View Full Version : 2006 Edition Tour de France thread
RacinM3
06-29-06, 01:57 PM
So here we go again. Should be an interesting year.
With all the Lance doping BS I'm half expecting him to show up at the start on Saturday, just to piss off the French.
Seriously, though, who's your pick? Basso (he's mine)? Hincapie? Landis? Leipheimer? Azevedo?
Does Ullrich have it in him or will he again be a bridesmaid?
Looking forward to it, the TiVo is set!
Watch Ullrich be convicted for doping in the middle of the Tour. Liberty-Seguros has been asked to withdraw, CAS will decide their fate
RacinM3
06-29-06, 02:33 PM
Regarding Wurth, I guess we'll find out about that tomorrow, eh? It'd be a shame to see Vinokourov on the sideline.
Regarding Wurth, I guess we'll find out about that tomorrow, eh? It'd be a shame to see Vinokourov on the sideline.
werd.
and check this...
El Pais has alleged that Jan Ullrich, Roberto Heras, Oscar Sevilla, Joseba Beloki, Santiago Botero, Santi Pérez, Tyler Hamilton, Quique Gutierrez and Angel Edo are all mentioned in the 500 page report that will be delivered to the Spanish Secretary of State for Sport, Jaime Lissavetsky. In addition, Spanish radio Cadena Ser mentions that Rabobank riders Denis Menchov and Juan-Antonio Flecha are on the list, and other sources have mentioned Ivan Basso and Francisco Mancebo. In total, 22 riders scheduled to take part in the Tour de France are on the list of 58. All the riders questioned by journalists so far have denied any involvement in the affair."
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2006/jun06/jun29news3
Basso too? :(
oddlycalm
06-29-06, 07:21 PM
Barring any surprises in the endless doping goat rope, I'd pick Zabriske to win the individual time trials, Basso the overall, and CSC the team title.
BTW, with the ICU investigator finding Armstrong innocent of the 1999 doping allegations even more of a shadow is cast on WADA and in particular it's president Dick Pound. If you are trying to police athletes conduct you need to have high standards of conduct yourself. Allegations in the press based on half-baked and uncontrolled results in a French lab is a credibility killer and the way the current-close-order-group-fornication has been handled adds fuel to the fire. :thumdown:
oc
Dr. Corkski
06-29-06, 07:24 PM
I pick Barry Bonds.
Winston Wolfe
06-29-06, 10:53 PM
Basso for sure.
But Lance comes back next year to prove a point.... clear his name.... and wins!
Wheel-Nut
06-30-06, 09:05 AM
Basso is out . . . suspended!!
More riders suspended: Basso and Mancebo out
The various teams taking part in the Tour de France have now suspended all of their riders implicated in the Operacion Puerto affair, including Ivan Basso (CSC), whose nickname was allegedly "Birillo" in Fuentes' files, and Francisco Mancebo (AG2R). Joseba Beloki (Astana-Wurth) is another to be sent home. After Jan Ullrich and Oscar Sevilla were taken out this morning by T-Mobile, the teams are now pulling their other riders out. The pressure from the organisers, the UCI, the sponsors, and the non-affected teams has been intense.
ASO public relations man Bernard Hinault told radio RTL that he expects 15-20 riders to be ejected before the day is out. The UCI will then ask the national cycling federations to start disciplinary proceedings against the riders named in the Spanish network.
Teams spokesman Patrick Lefevere said that there will be no replacements for the riders who have been taken out. "We have unanimously decided to send all the riders who are on the list home, and not to substitute them."
Ullrich's ex-trainer calls it a "catastrophe"
"This is a catastrophe," said Jan Ullrich's former trainer Peter Becker to German news-TV channel N24, after learning of the suspension of Ullrich from T-Mobile. "Naturally that will be a terrible blow for Jan. It's unbelievable. You work hard for 15 years...I can't find any more words. This is a catastrophe.
"He has an altitude chamber in his basement, that cost €120,000, so that he could train in a clean way, and he still manages to fall in with these rogues and betrayers. Who has been advising him, who has been taking care of him, since I'm not with him? He is actually old enough to know who he should trust. I simply don't want to believe it, it is incomprehensible."
Belda questioned
Vicente Belda, the team manager of Spanish continental pro team Comunidad Valenciana, was questioned on Wednesday of this week by the Spanish Civil Guard. Belda's team is one of the most heavily implicated in Operacion Puerto, with 10 riders on "the list" and ex-directeur sportif Ignacio Labarta suspected of being one of the ringleaders.
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2006/jun06/jun30news3
Wheel-Nut
06-30-06, 11:37 AM
I say let them take / use what they want to . . .
RacinM3
06-30-06, 12:16 PM
Damn, what a mess.
That doesn't even BEGIN to describe this situation! :mad:
RacinM3
06-30-06, 12:35 PM
Here's another article: http://www.velonews.com/tour2006/news/articles/10176.0.html
This is where it's BS:
CSC team manager Bjarne Riis, a Tour winner in 1996, said he personally made the decision to exclude his top rider. Basso, winner of this year's Giro d'Italia and the Tour runner-up last year, was said to be devastated when Riis told him of the decision on Friday morning.
"He accepted my decision. It's my job to take decisions, but he was very sad. He was here on the Tour because he wanted to do well," said Riis. "That was what the whole team hoped for.
"I have to think about the team, that is now the most important thing. I trust Ivan Basso, but now it is up to him and his lawyers to show he has nothing to do with this affair."
But in the absence of conclusive proof, he would not condemn the man who has twice finished on the Tour podium.
"We need proof. We have to be careful saying things that are not 100 percent sure," Riis warned. "The investigation is going on, but how can I say he's lied to me when I cannot prove it? It's pretty normal that I have to support my riders."
So these guys are tossing riders and saying they're doing it without 100% proof, in an effort to placate the Tour organisers. Seems no less shady than a rider competing under the suspicion of doping.
oddlycalm
06-30-06, 02:48 PM
What tour? Whatever the results are, there's gotta be a giant asterisk next to them with most of the top contenders out of the race. Three of last years top five are out and others will start the race without the team they need to actually have any chance of winning.
Glad I don't have a team manager job. Can you imagine the pressure on a guy like Riis from the sponsor, tour manager and riders? Ugly stuff.
A big question is whether it will make a difference to the audience. Will there still be a million people lining the road up L'Alpe d'Huez, and what will this do to the TV ratings?
It certainly has effected my interest level. I'd like to see Levi Leipheimer do well, and while he's on a roll right now, seeing him win a tour without Basso, Ullrich, etc. would seem a bit hollow.
So...., Leipheimer, Rasmussen, Hincapie, Landis, Moreau, Popovych, Boonen? Some relative unknown from left field? Anyone?
oc
coolhand
06-30-06, 09:06 PM
I am pissed, I have been looking forward to an open tour like this year and now it is ruined, not only are the contenders out it also has chopped the heads off some of the good teams. There will be alot less teamwork this year and teams like CSC and T-Moblie which have good riders will now just be a bunch of individuals going for stage wins. Then there will be only 2 teams worried about the overall lead and they cannot share the load day in and day out to make a good chase. :mad:
coolhand
06-30-06, 09:09 PM
So...., Leipheimer, Rasmussen, Hincapie, Landis, Moreau, Popovych, Boonen? Some relative unknown from left field? Anyone?
oc
That one spanish young guy too. Thats about it, hardly the epic battle I was visioning. Now there are only like 4-5 guys who could barely compete at the level Lance and crowd did last year in the high mountains.
They should rename it Le Petit Tour this year. :( :saywhat: :shakehead :thumdown:
-Kevin
What tour? Whatever the results are, there's gotta be a giant asterisk next to them with most of the top contenders out of the race. Three of last years top five are out and others will start the race without the team they need to actually have any chance of winning.
Glad I don't have a team manager job. Can you imagine the pressure on a guy like Riis from the sponsor, tour manager and riders? Ugly stuff.
A big question is whether it will make a difference to the audience. Will there still be a million people lining the road up L'Alpe d'Huez, and what will this do to the TV ratings?
It certainly has effected my interest level. I'd like to see Levi Leipheimer do well, and while he's on a roll right now, seeing him win a tour without Basso, Ullrich, etc. would seem a bit hollow.
So...., Leipheimer, Rasmussen, Hincapie, Landis, Moreau, Popovych, Boonen? Some relative unknown from left field? Anyone?
oc
Le Tour will roll on regardless of who is in or out, it survived the Richard Virenque - Festina scandal, in a weeks time we'll be talking about the Pyrenees and all will be swept under the carpet.The crowds and tv viewers will still be there.
No victory in the tour is hollow, the winner still has to climb the mountains and ride the time trials.Is this years winner going to feel hollow because there is no Lance Armstrong.
In the meantime, Hincapie is looking good, after seven years of dragging Lance up those mountains, he is out to win one for himself. :thumbup:
Plenty of competition for him,though.
Of course I'm cheering for the Aussies, Michael Rogers, Cadel Evans and our two Green Jersey contenders Stuart O'Grady and Robbie McEwen. :D
Lots of 'mericans and Orstralians in the field, plus one lone kiwi for Rusty to cheer for, no Canukians though.
:)
coolhand
07-02-06, 11:41 PM
There is a very good chance an American will win it this year. :thumbup:
oddlycalm
07-04-06, 10:30 PM
Another favorite bites the dust. Alejandro Valverde abandons due to injuries.
oc
cameraman
07-04-06, 10:33 PM
There is a very good chance an American will win it this year. :thumbup:
One less chance now...
cameraman
07-04-06, 10:37 PM
A big question is whether it will make a difference to the audience. Will there still be a million people lining the road up L'Alpe d'Huez, and what will this do to the TV ratings? The people are still there and the racing has been good.
cameraman
07-05-06, 11:14 PM
WTF? Thor Hushovd was ruled to have blocked Bernhard Eisel at the finish line in today's race and was DQ'd from the fourth stage.
I hopefully they will have it highlighted in tomorrow's coverage cause I sure couldn't see anything.
:saywhat:
WTF? Thor Hushovd was ruled to have blocked Bernhard Eisel at the finish line in today's race and was DQ'd from the fourth stage.
I hopefully they will have it highlighted in tomorrow's coverage cause I sure couldn't see anything.
:saywhat:
Paul Sherwin and Phil Liggertt couldn't see it, so you got me. :confused:
The points race looks good so far, Boonen v McEwen with Freire keeping them honest.
:)
oddlycalm
07-08-06, 10:14 AM
Looks like Bobby Julich will be out of the Tour. Serious crash during the TT today with the ambulence sent to fetch him. Just happened, so it's too early for details. Hope it's not as bad as it sounds. :(
oc
FCYTravis
07-09-06, 01:43 AM
Ugly the way he went over :(
Tifosi24
07-11-06, 12:01 PM
Floyd Landis (http://www.velonews.com/tour2006/news/articles/10326.0.html)
I saw this link on another forum. He announced yesterday that he has been riding for the past two years with the same hip condition that ended Bo Jackson's sports career. He is one bad mother, he doesn't take pain medication for the condition and is in pain almost non-stop. I am rooting for him to win the GC this year. This is as impressive as Tyler Hamilton finishing the Tour three years ago with a broken collarbone, but since Hamilton is a duping cheater, Landis's performance is infinitely cooler.
I think Andreas Kloden is going to win this race. :thumbup:
Floyd Landis or Cadel Evans, maybe Rogers or Kloden, todays stage should tell us more.
I am still hoping for Hincapie to do well, though.
Stuart O'Grady has a broken bone in his back, Landis needs a new hip.Wow, very tough men :eek:
oddlycalm
07-14-06, 03:34 PM
So, the cream finally rises to the top on stage 11. Denis Menchov, Levi Leipheimer, Floyd Landis, Cadel Evans and Carlos Sastre were all that was left on the last climb on stage 11. Incredible watching all the other big names crack and fall away. Plenty more to go, but at least we know who the contenders will be.
oc
FCYTravis
07-14-06, 07:57 PM
I wouldn't count Kloden out just yet but he'd better have a better Alpe d'Huez than he had Pyrenees... the Alpine stages this year are positively brutal. It could get very ugly very quickly for the peloton.
Oh yeah, and Iban Mayo cracked in the mountains for the second year in a row. Ouch.
L'Alpe D'Huez. Kloden-Landis.
Schleck takes the stage, Landis takes back the Yellow. :thumbup:
oddlycalm
07-18-06, 03:42 PM
Landis is riding a very tactical race. It's clear he knows where everyone else is and he's not going to put out an ounce more energy than he has to. I wouldn't be surprised to see him go to the TT with just a slim margin. As long as he can cover the attacks that is...
oc
Edit: Too bad about Tom Boonan getting dropped.
Sad about Boonen, but to us Robbie fans :D :gomer:
oddlycalm
07-19-06, 12:27 PM
Sad about Boonen, but to us Robbie fans :D :gomer: Quite right, and Robbie still has plenty of guys to race when they get to Paris. Robbie rides a smart race when they get to the mountains.
So, now that Landis has cracked and lost 10 minutes and Menchov has lost more time, will it be Pereiro, Klöden, Evans....?
oc
And Sastre and Menchov, even Leipheimer if he can have a good day.Wide open race, no strong man dominating a-la Armstrong - Indurain.
Rogers looks to be working for Kloden who had a lot of team-mates around him, poor Floyd was all alone. :saywhat: Phonak needs to lift it's game. :thumdown:
I hope Evans gets over his cold, his coughing sounded like it had turned to bronchitis. :(
RacinM3
07-20-06, 12:02 AM
I'm going to guess Sastre will be the man. Tomorrow's another tough, tough stage though!
Great tour! :thumbup:
They ride into Morzine tomorrow... here's me and a bunch of mates "racing" there last year.
http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e170/andyjung/835ffdbd.jpg
It's some steep terrain around there... for sure.
cameraman
07-20-06, 01:16 PM
Floyd rules this one :eek: :eek: :cool:
Opposite Lock
07-20-06, 01:17 PM
After watching Landis crack yesterday, (aargh!), I can't wait to see his ride from today - major ass-kickage! :thumbup: And back into 3rd, now only 30 secs back. Nice comeback - way to nearly erase a substantial deficit!
oddlycalm
07-20-06, 01:20 PM
They ride into Morzine tomorrow... here's me and a bunch of mates "racing" there last year. Looks like a serious lung buster. Nice to see that you favor country that stands on end regardless of whether you're going up or down. :thumbup:
Wish I'd been in Morzine today to see Landis finish his monster ride back into the race. Could have knocked me over with a feather...
oc
I can't wait to watch the Tivo tonight! If Floyd pulls off an overall win, today's stage will be a legend not soon forgotten. Awesome! :thumbup:
Floyd "No Panache" Landis sticks it to the French :thumbup:
His secret special sauce? BEER :D
He consoled himself by drinking a beer on Wednesday, but awoke knowing what lay ahead of him.
http://www.velonews.com/tour2006/details/articles/10493.0.html
But Landis was really motivated to make up for yesterday," Lelange said. "It was like an old time attack. Like Merckx. I'm quite proud it worked out like that."
:thumbup:
Wheel-Nut
07-20-06, 02:38 PM
Landis' PowerTap reads 20 km/h and 371 watts
On the last climb.
Landis :thumbup:
France surrenders! :D
:gomer: <== France
:)
-Kevin
FCYTravis
07-20-06, 05:50 PM
FLANDIS!
FLANDIS!
:flame: :flame: :flame:
Landis was able to put 2 min on both Sastre and Pereiro in the stage 7 timetrial.If his team can keep it together today and Sunday, then Floyd is in with a big chance. :cool:
Kloden and Evans are too far back to do much, I think, but you never know.
Rogers was wasted working for that useless dud Kloden. :mad:
On the last climb.Those are unreal numbers for that monster climb. Wonder what he was turning when he cracked.
RacinM3
07-21-06, 12:58 AM
I am speechless.
I've stayed away from this thread all day, having TiVo'd the stage. I wanted to see it play out, not read about it. Well I just saw it, and still can't believe it.
If the Tour's taught me anything, it's to stop trying to predict the winner. I have my hopes, but we'll see!
Floyd :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:
FCYTravis
07-21-06, 01:02 AM
goingnuts
Uh, I'm not saying "F-Landis" I'm saying "FLANDIS!" like Phil Liggett keeps saying :) :shakehead
Uh, I'm not saying "F-Landis" I'm saying "FLANDIS!" like Phil Liggett keeps saying :) :shakehead
my bad :gomer:
Ullrich canned:
http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/tdf2006/news/story?id=2525929
-Kevin
Ullrich to be charged with fraud by German prosecutors as well...
RacinM3
07-21-06, 11:22 AM
As much as I hate to see Ullrich and especially Basso implicated....at this point I hope they're found guilty so we don't hear people degrade what Landis is doing this year by saying BS like "yeah, well, the best riders weren't there in 2006".
The Spanish Civil Guard has all the frozen pints of blood. If Ullrich, Basso, et al wish to ever ride again, they'll have to provide DNA samples against the confiscated blood... so we'll get a verdict either way.
Also, anyone see Tyler Hamilton's interview w/ his wife last week or the week before? Danced around the topic of the charges against him, never flat out denied it. What a lying scum bag :thumdown:
RacinM3
07-21-06, 11:36 AM
"Tyler Hamilton's interview w/ his wife" is a great way of putting it. That interview prompted my wife to ask "What, does she ride on the back of the bike with him or something?".
I really liked Tyler, but yeah, he's not looking too honest right now. And to have his wife do all his talking.... :rolleyes:
"Tyler Hamilton's interview w/ his wife" is a great way of putting it. That interview prompted my wife to ask "What, does she ride on the back of the bike with him or something?".
I really liked Tyler, but yeah, he's not looking too honest right now. And to have his wife do all his talking.... :rolleyes:
And, allegedly, her maiden name was used when sending the doping bills to their home. So I guess she SHOULD be interviewed! :shakehead
RacinM3
07-21-06, 12:16 PM
Rich, all I can say is :rolleyes: :shakehead :thumdown: :saywhat:
oddlycalm
07-22-06, 04:32 PM
Wow, incredible time trial. Landis rode solidly while Pereiro rode the time trial of his career. Very pleased for both of them. Over 85hrs of riding and in the end less than a minute between them. :thumbup:
oc
T-Mobile must ask themselves about their tactics because their man Kloden was beaten by two riders who they allowed back into contention, by two men who would never give up. I am sure there is a lesson to be learned there!
link (http://www.olntv.com/tdf/article/view/20097/?ss=report&tf=DailyReports_read.tpl)
T-mobile for the second year in a row has made some strange tactical errors.Picking Kloden over the current world champion Rogers as team leader is one, imho, but they needed a German, i suppose.Letting Landis and Pereiro make up their time is got to be the worst I've ever seen. :confused:
Cadel Evans said he was unable to get the T-mobile riders to help chase down Floyd on the Col de Joux-Plane. :shakehead
Landis has worked hard for his lead.Worthy winner.If Evans get fifth, he equals the best finish by an Australian.Rogers in the top ten after the time trial. :)
Great tour. :thumbup:
oddlycalm
07-24-06, 02:51 AM
T-mobile for the second year in a row has made some strange tactical errors. Agree, T-Mobile screwed the same pooch this year. :shakehead For they money they are spending you'd think they would be able to afford someone that could think objectively about winning. I'd have picked Mick Rogers over Kloden as well and I'd probably pick either of them over Ullrich doping scandal or not.
Sorry to see Evans have a flat and a long wait for he team car in the TT, but glad he managed to hang on in the top 5. The incident wasn't really reported here until today, so nobody was aware anything happened.
oc
RacinM3
07-24-06, 12:39 PM
Wow, amazing.
After Landis' collapse last Wednesday, I read that the Vegas odds on him winning the tour were 140-1.
If you'd placed a bet on him in that tiny less-than-24-hour window:
$10 = $1400
$100 = $14,000
$1,000 = $140,000
$10,000 = $1,400,000
:eek:
http://img77.imageshack.us/img77/3073/floydmorzineqh4.jpg
eiregosod
07-24-06, 02:02 PM
http://img77.imageshack.us/img77/3073/floydmorzineqh4.jpg
keep drinkin the beer and be a world beater!
IlliniRacer
07-25-06, 03:00 PM
Leipheimer to Discovery (http://www.velonews.com/news/fea/10582.0.html)
I read yesterday they want Landis as well.Armstrong owns part of Discovery and wants his old team mates on the team. :confused:
oddlycalm
07-26-06, 02:58 PM
I read yesterday they want Landis as well.Armstrong owns part of Discovery and wants his old team mates on the team. :confused: Problem is Landis doesn't want them. Basic philosophical differences. He doesn't like the regimentation on Discovery.
Leipheimer is a guy they figure can do the job with the right team supporting him, and that might be right. If he'd shown the form he showed while winning the Dauphine Libre he would have been solid competition in the Tour. While I was watching the Dauphine and Basso in the Giro I was thinking that if Levi rides with the same form in the Tour the GC title could be his. At that moment I would have picked him over Landis as well. A few weeks later he looked like a different rider....
oc
If Leipheimer had not had a bad first time-trial, maybe he could have challenged a lot more.And a lot of riders have good form in the races prior and then have terrible ToF's, it all a trade-off.Maybe with Armstrongs help and a good team behind him, next year might be better for him.
I agree on Landis, he should stay put, Phonak has been good for him and he for them. :cool:
However, we can talk about Landis and next year, yet he still has to have the operation on his hip.I hope it goes well and he can return. :) :thumbup:
TKGAngel
07-27-06, 10:41 AM
CNN saying that Landis flunked drug test with high levels of testosterone.
Opposite Lock
07-27-06, 10:48 AM
d'oh! er, dope!
link (http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CYC_FLOYD_LANDIS?SITE=7219&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2006-07-27-10-20-23)
:shakehead
FCYTravis
07-27-06, 10:56 AM
It's hard to believe that he would have doped up on a stage that he had to have known would result in every test known to mankind after the performance he had.
Goddamit, Flandis, you better not have doped up, because if you did, you're 1. a loser and 2. a ****ing moron. :flame:
i seriously doubt there's any competitive rider who doesn't...
http://raceweather.homestead.com/files/TEMP/yellow_jersey.jpg
Wheel-Nut
07-27-06, 11:30 AM
i seriously doubt there's any competitive rider who doesn't...
Total agreement . . . I say let them take whatever they want.
TrueBrit
07-27-06, 11:33 AM
It's hard to believe that he would have doped up on a stage that he had to have known would result in every test known to mankind after the performance he had.
Goddamit, Flandis, you better not have doped up, because if you did, you're 1. a loser and 2. a ****ing moron. :flame:
Agreed on both points. With the result of that comeback there was just no way he wasn't going to be tested....I hope that this is a false positive...
Night Train
07-27-06, 11:55 AM
Dammit, Floyd!
this is so easy to test for, anyone boosting their hormones would know they'd end up getting caught...
another thing is, testosterone's not going to give you immediate help, blood transfusion sure, testosterone? no.
and all stage winners & yellow holders are tested.
so wtf? :confused:
coolhand
07-27-06, 12:17 PM
Total agreement . . . I say let them take whatever they want.
"My Doctor is superior to yours"
Wheel-Nut
07-27-06, 12:21 PM
"My Doctor is superior to yours"
Maybe, but when a few fall over dead in the middle of the peleton during a stage I would bet the drug use would become non-existant.
Maybe, but when a few fall over dead in the middle of the peleton during a stage I would bet the drug use would become non-existant.
That's already happened. Some years ago, world class cyclists were dying in their sleep. It turned out that they were taking the new drug of choice: EPO.
It didn't stop doping at all. The will to win overcomes a lot of fears.
this is so easy to test for, anyone boosting their hormones would know they'd end up getting caught...
another thing is, testosterone's not going to give you immediate help, blood transfusion sure, testosterone? no.
and all stage winners & yellow holders are tested.
so wtf? :confused:
Yeah, those were my initial thoughts as well. I thought for sure that he failed the blood boosting test when I saw the headline.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CYC_FLOYD_LANDIS?SITE=7219&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2006-07-27-10-20-23
If true :thumdown:.
-Kevin
oddlycalm
07-27-06, 02:55 PM
The problem here is that after the way the Armstrong witch hunt was handled, with press leaks and improper testing methodology, Dick Pound and WADA have very questionable credibility at this point IMO.
Here again we have the finger pointed with only one sample tested and a positive for a drug that doesn't make any sense. Ask yourself why Landis would use a drug that is so easy to test for and that wouldn't do him a bit of good under the circumstances? This doesn't pass the giggle test and until the results of the B sample are announced the team and the UCI should hold their water.
oc
Stage 17 postive, correct?
So why does it take this long for it to be announced, and how come the exact levels aren't announced? Is it 8:1 or 4.00001:1? :saywhat:
RacinM3
07-27-06, 06:33 PM
There's something stinky in France, and this time it ain't the people.
http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/tdf2006/news/story?id=2531677
WADA panel member Wadler Q&A
Q: For a cyclist, what's the benefit of elevated levels of testosterone? Why would a cyclist use it?
A: It's certainly not one of the first-line drugs one thinks of for racing. Steroids can increase strength and improve recovery time and prevent the breakdown of muscle, maybe make him more assertive and aggressive. All of those could have some positive attribute. But most steroids are given in cycles [6-12 weeks] and in context of working out in a gym with weights. It makes no sense to me why an athlete would take testosterone the day of a race when it doesn't work that way. It doesn't make sense in terms of the pharmacology of the drug, and it really doesn't have the attributes that would be attractive to a cyclist -- particularly one running the risk of violating anti-doping regulations.
Everybody knew the spotlight was on cycling. For eight years, the world has been watching cycling particularly closely. It would be the ultimate form of denial, or the ultimate sense of invincibility, to think you're going to evade that. And when the pharmacology of the drug doesn't really, in my judgment, seem like a drug of particular note to a cyclist, it doesn't really compute.
A rider by the name of Philippe Gaumont has published a book, Prisonnier du dopage, recalling his rather sordid existence as a professional cyclist in the Cofidis team (he did a few Tours). In it, he goes into detail describing his own doping and recreational drug taking practices, and those of several of the other members of the team. Gaumont ended his career in 2004 after he was arrested by police in relation to the Cofidis affair, which implicated a number of riders and soigneurs in doping practices.
"I devoured everything that he [a doctor] gave me without asking questions," Gaumont related. "I swallowed anything that might make me go faster. At one stage, after 10 years, I couldn't imagine riding a bike without it." Gaumont described how he took Pot Belge in the winter of 1994-1995, then went onto taking amphetamines to do post-Tour criteriums. "They [the foreign riders in Cofidis in 1997] only used illegal products to improve their performances. We French not only did dope, but what's more, we regularly got high on amphetamines and Pot Belge." Gaumont added that before the 1998 Tour de France, he and several of the team's riders [including foreigners] were prepared by an Italian doctor, and packages containing EPO and growth hormones, along with instructions of how to use them, was sent to them.
Crazy stuff, man. :shakehead
oddlycalm
07-28-06, 04:02 PM
Stage 17 postive, correct?
So why does it take this long for it to be announced, and how come the exact levels aren't announced? Is it 8:1 or 4.00001:1? :saywhat: Exactly, then the question becomes what is his natural ratio? Endocrine testing would reveal that.
While Pereiro refuses to rise to the bait the Spanish media is already reveling in the assumed victory if their man... :shakehead
BTW, this is the same French lab at pulled that nonsense last year with the midnight testing of Armstrong's B sample which was then leaked to the press. If I was Floyd I'd want 3rd party verification of anything these mutts did. They've already shown clear bias.
oc
I've read that whlie the T/E ratio was high, the EPT level or whatever wasn't...
Hopefully this is a result of the cortizone and not some dumbass trainer who thuoght he could get away with a hormone patch before 17...
ok, so apparently ept levels can be reduced by a) anti-inflammatory drugs and b) alcohol.
Landis had both of those before 17...
http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/cycling/news/story?id=2531960
^says he was drinking some Jack the night before 17 :eek: :thumbup: :D
oddlycalm
08-01-06, 01:53 AM
Once again the French lab doing the dope testing leaks results in advance of any official announcement. That said, it doesn't look good for Floyd. Looks like all he's got left is to request that an independent lab (non-French) do the testing again.
Artificial testosterone detected (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/31/AR2006073100867.html)
you know, if Floyd does end being guilty, the list of Lance's former teammates that have been caught doping is pretty lengthy...
:shakehead The funny thing is that no one is talking about this fact. Floyd Landis took corticoides during the tour as well, a banned substance. But, since he has the hip issue, it is allowed. :rolleyes: My take on the whole drug thing is this; you can't take anything, prescription or not! One French rider (I think Besson) once said a few years ago; "I never met a bunch of more unhealthy young men then the Tour de France riders." :rofl: Everyone had a prescription for one thing or another. The most famous case is Lance Armstrong and EPO to fight cancer.
I love the sport and I like to assume that they don't take drugs, but..... the amount of drug taking that goes on makes me sad. :shakehead :(
Landis B sample positive.
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2006/aug06/aug05news2
"In accordance to the Anti-doping rules, the Anti-doping Commission of the UCI will request that the USA Cycling Federation open a disciplinary procedure against the rider," said the UCI in a statement. If found guilty of taking performance enhancing drugs, Landis faces up to a two year ban from the sport and the stripping of his Tour de France title, which would go to Oscar Pereiro. Landis has also been fired by his Phonak team, which will comment on the case in the next few days"
:cry: :shakehead :(
I had a feeling something would come out of Stage 17. Landis's WATTS out put was off -the-charts, kind of like Armstrong's time trial in 99. Red flags all around. Like someone else said, he is another one of Lance's former teammated to get busted for doping. :shakehead
It is pretty funny that a guy who lost 26 minutes in 1 stage, gained 29 minutes 2-stages later would win the Tour. Some 50 years ago, a local kid from my father's home town won the Tour of Italy when he won a stage by 45 minutes. But, back then they didn't have the technology they have now. So, it's funny that can still happen.
Insomniac
08-05-06, 10:20 AM
:shakehead The funny thing is that no one is talking about this fact. Floyd Landis took corticoides during the tour as well, a banned substance. But, since he has the hip issue, it is allowed. :rolleyes:
Even if he is allowed to take it and did, you'd expect the levels to always be consistent (and high). Seems odd that it was only one day, and that day was a huge day for his race.
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