Danish rider blames paperwork issue, might not originally have been in team’s long list
Team Saxo Bank’s Michael Morkov has been prevented from starting the Vuelta a España due to unspecified documentation issues, thus meaning he will miss out on riding the second Grand Tour of his career.
The Danish rider was called up as a late replacement for Baden Cooke, but has been blocked from starting the race. He released the news himself on Twitter a short while ago, incorrectly blaming the World Anti-Doping Agency.
“Sounds like a bad joke. I’m coming home from the Vuelta now! WADA wouldn’t let me start because of some stupid paperwork!”
The team has not yet commented on the issue, but the anti-doping agency said that it had not enforced the decision. “WADA is not involved in this matter,” a spokesman told VeloNation. “Team/rider selection for a sporting event is not a matter over which WADA has any jurisdiction.”
What is possible is that Morkov may have been blocked by the race organisers for the same reason relating to testing as befell Quick Step sprinter Wouter Weylandt prior to the Tour de France.
Then, the Belgian rider was excluded because he wasn't on the team's 15-man Tour de France roster that was required to be submitted in April.
"Too bad I was not on the list of 15, but the Tour [de France] was just not on my program. This was a fantastic opportunity," Weylandt told Sporza at the time.
The reason for the long lists are so that all of the riders who could take part in their event can be put under greater scrutiny when it comes to pre-race doping controls in the build-up to these events.
Morkov, or the team, are expected to clarify the precise situation later today. It is not known if the team can submit an additional rider in his place.
Without him, the squad currently comprises Andy and Franck Schleck, Fabian Cancellara, Juan José Haedo, Dominic Klemme, Gustav Larsson, Anders Lund and Stuart O'Grady.
Morkov has shown strong form of late, finishing ninth in the time trial stage of the Tour of Denmark, then taking third, sixth and seventh on stages of the Tour du Limousin. He was twelfth in the GP Ouest France on Sunday.
He previously focussed mainly on the track, having a very successful six-day career with racing partner Alex Rasmussen. He has taken world and national titles in the Velodrome, and was a silver medallist in the team pursuit at the last Olympics.
He and Rasmussen are now turning more and more attention to the road. The Vuelta a España would have been the next step in his career, but a lack of paperwork carried out by himself or someone in the team means that he is taking an early trip to the airport.