The Lance Armstrong saga is not "new" news, but some details of the investigation are released today. As more information comes to the surface, it seems we keep learning more bad things about these heroes of the sport.
Today's article:
http://news.yahoo.com/investigators-cyclist-armstrong-doping-ringleader-032138514--spt.html
The killer for me is, one of his teammates, Tom Danielson, is the hometown guy who achieved success. He started his career sponsored by the cycling shop in our city, and has ridden with the very best in the world. Now, by association with this team, he is up to his neck in the doping ring scandal and will pay for it with a 6-month ban from professional cycling events.
This all is a shame, and I hope all the riders are able to get clean, and ride competitively again. There have not been any admissions of guilt or involvement, but most involved have stopped denials. They could be advised by lawyers to say nothing, I don't know.
I know it casts a long long shadow over a sport that's related to our hobby, even if you don't race. It's like restoring old hot rods, and hearing that a NASCAR team is being banned for cheating, when really it's more like being banned for getting caught (because everyone's cheating a little.)
In Armstrong's case, each year he won the Tour de France, the man who held second place has already been either investigated or served some sort of sentence within the sport for doping or other violations. All of the second-place winners (a few years, it's the same guy who took second.) That was reported by Bicycling magazine. The German court system that investigates some of these cases has a penalty structure where a subject of the investigation can simply pay a fine without admitting guilt, and end the action against him, and that what was done in many cases.
The whole thing makes you shake your head. It's heartbreaking, especially when you consider the personal performance aspect of the sport. Every one of these cyclists is an elite top athlete. Whether they were "enhanced" by some drug or not, they all have strength and endurance that is admirable.
I don't know how else to express what I feel: sadness, shock, sympathy, disappointment, anger, frustration? It's all mixed together.
I hope it's the end of the scandal and future wins by any of these men are not clouded by allegations of cheating. That goes for all the other top riders in the sport of cycling.
--Rob Bareiss
New London CT
Today's article:
http://news.yahoo.com/investigators-cyclist-armstrong-doping-ringleader-032138514--spt.html
The killer for me is, one of his teammates, Tom Danielson, is the hometown guy who achieved success. He started his career sponsored by the cycling shop in our city, and has ridden with the very best in the world. Now, by association with this team, he is up to his neck in the doping ring scandal and will pay for it with a 6-month ban from professional cycling events.
This all is a shame, and I hope all the riders are able to get clean, and ride competitively again. There have not been any admissions of guilt or involvement, but most involved have stopped denials. They could be advised by lawyers to say nothing, I don't know.
I know it casts a long long shadow over a sport that's related to our hobby, even if you don't race. It's like restoring old hot rods, and hearing that a NASCAR team is being banned for cheating, when really it's more like being banned for getting caught (because everyone's cheating a little.)
In Armstrong's case, each year he won the Tour de France, the man who held second place has already been either investigated or served some sort of sentence within the sport for doping or other violations. All of the second-place winners (a few years, it's the same guy who took second.) That was reported by Bicycling magazine. The German court system that investigates some of these cases has a penalty structure where a subject of the investigation can simply pay a fine without admitting guilt, and end the action against him, and that what was done in many cases.
The whole thing makes you shake your head. It's heartbreaking, especially when you consider the personal performance aspect of the sport. Every one of these cyclists is an elite top athlete. Whether they were "enhanced" by some drug or not, they all have strength and endurance that is admirable.
I don't know how else to express what I feel: sadness, shock, sympathy, disappointment, anger, frustration? It's all mixed together.
I hope it's the end of the scandal and future wins by any of these men are not clouded by allegations of cheating. That goes for all the other top riders in the sport of cycling.
--Rob Bareiss
New London CT