Lance Armstrong and his Astana team were fined for arriving late for the pre-stage registration this morning in Marseille, France. Rules state that riders must show up 20 minutes prior to the start or face a fine of 100 Swiss Francs ($92). Sneering contempt from the Tour de France competitions director is an added bonus.
"Today, and as usual, the Astana team arrived late at the pre-stage registration, in contempt of the crowd, who has once again not seen Lance Armstrong," [Tour competitions director Jean-Francois] Pescheux told Reuters before the start of the third stage from Marseille to La Grande Motte.
"They don't care about the fine. We are going to ask the UCI to be tougher."
Of course they don't care about the fine. Ninety-two dollars? Lance drops more on that at breakfast. Has that amount changed since the first Tour in 1903? The last time I heard of a $92 fine I was watching The People's Court ... in 1987.
And what's with the attitude, M. Pescheux? Let's not be perpetuating stereotypes about the French. It's bad enough that Lance is reinforcing notions that Americans show up late to everything.
One of the excuses floated for that late arrival for Astana was that there was bad traffic in Marseille. The irony of showing up late to a bike race because your car was stuck in traffic is something even Pescheux should find amusing.
Update: Armstrong apologized for his tardiness on his Twitter account this afternoon, blaming it on a visit from actor Ben Stiller.
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