2009-06-24 18:54:04 -

PARIS (AP) - Tour de France organizers abandoned plans to let former world champion Tom Boonen take part in next month's race amid pressure from the French sports minister, the rider's lawyer said Wednesday.
The Belgian rider was barred by race organizers after testing positive twice for cocaine in less than a year.
Boonen's lawyer made public a letter sent Monday from cycling's governing body, the UCI, to Boonen's team manager indicating that Tour organizer Amaury Sports Organization had told the UCI that they planned to let Boonen ride.
«However, ASO subsequently told us that his participation could no longer be envisaged, due to the wishes expressed by the sports minister» _ Bernard Laporte, according to the letter made public Wednesday by Boonen's lawyer Jean-Louis Dupont.
Dupont has said he would press Boonen's case for being reinstated to the Tour at a court hearing in the western Paris suburb of Nanterre on Thursday.
Tour director Christian Prudhomme could not be immediately reached for comment by The Associated Press.
Laporte was replaced as sports minister in a French Cabinet shuffle announced by President Nicolas Sarkozy's office on Tuesday.

ASO said last Thursday that Boonen would be banned after testing positive for cocaine use in April. The UCI decided not to take action against him because the test came during a rest period between races. The 28-year-old rider did not race in the Tour last year because of another positive cocaine test in May 2008.
The three-week Tour de France runs July 4-26.
Boonen's absence would be a blow to the Quick Step team. He won the Paris-Roubaix event for the third time this season, and resumed cycling this month including at the Dauphine Libere criterium stage race.
In 2007, he won the Tour's green jersey as best sprinter.