Basso leaves Disco

[snapdragen]

http://www.velonews.com/news/fea/12145.0.html

[jobob]

wow .....

[IFjane]

Wow Snap! Thanks for the latest news. This does not bode well for Basso...

[chickwhorips]

i triple that wow.

[margo49]

Yeah, I just read that over on the Eurosport website.

[alpinerabbit]

107 names are now linked to Doctor Fuentes nowadays... that's over half the TdF peloton.....

[margo49]

I saw they had 200 samples (bags of frozen blood) matched up.
Only 2 weeks till the start of the Giro too.

[Eden]

I think that it is quite sad that all of these cyclists are losing their careers over rumor and innuendo - which is all I've seen from Operacion Puerto so far, when other sports, like baseball, seem to be completely ignoring the problem. A batboy was just busted for selling PED's, but I have yet to hear about any players being suspended because of it. If it had been cycling and a soingeur had been the busted one I bet the whole team would have been suspended. I really wish they would leave cyclists alone until they can actually prove something..... (a list of names is not good enough for me!!)

[smilingcat]

Hi Eden,

Someway I agree with you. Innuendos and rumor is all its enough to ruin someone's career in cycling. Look at Floyed Landis and the French authority's approach in dealing with his dopig issues. I have a problem with how Landis doping issues is handled. Why the French did not allow a representative from Landis camp be allowed to watch the testing?? And would it hurt to have a rep there watching the process? and why didn't they allow some other testing facility to do the test instead of the SAME PLACE??

But.... You race. So you must have heard/seen about drugs even at regional levels??

I'm not a great rider by any means, yet I've been personally offered steroids on several occasions from different people. I've know people who were offered EPO, the drug of choice today. But it's all heresay right?

-------
Granted cycling world seems to be taking a harder line than lets say baseball or American football... Maybe American culture revolves too much on idol worshipping and more willing to look the other way. Its just a reflection on our drug culture. pop a pill to cure anything.

[Eden]

This is my second year racing and I've NEVER been offered or heard of anyone else using any kind of PED's at this level. It would be completely ridiculous anyway to buy and use expensive drugs to win socks and a can of electrolyte replacement......

Oh - and more than 100 European football (soccer to us yanks) players were also implicated but there has been NO leakage about the identity of any of them....

Cripes if I were to do something illegal like that I certainly wouldn't go by my own name....
Until the authorities can positively identify the blood and link the blood to PED's then I think that they shouldn't leak names or suspend people.

[smilingcat]

maybe its California thing... (and somewhere on the east coast).

I don't knwo why the footballers don't get implicated by name like the cyclist. Maybe its the cycling culture. It really isn't fair especially if your livelihood depends on it. Or maybe we are not idolized like the footballers?

[snapdragen]

I agree - personally, I think Barry Bonds needs a huge asterisk next to his name when his "accomplishments" are listed.

I think that it is quite sad that all of these cyclists are losing their careers over rumor and innuendo - which is all I've seen from Operacion Puerto so far, when other sports, like baseball, seem to be completely ignoring the problem. A batboy was just busted for selling PED's, but I have yet to hear about any players being suspended because of it. If it had been cycling and a soingeur had been the busted one I bet the whole team would have been suspended. I really wish they would leave cyclists alone until they can actually prove something..... (a list of names is not good enough for me!!)

[Kalidurga]

This is so sad.

The latest issue of Bicycling magazine (on newsstands now) has a great cover story about the issues involved in Floyd Landis' case. It doesn't get into "did he or didn't he" or "how". It talks entirely about how the case has been handled by USADA and WADA, and what Floyd's had to deal with.

I do believe that cheating is wrong. But I am so f@#$ing disgusted by the way L'Equipe (which I learned from the Bicycling article is owned by the same company that "owns" the Tour. Funny coincidence), UCI, WADA & USADA have dealt with both Operation Puerto and the 2006 TdF that I have trouble caring anymore what the riders may or may not have done. D-i-c-k Pound's and Pat McQuaid's words and actions make cheating cyclists look like little angels by comparison. The two of them come across as being incredibly hypocritical, duplicitous, and biased. If Basso, Landis, or any other rider ends up being validated, Pound and McQuaid both should be fired.

Until all of this is hashed out, my new team to follow is Team Slipstream. With their proactive stance on testing, they seem to be the safest team to root for.

[polliwog88]

When I knew Lance was retiring I chose a new favorite rider. That rider is Ivan Basso. I have followed his career closely for the past 3 years and I'm a big FAN. My 2 year old cat is even named after him: Basso, a cute orange tiger kitty.

I've been deeply disturbed these past weeks with news that the case has been opened up again. I came back from my ride today and read about him leaving Discovery, I was floored....

I've always gone with the innocent until proven guilty stance, we'll just have to wait and see what happens on May 2nd at his hearing.

[IFjane]

Until all of this is hashed out, my new team to follow is Team Slipstream. With their proactive stance on testing, they seem to be the safest team to root for.

And they have a really cool kit, too!