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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Saturday, May 22, 2010

Cycling: Floyd Landis shows up at Tour of California


BETH HARRIS
AP Sports Writer

LOS ANGELES — Floyd Landis emerged at the Tour of California time trial on Saturday and hung out in a sponsor's tent days after accusing Lance Armstrong of doping.

Landis didn't speak to waiting reporters and sat with his back to the course much of the time. He was in the tent of Dr. Brent Kay, his longtime sponsor. Landis won the Tour of California in 2006, but his Bahati Foundation team wasn't invited to ride this year.

Earlier this week, Landis accused Armstrong of doping, teaching other riders to cheat and paying off a top cycling official after allegedly testing positive in 2002.

Armstrong has denied the allegations and said Landis has "zero credibility."

Tony Martin of Germany and HTC-Columbia won the seventh stage, a 21-mile individual time trial, in 41 minutes, 41 seconds. Teammate Michael Rogers of Australia finished second, but retained the overall lead by 9 seconds heading into Sunday's finale on a hilly circuit course in the Ventura County city of Thousand Oaks, Calif.

American David Zabriskie of Garmin-Transitions, third in the time trial, is 0.09 seconds behind in second, followed by three-time defending champion Levi Leipheimer of RadioShack, who is 0.25 behind. Leipheimer finished fourth in the time trial, a stage the American had won the last three years.

Four yellow-jacketed security guards stood outside the OUCH sports medical center tent next to the start-finish area, closely checking credentials while Landis visited.

As Landis moved around the tent to talk, the guards moved with him to block the angles of camera-pointing fans.

"Floyd, you suck," a man shouted outside the tent. Landis showed no reaction as the guards warily eyed the bystander.

After the time trial ended, more passing fans realized the former Tour de France champion was in the tent. They crowded around the barricades to snap photos.

"Did you get him?" a woman frantically asked her male companion. "Did you get Floyd Landis?"

"Yeah," he replied, showing her the image on his digital camera.

Landis appeared oblivious to the commotion, glancing out at the crowd occasionally. He got up and fixed himself a plate of coleslaw and a sandwich, then ate while watching Leipheimer breeze across the finish line.

The riders completed two laps of a 10½-mile circuit through the streets of downtown Los Angeles that took them by the University of Southern California and Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. They made two short, steep climbs while passing the shimmering Walt Disney Concert Hall and City Hall before returning to the start-finish line outside of Staples Center.

Not long after the racing ended, Landis suddenly exited the tent street-side, walking quickly ahead of chasing reporters. He didn't speak before climbing into the passenger side of a waiting car that drove away.