Lithuanian cyclist Raimondas Rumsas, who finished third in the 2002 Tour de France, was given a four-month suspended prison sentence by a court in the French Alpine village of Bonneville on Thursday.

Rumsas and his wife, Edita, were both convicted on charges of importing prohibited doping substances in connection with a case that began on the final day of the 2002 Tour.

Both Rumsas and his wife were given the same suspended sentences and fined 3000 euros ($3675), while Polish doctor Krzysztof Ficek was handed a 12-month suspended sentence for prescribing the drugs.

During the trial on November 23, state prosecutor Vincent Le Pannerer had asked that Ficek as the main culprit in the case be jailed for his role, with suspended sentences of eight months and four months respectively against Rumsas and his wife.

None of the three were present at Bonneville on Thursday to hear the sentencing.

As Rumsas rode into Paris to celebrate his third-place finish in the 2002 Tour de France, customs police stopped his wife and searched her car, discovering a trunk full of growth hormones, erythropoietin and other banned substances.

Rumsas, who despite suspicions proclaimed his innocence throughout the affair, was suspended by his Lampre team in May 2003 after failing a dope test for EPO during the Giro d’Italia.

While his wife faced repeated interrogation by police and customs officers as she was held in custody for more than two months in Bonneville in 2002, Rumsas returned to his native Lithuania where the public and the authorities gave him the benefit of the doubt and celebrated his third place finish on the race.

"In short, his wife faced up to the problem while her husband stole away. She has courage, he has been a coward," Le Pannerer said during the November trial.

In the witness box Edita Rumsas spoke through an interpreter for over two hours trying to explain the contradictions which accompanied each version of events over the seven times she has been questioned by the authorities.

The lawyer for the French cycling federation, who are civil witnesses in the trial, said Edita Rumsas's version of events was "pathetic."

"Even though she is doing everything possible to protect her husband Madame Rumsas is pathetic," said the lawyer Paul Mauriac.

Her husband Raimondas Rumsas, 33, refused at first to confirm his identity and during his 90-minute stay appeared to be bitter over the affair.

It was for this reason that the former cyclist - now unemployed - complained bitterly that he had been specifically targeted by Le Pannerer and that his career had been ruined as a result.

Barloworld presents ’06 team
The South African Team Barloworld presented its 2006 team on Thursday in the Tuscan spa resort of Montecatini, where the riders are training for the season ahead.

This year, Claudio Corti is running the squad, and the red team kit recalls his 10 years with the Saeco team, as do the riders’ Cannondale bikes.

"We've got a good team that is set to grow in the future as part of a program of development we're putting together with our sponsors, but I'm convinced 2006 will be a satisfying season," said Corti.

Leading the team is Spanish rider Igor Astarloa, who won Fléche Wallonne and the world road championships in 2003 but has struggled since.

"I think I'm physically back to my best and I'm confident of doing well this year. The spirit in the new team is what I need to help me be successful again," Astarloa said.

The team will make its official debut at the GP degli Etruschi in Tuscany on February 4. Three riders will tackle the Tour de Langkawi in Malaysia as part of a South African national team, with Ryan Cox one of the favorites after winning the race last year.

Team Barloworld for 2006
Ryan Cox (RSA)
Rodney Green (RSA)
Tiaan Kannemeyer (RSA)
Jeremy Maartens (RSA)
James Perry (RSA)
Igor Astarloa (Sp)
Pedro Arreitunandia (Sp)
Amets Txurruka (Sp)
Felix Cardenas (Col)
Mads Christensen (Den)
Alex Efimkin (Rus)
Hugo Sabido (Por)
Tom Southam (GB)
Enrico Degano (I)
Giosue Bonomi (I)
Gianpaolo Cheula (I)
Mauro Facci (I)

General manager: Claudio Corti
Sporting directors: Alberto Volpi, Valerio Tebaldi and Christiaan Andersen

Millar grateful for second chance
An emotional David Millar promised Wednesday that he'll be a clean rider when his two-year racing ban expires just days before the 2006 Tour de France.

The flamboyant Scot - who was stripped of his 2003 world time trial championship after admitting in he used the banned blood booster EPO on three occasions - insisted his controversial comeback will be about more than earning a paycheck.

"I'm convinced you can win the biggest race in cycling without drugs, otherwise I wouldn't be coming back to this sport," he said during the Saunier Duval-Prodir team presentation in Milan. "I have a responsibility toward cycling to come back to the sport better than I was before, with a good, clear voice to give merit to this beautiful sport."

Millar's comments come just as the 28-year-old Scot is beginning his high-profile and controversial return to the professional ranks. He recently completed a training camp in Spain and appeared dressed in a full Saunier Duval-Prodir uniform with his 27 teammates during the 2006 kick-off celebration.

Millar showed emotion as he told the mostly Italian crowd that the past two summers have been devasting as he faced his demons, lost most of his money and reconsidered his future without racing. The crowd of about 200 supporters applauded after a visibly moved Millar vowed to be a positive force in the fight against doping.

"It's was very hard. I lost everything," he said of his racing ban. "I made mistakes and I've paid for them."

In June, 2004, Millar confessed he used EPO after French police found empty vials in a search of his home in Biarritz, France, as part of a larger investigation into his then-Cofidis team.

In a stark confession, Millar admitted he used EPO despite never failing a test during routine anti-doping procedures. He was also stripped of respective stage victories in the Dauphiné Libéré and the Vuelta a España along with his 2003 world time trial crown, which was later awarded to runner-up Michael Rogers.

The British cycling federation slapped Millar with a four-year racing ban, but he challenged that ruling in the Court of Arbitration of Sport and won, reducing his racing ban to 24 months - set to expire just nine days before the the opening Tour prologue in Strasbourg 2006.

Millar - who won the 2000 Tour prologue ahead of seven-time Tour champ Lance Armstrong to herald his arrival as a major star - said a chance at victory in Strasbourg is fueling his motivation as he tries to ride himself back into top shape.

Looking thin but not as cut as his teammates, Millar said solid team support has helped steady his resolve against criticisms from some quarters that he should be banned for life.

"I'm very lucky this team is so welcoming," he said. "They've given me a second chance, which is something rare these days."

Millar is set to travel to the United States in February to train with his teammates and conduct wind-tunnel testing ahead of the Tour of California. Millar - once nicknamed "Le Dandy" by the French media - won't be racing just yet, but he's hoping to make a statement in more ways than one come July.

Check back to VeloNews.com later this week for a full report from the Saunier Duval-Prodir team presentation.

— Andrew Hood, VeloNews European correspondent