to the cyclo-politics at the end of the month … there’s gonna be fireworks!

Astana invited into Giro lineup – Cycling – Yahoo! Sports

GENEVA (AP)—Giro d’Italia organizers have invited the Astana team to compete in the race, reversing an earlier decision to ban it because of doping scandals.

Astana officials confirmed Saturday they are hurrying to get elite American rider Levi Leipheimer from California to Palermo, Sicily, for the start of the three-week race next Saturday.

“It is a good moment for us. When we were told in February that we were not invited it was a disaster,” Astana spokesman Philippe Maertens told The Associated Press.

Alberto Contador, winner of the 2007 Tour de France, will also be at the starting line for Astana. The had been shunned by cycling’s biggest events this year, including the Tour, for involvement in doping scandals. It was asked to leave the 2007 Tour after team leader Alexander Vinokourov tested positive for a blood transfusion.

The Kazakhstan-backed team brought in Johan Bruyneel, the Belgian who guided Lance Armstrong to seven Tour victories, as director to overhaul its image and operations. It also signed Contador.

Astana’s rebuilding work was rewarded late Friday, when Giro organizer RCS Sport called Bruyneel to offer his team a place.

“We are hurrying now to arrange everything. We must have a truck and a bus down to Sicily—it is not the perfect preparation,” Maertens said. “Levi was still in California and Alberto was on holiday in Spain because he had a dental operation two weeks ago. Everybody is happy.”