A.S.O. attempts to block Chris Froome from racing Tour de France

Next Saturday the 105th Tour de France launches in Noirmoutier-en-l’Île with a sprinter’s stage that ends in Fontenay-le-Comte, but if race organizer Amaury Sports Organization has its way, four time and current champion Chris Froome won’t be lining up. After months of frustration over Froome’s salbutamol case, and with asterisks beside the Brit’s 2017 Vuelta a España and 2018 Giro d’Italia titles, ASO e-mailed Sky on Sunday to tell them that Froome isn’t welcome at the Tour.

In making its decision ASO has cited article 28 of its rules, which “expressly reserves the right to refuse participation in-or to exclude from-the event, a team or any of its members whose presence would be such as to damage the image or reputation of ASO or the event.”

Sky has already appealed the ban with the National Olympic Committee of French Sport and a hearing is set for Tuesday, with a ruling to come on Wednesday.

Short explanation of why ASO did it just now: ASO can refuse a subscription only when starlist is submitted. When Sky officially submitted their riders for TDF, ASO choosed to refuse Froome subscription.

— La Flamme Rouge (@laflammerouge16) July 1, 2018

ASO no longer has to worry about the Tour being lost in the shadow of the World Cup.

Chaos = Coverage ??

— Race Radio (@TheRaceRadio) July 1, 2018

After a cocaine positive in 2009, Tom Boonen found himself blocked from racing the Tour, but he was successful in appealing for he hadn’t violation World Anti-Doping Authority rules. The ASO also barred the Astana team from contesting the Tour in 2008 in February of that year. In the 2007 edition, the team’s pre-race favourite Alexander Vinokourov was found to have undergone an illegal blood transfusion and the entire squad had to withdraw.

Recently, French five-time Tour winner Bernard Hinault opined that Froome shouldn’t be racing in July’s Grand Tour. On Friday ASO head Christian Prudhomme told radio station Europe 1, “It’s terrible that the sporting authorities have not managed to solve this problem before the start of the world’s biggest race. I won’t say anything more but of course, rules have to be modified.”