Here we go again... another scandal on TDF

[SadieKate]

The press conference with Floyd at VeloNews is really interesting.

I haven't heard Floyd speak much but he sounded exhausted and distraught or is this his normal speech pattern?

I wanted to club a few of the reporters. "Would you lie to your mom?" "What will you do if you loose the TdF title?" Fer pete's sake, the guy is trying to figure out how to prove his innocence in a test that is by WADA standards inconsistent and is one that no one even tracks for baseline.

Thanks for the link, Kim.

[tomgrrrl]

Restrec, I beg to differ, but he hasn't been "fired" from Phonak, his team. Cycling has the most stringent rules in the sports world and it is STANDARD that athletes under investigation are "suspended" until the situation is resolved. It's how all the teams are required to operate....also, I don't think the situation is as black and white as you seem to...but, this being a free world, you are certainly entitled to your opinion.

Somehow this whole thing resembles a certain event back in Salem hundreds of years ago.....

[restrec]

Landis has not only been fired, but if you read the news today, due to the the past doping situations with Tyler Hamilton and 3 other riders, plus the recent especulations of Botero and another Phonak rider who were in the group of riders frequently visiting the Spaniard doctor, they have decided not to support cycling anymore, it is too embarrasing for them. Manzano the rider who spoke his mind about doping said and Merckz also said it sometime ago, that if you wanted just to finish the Tour you could go with no dope but those wanting to be in the top 15 will only make it with it. We have to let our kids know this, because if they are wanting to go professional some day they have to be aware of the consequences of doping to their health. These guys when they step into their 40's and 50's don't even have a sex life anymore !

Restrec, I beg to differ, but he hasn't been "fired" from Phonak, his team. Cycling has the most stringent rules in the sports world and it is STANDARD that athletes under investigation are "suspended" until the situation is resolved. It's how all the teams are required to operate....also, I don't think the situation is as black and white as you seem to...but, this being a free world, you are certainly entitled to your opinion.

Somehow this whole thing resembles a certain event back in Salem hundreds of years ago.....

[SadieKate]

Welcome to the forum, restrec. How about introducing yourself on the thread "Getting to Know You"? We're always snoopy about new people.

[velogirl]

Landis has not only been fired, but if you read the news today, due to the the past doping situations with Tyler Hamilton and 3 other riders, plus the recent especulations of Botero and another Phonak rider who were in the group of riders frequently visiting the Spaniard doctor, they have decided not to support cycling anymore, it is too embarrasing for them. Manzano the rider who spoke his mind about doping said and Merckz also said it sometime ago, that if you wanted just to finish the Tour you could go with no dope but those wanting to be in the top 15 will only make it with it. We have to let our kids know this, because if they are wanting to go professional some day they have to be aware of the consequences of doping to their health. These guys when they step into their 40's and 50's don't even have a sex life anymore !

Landis has not been fired. It is part of the WADA code of ethics (signed by teams and individual riders) that if a rider is under investigation he doesn't race during the interim and the team will suspend the rider. This isn't being fired.

Phonak had planned to pull out their title sponsorship as early as January (that's when I heard it from Floyd himself at a training camp in CA). iShares will be the new title sponsor of the team and Phonak will be a secondary sponsor.

It's a shame, in a country where we "should" be innocent until proven guilty, that the public and the media condemn (how do you spell that?) a rider before there is sufficient evidence or due process has been served. How can we be so judgemental? Give the guy a chance, will you? Rumors and misinformation do nothing to help the integrity of this sport.

Yes, doping is a problem in pro cycling. And every junior who wants to pursue the sport professionally quickly learns that, especially if they race in Europe. But there are pro racers who race clean and we should hold them up as an example to our aspiring athletes.

[FreshNewbie]

Thank you Velogirl! ... for speaking my mind!!! We didn't see any evidence yet regarding the Test B, but somehow people jump to conclusions right away. I know it's everybody's personal opinion, but maybe if you imagined yourself in his shoes or other riders' shoes then you would too want a benefit of a doubt. We all know that pro cycling is corrupted with doping and other issues but we shouldn't forget that puting everybody under one standard doesn't do any good. To me, until he is proven guilty and emptied his last resorts of innosence proof - he is not guilty!!!

[Denise223]

I'm wondering....Is it possible at all that TEST B could be tampered with??

[velogirl]

I'm wondering....Is it possible at all that TEST B could be tampered with??

Okay, so I've never been drug tested, but I managed a pro team last season in the US. We were lucky enough to win the doping lottery a few times during the season. You see, in the US, not only are the winners tested, but there are a number of random tests as well (ie picking a number out of a hat).

Because most of our racers are new to the pro scene, I accompanied them to the testing trailer. Here's what happens:

You sit outside in the sun in your wet shorts (after just racing in the sun), and the USADA folks give you gatorade until you can finally pee. Sometimes this takes hours. I think it might be faster if they gave you coffee or beer, but apparently that would skew the ph (see below).

Once you're good to go, you go inside the trailer with a USADA rep and the rep. explains the procedure to you. The rep. gives you some literature about USADA and you sign an acknowledgement. You pick a box from a handful of identical boxes sitting on the table. You then open the box yourself and inside are two glass cups (sealed) and a test strip. The rep. never touches the box or the cups or the test strip.

Then, you and the rep. go into the bathroom and she watches you pee into both cups. Imagine if you get a bit of performance anxiety -- this can be a long process. After you pee in the cups, you seal them again and the rep. gives you a label to put on them (with information about you, the race, the date, etc).

Then, you go sit at the table again and the rep. asks you to open the cups and administer the test strip to see if the samples will be valid (has to do with the ph level or something). Anyways, you seal the cups (sample A and sample B), put them back in the box, the box gets sealed and then you finally get to go home.

So, it would appear, on the surface, that there's very little margin for error in this process, at least from a collection pov. However, I have no idea what happens during the testing/analysis phase.

And, the crazy thing about the T/E test that was in question for Floyd is that there apparently are HUGE concerns about whether or not this test is even valid.

BTW, I'm sure there's lots of info on the WADA and USADA websites where you can learn more.

[tomgrrrl]

Landis has not only been fired, but if you read the news today, due to the the past doping situations with Tyler Hamilton and 3 other riders, plus the recent especulations of Botero and another Phonak rider who were in the group of riders frequently visiting the Spaniard doctor, they have decided not to support cycling anymore, it is too embarrasing for them. Manzano the rider who spoke his mind about doping said and Merckz also said it sometime ago, that if you wanted just to finish the Tour you could go with no dope but those wanting to be in the top 15 will only make it with it. We have to let our kids know this, because if they are wanting to go professional some day they have to be aware of the consequences of doping to their health. These guys when they step into their 40's and 50's don't even have a sex life anymore !

Restrec, Phonak was pulling out of sponsorship after this TDF. That's what the announcers were saying on OLN when Landis was on the victory podium when he was presented with the yellow jersey. Ishares was going to take over, but that's not for sure. Teams change sponsorships all the time.....just look at how Postal became Discovery, etc. ...I'm sure this controversy has added to the muddle, but Phonak was out BEFORE this happened (unless my TIVO is lying to me). Perhaps i-ishares is now out and the team will regroup or riders will go elsewhere....I'm sure the scandal doesn't help solidify something already tenuous....

Also, I have a young daughter and agree that our children should be educated about the perils of drug use, etc....but I also try to instill in my daughter the idea that it's best to be sensitive to others and to hear people out, to try to give them the benefit of the doubt when faced with conflicting information....life can be complicated and the answers don't often come in black or white.....

[Nanci]

RM, I'd be happy to hold him down while you smack him. He's always the first to turn on someone, take Lance for instance. Any time you see him being interviewed, he's accusing someone of doping. I don't like him at all.

[Dogmama]

Why does he always pick on the Americans? Did he rail against Ullrich, et.al., when they were tossed?

He needs to take that chip off of his shoulder. He is making the sport look worse...if that is possible right now. Maybe it's the lead in his body?

[RoadRaven]

RM, I'd be happy to hold him down while you smack him. He's always the first to turn on someone, take Lance for instance. Any time you see him being interviewed, he's accusing someone of doping. I don't like him at all.

Ah yes... Nanci, RM, Sadie, Aggie, Dogmama...

Interesting - I am just reading "Chasing Lance" at the moment and just last night read about how LeMond was great mates with Lance and then suddenly turned (with something not unlike the speed of a viper) and started spreading poison...

I'll stand in line with a paddle - don't wanna smack him with my hands!

[ridebikeme]

As always, Lemond has truly shown himself.... an egotisical **** the only reason that I can see that he turns on Americans is because he is the one that wants to be remembered...

I think the absolute best way to get back at him is NOT to buy any of his products.... if he can't support our US athletes any better than he has... than I can't justify buying any Lemond products....