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Rick Crawford (Provided by Colorado Mesa University)
GRAND JUNCTION???Colorado Mesa University has fired its high-profile, winning cycling coach Rick Crawford after a third athlete who had studied under Crawford has accused Crawford of helping him to dope. Crawford denies the allegation.
In October, Crawford voluntarily had gone to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency and admitted that he had helped procure performance-enhancing drugs for two professional cyclists ? Levi Leipheimer and Kirk O'Bee ? between 1999 and 2001. The agency reprimanded him earlier this month, and he agreed to perform 500 hours of community service.
CMU allowed him to stay on as coach under the oversight of former professional cyclist Scott Mercier of Grand Junction. Mercier walked away from elite professional cycling in the 1990s rather than bow to the pressure to take drugs.
"I wanted to get it out. It felt ugly the whole time," Crawford said after admitting his part in the doping scandal that has taken down many professional cyclists.
Crawford was the first coach to come forward and publicly admit to helping athletes dope. He said he never helped collegiate athletes use drugs and, on the contrary, preached adamantly against doping.
Crawford, 53, came to CMU in February after coaching at Fort Lewis College for eight seasons. His CMU team was recently ranked first nationally among Division II schools.
Crawford did not return requests for comment this week. Mercier said CMU has started a coach search. In the interim, a team member from Germany, Patric Rostel, has assumed the duties and pay of coach.
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