Lance Armstrong's team RadioShack face discipline and Fines for Violating the Tour's Dress Code and Delaying the Start of the Race

Armstrong in the offending black jersey featuring his foundation's
Livestrong slogan which he defiant put back on after the race finish.
Image credit: Francois Lenoir / Reuters at Yahoo Sports

In a show of utter disregard for the Tour's rules policed by the commissaires of UCI, Union Cycliste Internationale, the international cycling union, Lance Armstrong and his teammates decided to wear a jersey featuring his cancer foundation Livestrong rather than his team jersey.

The commissaires stopped the 38-year-old Armstrong and his teammates from publicising his foundation by wearing a black jerseys all with the number 28 referring to the estimated 28 million people living with cancer. Armstrong's move delayed the start of the race.

The UCI announced that team RadioShack would be made to withdraw from the race, and therefore forfeit their expected award for the best team, if the riders did not wear their team jersey. We were therefore afforded the spectacle of the team riders having to wear their regular team jerseys over the black foundation jerseys while riding their cycles during the starting warm-up kilometers before the dropping of the starting flag. But the team jerseys didn't have the riders' numbers. Besides, wearing two jerseys would have made it unbearably hot for the riders.

The referees stopped Armstrong to explain the rules (and probably threaten him). The RadioShack riders then had to stop, sit on the side of the road, take off the black jerseys and put on team jerseys with numbers. The race leaders at the front of the peloton first slowed down the whole race to allow the RadioShack riders to settle down.Then the race was stopped.

This blatant publicity stunt by Armstrong and team manager Johan Bruyneel, delayed the entire race by 20 minutes.The cameras were focused on the offending team and their charade.

Lance Armstrong (foreground) and team-mate (background) were forced
to change back to the team's regular red and black jerseys on the road side
in the initial warm-up before the rolling start. Riders at the front slowed down
when they read the news, delaying the start of the race by twenty minutes.
Photo credit: Joel Saget/AFP/Getty Images at Yahoo Sports

Not be be stopped from wearing black jerseys once more and provoking some more media attention and publicity, Armstrong and his team put on black jerseys for their ascent to the grand podium at the end of the race while accepting the best team award.

The commissaires issued "RadioShack's incorrect behaviour led to a 20-minute delay to the start of the final stage, which could have disrupted the televised coverage of the race, placing the commissaires under the obligation to impose a fine on each rider and the team managers."

They added, "The UCI regrets that an initiative for a cause as worthy as the fight against cancer was not coordinated beforehand with the Commissaires and organisers of the event. This could have been done whilst remaining within the rules."

Team manager Bruyneel posted on his Twitter page, "Ok people! Now it's official! To be a race commisar [sic], you don't need brains but only know the rules! Their motto: 'c'est le reglement!'"