Tour director has anxious wait over Armstrong

Australia: The Tour Down Under's race director is waiting anxiously for news on whether a hitch over anti-doping re-entry rules might keep seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong from competing in Australia in January.

''We are sitting tight and just waiting for the process to take its course,'' former Australian Olympic cyclist Mike Turtur said Monday of the American's appearance at the Tour Down Under in South Australia state from Jan. 20-25.

''The process is with the UCI (International Cycling Union) how they deal with it, that is internal stuff, that is up to them, so I don't know what the process is. It's a unique situation so they will have to deal with it and let us know what the outcome is.''

Riders coming out of retirement need to be in the sport's anti-doping program for six months before being allowed to race. The UCI will discuss with the U.S. anti-doping agency over the coming days whether Armstrong has met that requirement.

The UCI said it will make a decision this week. UCI president Pat McQuaid said Saturday that ''the rules must be respected.''

Under the UCI's rule 77, a rider who has retired may not resume competing at international level unless he notifies the international governing body at least 6 months in advance before he expects to return to international competition. That ensures that the athlete is available for unannounced out-of-competition testing at any time.

Armstrong officially announced Sept. 9 that he is returning to cycling after three years in retirement in a bid to win the Tour de France for an eighth time with the Astana team of his former cycling manager Johan Bruyneel. That date only leaves less than five months before the start of the Tour Down Under.

However, Armstrong has run marathons and competed in small races over the past years and it is unclear when his 6-month countback would officially begin.

''We have to look into that. I am not sure what the exact dates are that he started the program,'' McQuaid said.

Armstrong has made anti-doping evidence a major part of his comeback. He had been hounded by doping suspicions for years during the time he won seven Tours in a row.

On Aug. 9, Armstrong competed in the Leadville-100 ''Race Across the Sky,'' a 100-mile (160-kilometer) mountain bike race through the Rockies. Astana spokesman Philippe Maertens said Armstrong had registered with USADA even before that date, but did not specify further.