"Read the Highway Code!": Confrontational close pass van driver fined £220; Bernal needs second spinal operation; Pidcock's rainbow bands; "Particularly British" anti-cycling sentiment; G rumbled by Phil Gaimon; But cyclists + more on the live blog

World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) says it is "entitled to ask certain questions" and will investigate why a drug commonly used to treat multiple sclerosis was found in the hair sample of three riders competing at last year's Tour de France. Tizanidine is not a banned substance, but was found during the raid of a team hotel during the race, and three riders were subsequently found to have it in their hair samples.

Olivier Rabin, scientific director of WADA, said the organisation will study its effects to try and work out why it might be used by cyclists. He told L'Equipe: "It is not a substance considered to be prohibited at this time. That said, in view of the latest events, we have put it on the agenda of the 'list committee' for the month of January.

"We do not know this substance too well because it is used for therapeutic purposes. What is interesting by looking at his profile is that we can legitimately ask ourselves the question of what could be the use for doping purposes. 

"In the profile of tizanidine, except when there is an excess of muscle tone, as can be seen in certain degenerative pathologies, one can ask the question of its use. An effect on a normal muscle seems inconclusive."

Tizanidine is normally used to treat multiple sclerosis as a muscle relaxer. Shortly after a report was published saying three riders were found to have it in their hair samples, Team Bahrain Victorious, whose hotel was raided during the race, published a statement saying...

Team Bahrain Victorious and any of its riders have not been officially or unofficially notified about any findings related to tizanidine or other substances.

The team would like to stress that the authors of the scientific article to which all allegations refer have unambiguously pointed out that tizanidine is not a prohibited substance in sport.

 

 

 

 

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Another cool story popping up from Wielerflits and well worth a read is the tale of junior rider Nathan Smith winning bronze at the weekend's UCI Cyclocross World Championships on the bike of legend Sven Nys. 

Nico Dick reports the UCI rejected Smith's Ribble bike for being the incorrect dimensions, before Nys stepped in to save the day. "When we saw that happen, we came to his aid. Nobody wanted an 18-year-old boy, who is an outsider by the way, to miss his first World Championships," Nys told the news website.

Nathan's father Andy said it shows "how great the cyclocross community is"...

"We were very concerned. We thought his World Championships, which he had worked so hard for, was over. We are very grateful to Sven."

Hey, the Astana rap video made the front page of the Times. pic.twitter.com/5ljrzgsNbb

— Service Course, LLC (@SC_Cycling) February 2, 2022

If you missed Astana's cringeworthy return to the rap game, check it out on yesterday's blog...or don't if you respect your ears...

He may have got the SPOTY snub from the BBC, but Mark Cavendish is up for a prestigious Laureus World Sports Award. Cav's been nominated in the Laureus World Comeback of the Year category alongside US gymnast Simone Biles, Tom Daley, eight-time MotoGP champion Marc Márquez, Annemiek van Vleuten and British Olympic bronze medal-winning skateboarder Sky Brown.

Other cyclists nominated for gongs alongside Cavendish and Van Vleuten include Dame Sarah Storey and Jetze Plat in the Sportsperson of the Year With a Disability category, and BMXer Bethany Shriever in the Action Sportsperson of the Year category.

We're biased but it's got to be a win for the Manx Missile, right?

The winners will be revealed in April, after the categories have been voted on by the Laureus World Sports Academy, a group of 71 of the "greatest sporting legends of all time"...

For me, the main thought reading all this vile stuff, is that while there are bad/inconsiderate road users everywhere in the world, the vitriol, frustration and bile directed towards cyclists feels particularly British.
I'm not sure if it's about cycling at all really. https://t.co/w6MdMzVPwV

— Jeremy Whittle (@jeremycwhittle) January 31, 2022

Agree? 

Cyclists on pavements though https://t.co/wytrqanu6j

— Hackney Cyclist (@Hackneycyclist) January 29, 2022

Ineos Grenadiers climber Egan Bernal remains in intensive care this week and will undergo a second operation on his spine. 

> Egan Bernal in intensive care following successful surgery on training crash injuries

The 25-year-old is set for another surgery on the cervical section above the thoracic vertebrae, following further examinations by doctors at Clínica Universidad de La Sabana hospital in Bogotá.

Hospital director Juan Guillermo Ortiz Martínez said...

After moving forward in the recovery of the areas involved in his polytrauma (musculoskeletal, respiratory, hemodynamic and neurological systems), new diagnostic images were performed and it was determined, in an interdisciplinary manner, that the patient will undergo surgery on the cervical spine. This intervention will favour the process of rehabilitating him. This intervention will take place tomorrow [Wednesday] afternoon.

We move forward with the patient in all his recovery processes, confident in his prompt improvement. We will be reporting the post-operative evolution of the athlete at the time the procedure is finished.

Bernal told fans he is grateful for the hospital's help after having a 95 per cent chance of being a paraplegic following the collision with a parked bus... 

Topical for today:
Van Driver ".... You're in the middle of the road...."
Cyclist "... Read the Highway Code..."
Court = 4 points + £364#highwaycode #3rdpartyreporting#greatestthreatofharm #driverbehavior@roadcc @markandcharlie @MikeyCycling @theJeremyVine @HantsPolRoads pic.twitter.com/bsETNhCnt0

— Copnor Cam Cyclist (@CopnorCyclist) January 29, 2022

"Read the Highway Code!"...if ever a phrase summed up the past week as a UK-based cycling journalist...

This performance, from last February, earned the driver four points on their licence, £220 fine, £110 costs and a £34 surcharge. Totally worth the impatience...

For the avoidance of any doubt of the Drivers culpability watch the build up from a rear view.#DU10SMO #driverbehaviour pic.twitter.com/woW9RRCKSu

— Copnor Cam Cyclist (@CopnorCyclist) January 30, 2022

Hampshire Police, unsurprisingly, took a dim view of the driving, concluding "you're [not actually] in the middle of the road" is never an excuse for an aggressive close pass.

CyclingMikey was one of the many to comment on the clip, replying to someone having a pop at the rider for hitting the van: "Don't threaten someone's life with potentially three tonnes of van, and you won't have to worry about someone banging on the van. It's completely normal to bang on any vehicle coming that close."

Jeremy Vine also chipped in with congratulations for the outcome from the police.