Clean Cunego to lead Lampre at Tour

by kferaday | July 1, 2008 at 01:43 pm

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I've been a fan of il Piccolo Principe since he won the Giro in 2004. Since then Cunego has had some decent showings at the Tour and the Giro; a pair of wins at Lombardia; and cemented his reputation as a Classics rider with a win at this year's Amstel Gold.

But I'm firmly behind him at this year's Tour now that he has taken up the cause a vocal opponent to doping with a new program called "I'm Doping Free" that Cunego started recently with a fan.

Damiano Cunego will be brandishing a new look for the Tour de France and it won’t just be a fresh dye-job on his curly locks.

The 2004 Giro d’Italia champ and Lampre team leader is supporting a new anti-doping campaign and has had its slogan tattooed on his left arm. It reads: “I’m doping free.”

“It’s a strong message,” Cunego told La Gazzetta dello Sport. “The idea came to me after reading a letter from a boy named Marco Guadagnini, who races in a white jersey that reads, ‘doping-free.’ I really liked that message. Why not do something? I got in contact Mr. Guadagnini, father of Marco, and together we’ve created a program for us athletes. It will be universal, not just cycling, to show that all sports can change.”

Cunego will unveil details of the project in Brest ahead of the start of the 2008 Tour. Joining the effort are Italian Olympic athletes, including swimmer Alessia Filippi and race walker Ivano Brugnetti.

The group will be promoting its anti-doping message via a tattoo that can be purchased for one euro on the www.dopingfree.org. The group hopes to raise money for underprivileged athletes and promote clean sport.