By Mike Price
LANCIANO, Italy, May 21 (Reuters) - Dutchman Jeroen Blijlevens backed the Italian
riders in their protests on Friday about doping checks after clinching his second Giro
d'Italia victory in five days.
"There are problems and there is a need for controls, but not so many," said
Blijlevens, after outsprinting Thursday's victor, Romans Vainsteins of Latvia, in the
seventh stage from Foggia.
"We were all checked before the Giro began, and we cannot have others asking for
more tests. It is okay for the (governing body) Union Cycliste Internationale to test us,
but not the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) as well."
Before the 157km leg began in Foggia on Friday, Giro favourite Marco Pantani warned
there would be a walk-out if CONI insisted on more tests for Italian riders.
CONI is only testing Italians in their effort to clamp down on the drugs problem.
Laurent Jalabert, who kept the overall Giro leader's pink jersey for a fourth day,
declined to be drawn about the threatened boycott of Friday's stage.
"That was this morning. For me, it has finished. Let us talk about the
racing," he said.
"If I lose the jersey in Saturday's stage, I hope that the time gap is small
enough for me to recapture it in Sunday's time trial at Ancona.
"I have the morale for Saturday's mountainous finish and I am ready, but there is
only seven seconds between me and (second-placed) Danilo di Luca."
The 20km-climb to the finish of the Grand Sasso d'Italia will not suit Jalabert and it
could well break sprinters like Blijlevens.
Friday's race over the flatlands of the Adriatic coast saw Italians Carlo Bianchi and
Rodolfo Ongarato race into a lead of four minutes.
Their sortie lasted 78 kms before they fell back 10 kms from the finish.
Blijlevens, the race leader for two days after winning at Messina on Monday, then
struck again to beat Vainsteins with Italian Fabrizio Guidi third.