No news links yet, but former winner of the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia Marco Pantani has been found dead in a hotel room in Rimini, Italy. The official cause of his death is still unknown.
Former top racing cyclist Pantani, nicknamed "the elephant" and "the pirate", was one of the best uphill cyclists in the second part of the 90's, but had been in a downward spiral since he was disqualified from a leading position with only a few days left in the Giro '99, after failing a certain blood test (which could implicate the use of EPO); he had struggled with physical and mental problems ever since, as well as legal problems concerning sports drugs.
Pantani was 34 years old at the moment of his death.
More news later.
[ 02-14-2004, 06:30 PM: Message edited by: Grojlach ]