Beleaguered Tour de France winner Landis has hip op

SAN DIEGO, United States (AFP) - Floyd Landis, the Tour de France champion who is battling a doping charge, was recovering after undergoing hip replacement surgery.

A statement issued by Landis spokesman Michael Henson said the two hour procedure was performed by doctor David Chao, who was the lead surgeon in two previous operations on Landis' injured right hip.

"The state-of-the-art replacement will maximize Landis chance of returning to top-level competition," the statement said.

Landis, who is in danger of becoming the first champion in the 103-year history of the Tour de France to lose his title due to doping, has vowed to fight the charges.

Urine tests showed abnormal amounts of testosterone in his body after his stunning victory on stage 17 which allowed him to relaunch his bid for the coveted Tour crown.

Landis said last Friday he had been informed that the US Anti-Doping Agency planned to proceed with disciplinary action, and he would request a public arbitration hearing before American Abitration Association to contest potential sanctions.

Landis attorney Howard Jacobs had already asked for the case to be dismissed, questioning the tests carried out on Landis' samples in a French laboratory. Jacobs also claimed that the positive finding on the B sample came from a sample number not assigned to Landis.

As the case winds on, Landis will be rehabilitating his hip.

He had announced in July that the broken hip he sustained in a crash while training in January 2003 near his California home had caused a condition known as avascular necrosis, resulting in decreased blood flow and deterioration of the joint.

Landis was home from the hospital on Thursday and planned to immediately being physical therapy, Henson said. He can begin low intensity training on his bicycle in one to two weeks.