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I could not agree more about some of the nasty comments I’ve seen from some other pros/coaches online. It does not make them look good and while I know they don’t care, does not make me think highly of them.
While there’s a strong US Armstrong fand base, don’t underestimate the Armstrong hate camp overseas, for good and bad reasons…
Surely any triathlon taking him on at the moment would be taking a massive risk? Maybe short term gain but long term people will see that you sold out integrity for cash.
“As wrong and painful as it may feel now, rules shouldn’t be changed mid-stream or mid-game. Doing so would only encourage folks to say that WTC was bending to Lance.”
If this were a law that presumed guilt over innocence or otherwise abridged someone’s liberties, would you want the government to wait until the next legislative/judicial term to overturn it, or would you prefer to see action taken immediately? For a recent (and perhaps more politically sensitive) example, think “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.” It was (in my opinion) a senseless policy that was allowed to remain in place far too long. Were it not for executive action, that policy would still be in force.
NOTE:: Lest someone try to make this into a political debate, the latter Bush administration took a similar approach to national security issues that it believed infringed Constitutional separation of powers. Insert that example in place of my earlier one, should you prefer it.
I recognize the concern that a change in the rule could be seen as favouring Lance, but few unfair policies are changed without their first adversely affecting someone with the will and influence to inspire change. This was an opportunity for WTC to admit that the policy is wrong and to act accordingly. If they had owned up to it, I think the backlash would have been limited, but we’re unlikely to find out.
I wonder what the WTC-Armstrong contract says regarding competing in a Rev3 event if DQed from all WTC. Could be an opportunity for Rev3 to take advantage of the situation, invite a bunch of pro’s and designate one of their events as a world championship. We may see a Lance, Macca, Crowie shootout after all.
I hope that Rev3 or maybe a new major tri series (Livestrong?) take advantage of this opportunity. WTC/Ironman put on good events, even if they have poorly thought out policies, but competition is healthy. I for one intend to boycott IM races for a while, and I have done many of them.
Challenge already said no to lance on facebook, and Im hoping the same will happen with Rev3. The last thing we need is Lance racing for a short moment, but the integrity goes out the window especially if Lance gets banned and podiums need to be reset.
I agree with your article. However, with Lance hoping to waste as little energy as possible before Kona (the only reason he did a few extra 70.3 races was to get much needed data on fueling & pacing), doing races that do not get him points are not on his agenda. For instance, as much as I’d love to see him race Philly next weekend, doing a few extra races will likely turn him off his Kona goal for the year. Seeing him duke it out in a Rev3 with the top guys would be awesome, but with Lance, just like the TDF, it’s Kona or nothing.
What would Lance gain by racing Rev 3? He’d empty his tank and I’m sorry, they just do not have the fire power or lure of Kona.
He’d be better served to wait it out, hope WTC changes the rule and come back next year.
I wonder what NBC will do if he does not make Kona since they moved up the airing and dedicated more time for Lance.
Guilty, not guilty… it’s irrelevant at this point and I think the haters need to stop bringing up new charges on him and let him live his life. Move on.
Gee Ray sad you weighed in on the argument mate, as it’s evening here in Australia an I’ve had a few too many wines…to have a whine right now I’ll reread in the morning…hoping it is not as silly and sensational then as now Goodnight
Where can I get a race suit like Lance is wearing and how much does it cost to have your coach run along with you.
PJM
Just wonder, how race times have dropped since LA announced that he will do Triathlons or competed in Triathlons.
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I haven’t been following this story and didn’t know anything about it until just reading your post.
I am in 100% agreement with you. I hate the rule changing mid-stream. I’m a big Formula 1 fan and I find it deplorable that mid-way through the season, they change the rules. Happens all the time…
Thank you for your post and the information.
Don in Baltimore
well said edward
Real world parallels (at least where I’m from) –
1. Teaching: a teacher is accused of wrong doing (e.g. sexual interference with a student); they are immediately put on “administrative leave”, pending the results of inquiry.
2. Policing: an officer is accused of wrong doing (e.g. professional misconduct); they’re put on “desk duty”, pending the results of inquiry.
We accept these “presumed guilty until proven innocent” approaches because we hold teachers and police officers to a high standard.
For an organization (like WTC) to maintain credibility, you have to hold your members (pro athletes) to higher-than-normal standards. So, if someone is under investigation – it is the best course of action, to exclude that person from competition.
The real issue is not whether or not WTC is holding Armstrong back, the real issue is whether or not it’s fair for USADA or WADA to file such “damaging charges” with a slightly different “burden of proof” than is required by generally accepted legal requirements.
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Sorry Phil,
I think you are comparing appples to oranges and I disagree.
Pro athletes are not in a position to continue to harm people who can’t defend themselves, as a guilty cop or teacher would be in your example, and PED useage is not the same as shooting a suspect or abusing a child.
This is a rule that should absolutely be changed, right now. If it were how the race was scored I would say wait until the end of season, but it is not.
This isn’t about adding instant replay in the second half of a game or season because of a bad call.
This rule is essentially allowing USADA to end the career of an athlete without proof or cause. They can drag out investigations like this for as long as they want.
WTC should repeal this rule and allow athletes to continue to race and accumulate points while “under investigation”, they can always strike the athlete from the records if they are found guilty later.
That is not a “Lance” thing, it is a fairness thing.
And bear in mind, this is not WTC or USADA claiming a positive drug test was just submitted, this is a rehash of old charges that were already dropped by the Justice Department because there was not enough evidence to proceed.
Lance is a polarizing figure, but whether you love him or hate him, he has operated within the rules of the sport he participated in until he retired.
Maybe he doped, maybe he didn’t. At this point it does not matter, he was never caught.
Those with vendettas should find some other way to justify their lives and jobs, and drop the charade. This is old news, and we already know the outcome.
Since he is still active in racing test him as hard as you can if you think he is cheating, but USADA needs to leave the years old claims alone, at this point it is just petty bitterness.
You have to be in Germany to understand how pro-cycling is despised because of the doping. And this was before Ulrich was confirmed in Feb for an earlier offence. It damages sport, sponsors, athletes, and their competitors.
You want triathlon to be free of this you have to support stringent, even harsh, measures.
For those of us old enough to remember, there is little doubt that USPostal were doping when Lance was riding with them – its better not to let this investigation damage the sport.
Dave
Great points totally agree. I think that these regulatory bodies need to be principled especially in this day in age with so much doping. The lack of credibility that the tour has gotten may or may not have hurt the sport but the rampant use of drugs has called past wins for many athletes into question which is sad.
Patience is key here to allow WTC to do the right thing and get Lance racing in due time and fairness to other athletes. I’d love to see a highly competitive kona with lance in it as well. Love your blog!
I’ve written about this on my blog but I disagree with you. If you admit to it being a ‘wrong or bad’ rule..CHANGE it. NOW! When you’re in a whole, stop digging. How does the WTC (confirmation) ruling do anything positive? It robs all the fans of an epic race. It robs Lance of one of his dwindling years remaining as a premier athlete. People will boycott WTC. It tarnishes triathlon for getting bogged down into old battles (that have no bearing on present performances anyhow).
There is no integrity in ‘staying the course’ when you’re off track. Fixing a problem ASAP should be paramount. I agree with Edward above.
I agree with you. No changes mid-stream. But there is also another point of view on this. Why is this file always on agenda. Why do we need to be the hostage of it? What is behind all that? I think it is a great shame for the sport itself and if USADA will find him quilty is also a kind of death of cyclism. Lance (although I think he is not so innocent) is still a great sport hero and his achivements are inspiration to many. He is not a profesional cyclist no more and I think he is not going to win many triathlon races as well, but his popularity can do a lot for sport and this is what counts. Overseas (Europe) he might have even more supporters than in USA. Even now, when he is not “active” anymore.
No change of rule in mid season, it would be unfair to others. Dopers don’t harm others, but they do steal. Not just to other clean competitor but also to sponsors. Imagine if its your money they re stealing. There is a chance that cheaters will cheat again if they don’t get caught or nobody knows how to catch them. We all know dopers are ahead of detection methods. <3 this blog.
I disagree with the premise. So a high profile doper is okay because he brings a lot of attention and $$ to a sport. The whole presumed guilty argument is weak also. Someone said comparing teacher and police to pro triathletes is apple to oranges. Guess what so is comparing a crime to doping allegations. No one’s liberty is at stake.
Seems the triathlon crowd is missing the bigger picture (clearly by these post). Doping should be dealt with harshly.
The reactions, rationalization, excuses make me sick. I mean why not let dopers compete…especially of they are famous, the are in the twilight of their career, they make a deal with the organizers, are fans favorites. Who care I mean as long as there is the exposure for the “sport” then anything goes.
What ERR and ConArtist said x 100000000000. If I refused to change a rule everybody acknowledges a crap until next year, especially then the change *benefits* the stakeholders, I’d be looking for a new job tomorrow. To refuse to make this change is chickensh!t
Doping is a tricky issue with many faces, several comments.
You have been training very hard to become a professional cyclist. It is your choice for a profession and the only thing you have prepared for. Then here is your first professional contract, but there are a couple of clauses that look a bit nasty. What would most people do? I am sure it works this way. After all the years of preparation, you suddenly realize its either doping or being an amateur.
I think the comparison with teachers and polices has valid points, as elite sportsmen are an inspiration and set an example to kids. Nowadays many of them take dope just to go to the gim, because it is what their idols do.
In most elite sports it is a farce. We know the athletes are all on dope, it is just who gets caught. Many times the one they are after is the one that gets caught. I wonder what the TdF 2010 results would be had all the cyclists blood samples been tested in the more strict facilities Contador’s blood samples where tested at? (several orders of magnitude more precise)
Sports authorities have no moral authority. Take the Olympic Committee, why did they agree with the US Basketball team to exempt the team from anti-doping tests in Beijing? The reasoning was there was a huge market for basketball in China and it was worth taking the top NBA stars. Apparently the market for ethics was not that high.
I do not think you have to abolish the rule. The WTC made the rule. They interpret the rule. All rules and their application to particular cases are subject to interpretation. In light of the lack of any alleged positive tests, the fact that all alleged doping never took place during any Triathlons and the fact that it was years ago, lend themselves to an interpretation that the rule was not intended for cases like Lance’s- which we can all agree is extremely unique. I am doubfounded by the lack of thought and creativity by the WTC. They are making a huge mistake. It’s like watching a person drive a car off a cliff. There is always a way to steer the car away from the cliff- the WTC should have done the same thing. It is sad.
First, to Mike the Harrier, Lance is not a “doper”. He has never been convicted, only accused, so a “doper” is not being banned from competition.
Allegations do not make someone guilty, no matter how much we want them to be. So all those other top cyclists were caught doping? Does that really mean Lance, and any other top rider HAS to be a doper too?
Maybe Jan Ulrich and the others doped to recover from some injury, illness or super hard effort and that is when they were caught. Maybe they weren’t able to hang with top riders and doped just to keep up.
Maybe maybe maybe. I know, because Ulrich and Hamilton and Contador doped, the entire pro peleton MUST be doping too. Who cares that they have never tested positive, lets ban them all and start over.
I am not defending Lance because he is Lance. I don’t know him, never will, and don’t care. I am defending Lance because he has not been convicted of anything. And he won’t be convicted now either, at least not fairly.
You see, his samples need to be positive, and then confirmed positive again. You can’t do that now, because they are using the confirmation samples only since the originals were already tested and found “clean” years ago.
Part of the argument made in the OP is about not changing the rules in the middle of the game. Well during the game, Lance (and all others who were not caught doping) operated within the parameters set at the time. Now USADA just can’t leave it alone and is continuing the witch hunt, but for what end?
Don’t say “integrity of sport”, because there is no such thing. The point to professional sports is to win, using any and all advantages you can.
Sometimes that means training all year for one race, sacrificing results in others.
Sometimes that means using new technology, like aerobars, wind tunnels and dimple suits.
Sometimes it means sleeping in O2 tents, moving to high altitudes and taking super expensive supplements.
And yes, sometimes it means illegal PED.
You know what? A few years ago when all the MLB and cycling stuff came about, I was angry and felt cheated, but I am over it, and we should all move on.
The technology and medical science of today means you can not compare today’s athletes to the ones our parents and grandparents cheered for, so that argument is moot.
“Because my kids look up to them” is also BS. Raise your own kids people, don’t leave it up to athletes, many of whom are not the nicest people on or off the playing field to begin with. In fact many pro athletes have been caught DUI or found guilty of domestic violence. Are you ok with your kids looking up to them as long as they don’t cheat at sports? Do yourself and you kids a huge service, and provide all the examples they need, and have them look to you as their personal hero.
Finally, if they want to dope, I say let them. Find a way to make it legal, and provide access for all athletes if they choose.
Are you really willing to pay money to watch “normal” people compete? If so I have tickets to my Sunday softball games for sale.
Cheaters have always been in sport, the better ones are idolized in various Halls of Fame. If they are dumb enough to get caught, then punish them. Those that don’t get caught amaze and delight millions of people. And sometimes the seriously gifted aren’t cheating even when many of their cohorts are.
You know Lance’s biggest problem? You can’t prove a negative. He tested clean every time, but some allegations and the fact that some other top riders were caught is more than enough for a great many people to decide he must be guilty. No amount of clean tests will ever convince them otherwise.
That is pretty sad.
Love the side note…reminds me of the mantra if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything!
Nicely done, and I completely agree with you. The policy may need to be revised, but people need to remember that racing is a priveledge and not a right. lance signed the same document that all pro’s signed outlining the policies-what would it say if WTC made an exception just for him? Way to post well on a controversial topic.
To the USADA six and why you lost the presumption of innocence…blame all the ones who lied and then confessed. They stole it from you.
Has anyone else been suspended like this from a WTC event?
If so, changing the rules mid-season would be pretty unfair for them. “We’ll change it for Lance, but not the rest of you suckers.”
Agree with leaving the rules in place at least until the end of the season – and before saying ‘they have to go’, i think one should research why they were implemented in the first place.
Also agree that pro athletes are on a higher standard, and have more responsibility. As for Lance doping, i find it hard to believe so many around him were caught doping, and yet he beat them ‘clean’. They must be the world’s worst dopers if Lance is clean.