Vinokourov: I can’t keep paying for 2007 all my life

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Astana manager Alexander Vinokourov made an appearance at the Tour de France 2015 presentation(Image credit: Bettini Photo)

While Vincenzo Nibali stood centre-stage at the Tour de France presentation at the Palais des Congrès and spoke of his desire to defend his yellow jersey in 2015, his Astana manager Alexandre Vinokourov lingered in the aisles and quietly fielded questions on the team's recent spate of doping cases, which could harm its prospects of participating in the race at all next year.

Barry Ryan was Head of Features at Cyclingnews. He has covered professional cycling since 2010, reporting from the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and events from Argentina to Japan. His writing has appeared in The Independent, Procycling and Cycling Plus. He is the author of The Ascent: Sean Kelly, Stephen Roche and the Rise of Irish Cycling’s Golden Generation, published by Gill Books.