Tour de France | Doping busts haunt riders

NIMES, France — Mark Cavendish wants to talk about his latest stage victory — not doping. British cyclist David Millar pleads with fans: "Please, don't give up on us."

This may not be easy. This, after all, is the Tour de France.

Cavendish, a British sprint specialist on Team Columbia, captured the 13th stage Friday — the fourth stage he has won and second in a row. He prevailed over a 113-mile course on a hot, wind-swept day along the Mediterranean while Cadel Evans of Australia kept the leader's yellow jersey.

The drug use that is battering cycling's image yet again is starting to weigh on the riders' minds. But for Italy's Riccardo Ricco, who tested positive for the blood booster EPO, the consequences could be far more than psychological.

French authorities filed preliminary charges against him Friday. He could face two years in prison if convicted on charges of using toxic substances, a French prosecutor said.

Ricco, who won two stages of this Tour, was fired from his Saunier Duval team Friday, a day after he was kicked out of the race. He is the third rider to be ousted.

After his release from police custody, Ricco made no clear denials. Instead, he defiantly said he wasn't surprised by the team's decision to fire him.

"It's the routine for the teams," Ricco told Italy's RAI state TV. "That's what they have to do. I'll be back. I'll be back stronger than before."

Ricco's teammate Leonardo Piepoli, who won the 10th stage, was also fired for "violation of the team's ethical code." A Saunier Duval spokesman declined to elaborate.

In any case, this was not something Cavendish cared to discuss.

"I've just won the stage, and I've just heard about that," Cavendish said. "On another day, I don't want somebody else to overshadow my victory again. So, please, no questions on that."

Evans maintained his one-second lead over runner-up Frank Schleck of Luxembourg. Christian Vande Velde of the United States is third, 38 seconds behind.

The race heads for another mostly flat stage today, a trip of more than 116 miles from Nimes to Digne-les-Bains. Then come three grueling stages in the Alps starting Sunday.

The race ends July 27 in Paris.

Few are certain the Tour will be doping-free between now and then, and virtually no competitor is entirely above suspicion. Spanish riders Moises Duenas Nevado and Manuel Beltran were also ejected from the Tour for using EPO.

"I hope we're not going to find any more," said Pierre Bordry, the head of the French anti-doping agency that has been conducting the drug tests.

Bordry said Ricco had tested positive for CERA, or continuous erythropoietin receptor activator, an advanced version of EPO.

A police search of a hotel room where Ricco had stayed turned up medical equipment like syringes, catheters and medical bags — but no doping products, said Antoine Leroy, state prosecutor in the town of Foix.

Millar, who served a two-year ban after admitting to blood doping in 2004, empathizes with fans angered by Ricco's test result.

"If you're close to giving up on cycling, I can understand that," Millar wrote in his Tour diary Friday. "I almost did after all. But, please, don't give up on us."

Associated Press writers Eliane Engeler in Geneva, Alessandra Rizzo and Ariel David in Rome, Jerome Pugmire in Nimes, France, and Samuel Petrequin in Paris contributed to this report.