Tour invites.....UGH......here we go!

Seems a lot of riders are a bit on edge waiting for their team invite for the Paris Nice this Wednesday.

Speculation is that teams that are left off the invite list for Paris Nice will be left off the Tour De France invite list but ASO (Amaury Sports Organization) has final say on the berth of teams in the Tour so teams listed can be taken off or teams can be added.

This will be EXTREMELY hard on sponsors as they will have no return on their investments, again creating a mess of the cycling world. Teams have really struggled to secure sponsors for their teams for this year because of all the doping messes. It will be hard on the riders also that have trained hard for this season for naught.

The Giro d'Italia left the following teams off the invite list Astana (Levi Leipheimer, Alberto Contador, Andreas Kloden), High Road (George Hincapie, Mark Canvendish), Credit Agricole (Thor Hushovd) and Bouygues Telecom (Thomas Voekler). This is the first major tour of the season and speculation is that the Tour De France (TDF) will follow lead with the same "uninvited" teams.

I can understand if a rider is still being investigated for doping than leave them off the team roster until their name is cleared but with riders changing teams and different management for teams is it fair to not invite the team because of the bad people from last years team that aren't even there anymore? I don't think so especially when individuals that have messed up are being dealt with or are still being investigated. To me this is just a cop out for the powers that be to basically throw their weight around AGAIN or is it because they do not fully trust their "biological passport" and the testing that is being done? The jury is still out on that one. Truth is that a lot of these teams have put up a LOT of money to make sure that their team is dope free. Is this a slap in that face for the teams that are doing this and they still do not get invited to the Tours? I would think so but again we will find out as the season unfolds. (Keep in mind these are my opinions only!) Nevertheless I am still EXCITED for the racing to begin!

Remember to watch Versus this Sunday for the Tour of California! Can Levi Leipheimer defend his title?