Sore loser

[Roadrunner]

I've always been a big fan of L.A but since this years T>D>F I've gone off the guy completely. HIs attitude on the presentation platform and his snubbing Contador's celebration meal was just attrocious.
Now he's bad mouthing Contador to the Press.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/armstrong-slams-contadors-entourage

I know he's lost several fans in this household at least. I don't know about anyone. I'm so dissapointed in him.

[Kalidurga]

I've gotten to the point that I don't pay much attention to what my favorite cyclists/actors/musicians/whatever do outside of their sport/art/whatever. I may read about it for the entertainment factor, but I don't attach much importance to it. They have their life and I have mine. And they're flawed human beings with lots of foibles, just like the rest of us "regular folk".

When it comes to Lance, the only things that really matter are what he does on the bike and with LiveStrong.

[OakLeaf]

Sure they're human, but ultimately they're ENTERTAINERS. Sponsors pay their bills, they don't eat unless fans buy their sponsors' products, and so ultimately they're accountable to their fans much more than to the officials of their sport.

It's exactly that kind of behavior that put me off Lance a long time ago. Behaving that way toward a fellow competitor is one thing, but a better illustration is the roundtable discussion after Race across the Sky, when he alone of all the panelists refused to applaud Roxanne Hall.

I can admire his physical achievements, but I will root against Lance in any race.

[Bike Chick]

I agree with you, Oak. Lance is and always has been a very talented cyclist and athlete. His physical abilities and accomplishments are something to applaud and admire but they are overshadowed by his arrogance and huge ego. The same goes for Tiger Woods. I've never been a fan of either one for that very reason. On the other hand, you would need a huge ego to have the confidence needed to be who they are.

His remarks against Contador in that article are petty and cheap. It makes him look like a whiney crybaby--which is something I never expected from Lance. Grow up. This is professional cycling; not professional wrestling. And by the way, Lance, Alberto is the King of Spain.

[ridebikeme]

++1

I definitely agree with you! If you pay attention, just about every week there is some sort of article about LA somewhere. It reminds me of the little boy tugging on Moms skirt/pants.. saying"Mom look at me". Not only does his petty comments look unprofessional, but it also reflects back on his Livestrong foundation.

IMO if you have something worthwhile to say, then get it in print. Otherwise, concentrate on what's important like your family, foundation and getting yourself into the best condition so that you can challenge Contador and everyone else ON the bike, not in the press.

[Zen]

I agree with you, Oak... Grow up. This is professional cycling; not professional wrestling. And by the way, Lance, Alberto is the King of Spain.

Yerp.

[ny biker]

I couldn't care less. The press plays up this kind of thing because it gets readers' attention. If no one read it, they'd stop.

[OakLeaf]

When it comes to Lance, the only things that really matter are what he does on the bike and with LiveStrong.

In general I'm suspicious of foundations launched by celebrities, and in particular when they duplicate the efforts of other charities. Can you say "tax write-off?" Although the LAF isn't rated particularly low, it's rated lower than many other cancer charities and lower than anything I'm willing to donate to. The foundation has stepped up quite a bit since it was trashed in a 2007 article (http://www.charitywatch.org/articles/cancer.html) from the AIP, but it's still inefficient (http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=6570) compared to peer organizations.

[smilingcat]

I think our culture more than any others are really into hero worshipping. they can do no wrong.

Well it was only a matter of time before he showed his true color. Be it, Tiger Woods, Lance, A-rod, and any number of pro athletes to entertainers...

I have far more respect for those working the soup kitchen, those who tree sit like Julia Butterfly Hill who saved Luna for sometime. (Luna was eventually felled by the logging company BTW) to those working in Ronald McDonald house...Those who quietly toil away without the limelight.

Hero worshipping is sure way of being led astray. They have the credentials for entertainment, sports but they have no more credentials than you or I when it comes to human rights, environmental protection... Even someone like Al Gore with his Nobel prize, I see him only as a spokeperson for all the scientists who toil away in inhospitable fields.

I am not appalled nor do I see it as breaking news.

Smilingcat

[Kalidurga]

Hero worshipping is sure way of being led astray. They have the credentials for entertainment, sports but they have no more credentials than you or I when it comes to human rights, environmental protection... Even someone like Al Gore with his Nobel prize, I see him only as a spokeperson for all the scientists who toil away in inhospitable fields.

I am not appalled nor do I see it as breaking news.

+ a whole lot.

[Maxxxie]

That article elicited a great, big "meh" from me. He's a person who rides a bike. As a person, he has a right to an opinion, and if he wants to express it, fine. So what if it's a negative opinion, or you don't agree with it, or whatever? Are "celebrities" (or anyone else for that matter) only allowed to say what they think if what they think is nice? Yes, let's hold back and only say what's nice. That way, we can live in a world of fake niceness and feel good about it. At least the guy says what he thinks. I respect that.

Max

[Zen]

There is nothing to respect except his ability to ride a bike.
It's not a question of nice/not nice.
In sport, there's a thing called sportsmanship and this type of display is poor sportsmanship.

[Maxxxie]

So your argument is that sportspeople should only express an opinion that is not negative? Sounds like you're trying to rationalise self-censorship.

Cadel Evans is widely regarded as a whinger because he (rightly or wrongly) attributes his lack of wins to team members that didn't support him, mechanics who are incompetent etc etc. Is he also a bad sport? What if it's true that his teammates suck and the mechanics are bad?

How about prize fighters who trash talk each other before a fight? Is that poor sportsmanship? Or does the fact that they hug after the fight make it alright?

I think these guys are as entitled to express their opinions as anyone else. Of course some will disagree with their opinions. Some will think it unseemly (unsportsmanlike). Others will just say "meh". Guess I'm in the third camp ;)

Max

[Zen]

Sure, mike.

[KnottedYet]

My universe is simple: I just want everyone to worship ME and donate to MY charities. ;)

Seriously, kids. If you want to donate to a charity, donate directly to that charity. ("Team Survivor" anyone? How about "Gilda's Club"? All you invincible young'uns will be facing this soon... wake up now ya' little sleeping beauties.) Be grateful to the celebrities who promote your favorite charity, but NEVER LOSE SIGHT of the fact that they worship themselves before the charity. That is their nature, and that is their role. Don't belittle them, but don't worship them either. Be grateful to them, and move on.

[pinkbikes]

So your argument is that sportspeople should only express an opinion that is not negative? Sounds like you're trying to rationalise self-censorship.

Cadel Evans is widely regarded as a whinger because he (rightly or wrongly) attributes his lack of wins to team members that didn't support him, mechanics who are incompetent etc etc. Is he also a bad sport? What if it's true that his teammates suck and the mechanics are bad?

How about prize fighters who trash talk each other before a fight? Is that poor sportsmanship? Or does the fact that they hug after the fight make it alright?

I think these guys are as entitled to express their opinions as anyone else. Of course some will disagree with their opinions. Some will think it unseemly (unsportsmanlike). Others will just say "meh". Guess I'm in the third camp ;)

Max

Yep - I think I'm in that third camp with you. Perhaps it is the national "tell it like it is" ethos. But I must admit I even went a bit further down the list than "meh."

I actually couldn't see anything sore loser-ish, or even trash talking about it. To me it looked like a pretty straight forward response to some questions from a journo. There was no whinge that somebody else got treated better - in fact it really seemed to be a response to the fact that somebody else (perhaps Alberto?) who was doing the whinging that he didn't get the right wheels and that he got dropped...:rolleyes:

I actually found very little to be offended by in any of the article other than the comment that LA admired AC as an athlete but it stopped there. And frankly, I've said pretty much the same about plenty of people in my life...ie "great engineer, terrific at their job, but that's where it stops." Or even better.."Really nice fellow, would do anything for you, but not really worth a crumpet as an engineer.":o

And I make the declaration that I find LA a pretty darned impressive athlete, a walking ego on legs, and a cancer survivor who seems pretty successful at wedding his fame to a charitable cause (whether or not very efficient) that does some good. So I am not really somebody who idolises him, but I don't really knock him either.

Like you said Maxxxie... "Meh!":)

[ridebikeme]

I suppose we could argue this for quite some time. HOwever, I do have one question. What good does it do to complain about something that happened last year? IN reality, it seems that LA should be focused on this year and the changes that he can make. Once again, all he's asking for is the spotlight to once again shine on him.:confused:

Remember some of the great athletes from the past? They let their performance do their talking... what a nice thought!:rolleyes:

[Zen]

^ perfect.

[ny biker]

I suppose we could argue this for quite some time. HOwever, I do have one question. What good does it do to complain about something that happened last year? IN reality, it seems that LA should be focused on this year and the changes that he can make. Once again, all he's asking for is the spotlight to once again shine on him.:confused:

Remember some of the great athletes from the past? They let their performance do their talking... what a nice thought!:rolleyes:

Except the media love a feud. You could argue that he should decline to answer the question, but that won't stop them from asking it. I guarantee we'll be hearing about this in July, whether the main players have something new to say about it or not. They're trying to attract readers/viewers, and if this topic didn't do the job they'd stop talking about it.

BTW that particular article looks like it was a translation from one language to another and back again. Not the best source for understanding what someone is really saying. And cyclingnews excerpted it, so they chose the part that they wanted to highlight.

One thing that I found interesting this past year was the way Lance and Levi cut out the press completely and went straight to the fans during the Giro. They made their own videos and posted them on twitter and livestrong.com, and they did it because they got tired of the stupid questions the journalists were asking.

As for focusing on 2010, he's already posted his first video for Team Radio Shack. It was short, basically a happy-new-year-and-thanks-for-last-year's-support message, but now that the new year has started he's clearly moving forward with the new team. And he's training in Hawaii during the holidays, and was recently quoted as saying that he expects to be better this year than last but knows that Contador and Shleck will be hard to beat. Not exactly living in the past.

(Lest you think I'm a stalker, I can also tell you where Taylor Phinney and Ted King are training right now, that George Hincapie has new insoles, Christian Vande Velde's 2-year-old recently learned to say "oh ****," and that Brad Wiggins is proud of himself for not drinking on New Year's Eve. And that Jonathan Vaughters has a wild pair of plaid pants and Phil Liggett's plane had a rough landing when he flew to Australia the other day. It's all out there on twitter.)