On frogs and fatigue: stimulating reading at the end of Le Tour

Great work by Sastre to win overall, and for Steegmans to take it into Paris. Now onto the more stimulating side of the sport - can't get a natural high? Try this: Kazakh rider Dmitriy Fofonov was fired from his team and detained by French police for questioning after it was announced that he tested positive for a banned stimulant, heptaminol. The French Anti-doping Agency president Pierre Bordry said that the now former Crédit Agricole rider had tested positive for "very heavy dose" of the drug.

Being Kazakh has nothing to do with it and we should dismiss that as a coincidence. But why heptaminol? Heptaminol chlorhydrate is a common cardiac stimulant and vasodilator, widely used for the treatment of orthostatic hypotension - or low blood pressure if you like. A 'usual' dose may be 500-1500 mg or so, orally. Whilst it is structurally similar to methamphetamine, it's a different thing. So why take it? Presumably it will give you a lift and keep you going, and may help 'open the lungs' a little. This is certainly an interesting result, if you are a frog: Heptaminol stopped or delayed the progressive decline in tension which characterizes the phenomenon of fatigue in frog isolated twitch muscle fibre. Presumably Fofonov, if actually guilty as charged, acts like a frog in this case.

Lifetime ban for Alfred, serial offender

You have to admire Stephen Alfred's persistence, if nothing else: At the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, Alfred tested positive for norandrosterone. He also tested positive for exogenous testosterone or its precursors and for an elevated testosterone to epitestosterone (T/E) ratio in an out-of-competition test conducted on May 28, 2006. Most recently, he tested positive for hCG on June 10 at the Pan American Cycling Championships in Brazil. The latter two offenses were counted as one by the World Anti-Doping Code.

Sinkewitz - sunk for now, back soon

Well he knew he'd get hit with a suspension but got a fine as well. Given that the guy is also forced out of his paid job it may be a bit tough to expect him to cough up the dough as well, but then again he's an adult and understands consequences... I guess.

Via CN: Patrik Sinkewitz is glad to know the verdict in his doping case, even if he is surprised at the extent of his punishment: a one-year ban and a 40,000 Euro fine. "The uncertainty is finally over. I think I have been punished enough. I can live with the one-year ban. But the fine is a shock. I would have wished for a lesser punishment there," he said, according to the dpa press agency.

Dope of the Year? Landis snagged

Landis, love him or loathe him, trust him or not, has lost his case. But will he appeal?

Fron CN:The long awaited decision is in, and Floyd Landis has lost his appeal to the American Arbitration Association to overturn the sanction for his positive drug test from the 2006 Tour de France. The three member arbitration panel, led by president Patrice Brunet along with Christopher Campbell and Richard McLaren, was split 2-1 in the guilty verdict, with Campbell dissenting.

Guilty as Charged: Jaksche

You spin the wheel and take your chances in life.

From CyclingNews:Jörg Jaksche was handed a one year suspension by the Austrian cycling federation on Wednesday, having been found guilty of taking EPO and growth hormones, as well as having used blood doping. The suspension was backdated to run from July 2, 2007, the day Jaksche made his public confession to German magazine Speigel. Such violations usually carry a two year ban, but the federation applied the 'state's witness' regulation, which reduces the sentence when the suspect cooperates.

Dope of the Day: Bernucci (Lose weight fast, ask me...)

Bernucci gets caught trying to lose weight fast (ask me how), T-Mobile acts... from CN and AAP:
T-Mobile Team has terminated its contract with Lorenzo Bernucci, effective immediately, after being notified by the UCI that he had tested positive for Sibultramine, an appetite suppressant. The team ruled that the Italian rider's action violated the team's internal code of ethics.

Dope of the Day: Kashechkin

It's still a closely fought battle, the Dope of the Day. Just when you think it's slowing down, along comes a new name to add to the list. From CN: "Astana suffered another blow Wednesday when Kazakh Andrej Kashechkin tested positive for a homologous blood transfusion following an unexpected control on August 1 in Belek, Turkey. Astana issued a statement saying Kashechkin was suspended effective immediately while waiting for the analysis of the B sample."

But wait, from the same source... "Freshly crowned Tour de France winner Alberto Contador is scheduled to issue a public statement Friday along with Discovery Channel Team director Johan Bruyneel at the offices of Spain's Superior Council for Sports according to the International Herald Tribune.

The rider has been tied to Operación Puerto, the Spanish doping investigation. He is expected to make a statement, but not answer questions. No information was provided about the content of the upcoming announcement."

The mind is boggling. Of course it's a denial, but why now? Why again?