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The enduring saga of “Did He or Didn’t He” took another twist Sunday night as Tyler Hamilton discussed his recent grand jury testimony on 60 Minutes. Hamilton, the choir-boy-turned-admitted-doper is yet another who’s come forth with accusations that Lance doped during his reign as king of Le Tour. Hamilton dug into the past, detailing his, Lance’s, Postal Service’s, & other teams’ use of EPO, growth hormone, testosterone, & a host of other illegal substances.
You can read the full reports at any of the cycling news websites (Velonews, CyclingNews, EuroSport) and it seems like every blog has at least a few posts on the topic. You can read Tyler Hamilton’s full confession letter is HERE.
My wife and I had a short debate not on whether or not Lance doped but what the consequences would be, both for the person on one hand and the athlete on the other. Impossible to know, of course. Without a doubt, if he did, it would be one of the biggest cover-ups in the history of sport. The shockwaves would be incalculable.
But at the same time, here’s a guy that’s also raised millions for cancer research and helped untold thousands of suffering people. If he did it, would that in itself, the lying and cheating, make him an evil person? Many people think so. IMHO, judgement on the person and judgement on the athlete could be separated. At least that’s where I am right now.
It’s a complicated drama that’s continuing to unfold and we all have our opinions mostly based on second and third hand information via the media. It’s a big if…but if he’s somehow found guilty of doping, I don’t think that negates all of the good that he’s done in the world. At the same time, he wouldn’t have the same platform for raising money for research had he not won 7 Tours, right? Ugh, so many shades of gray. What’s your opinion?
For now, the science of testing and testing protocols are on Lance’s side. He claims to have been tested 500 times in 20 years, without a doubt the most tested athlete in human history. And he’s never tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. I lean towards trusting the science that’s in place…but then there’s the Marion Jones story…
At this point, it’s really hard to tell who’s story to believe. Here’s a short list of characters in this unfolding drama that are either lying or telling the truth:
- Lance
- Tyler Hamilton
- The UCI
- WADA
- Michelle Ferrari
- Chris Carmichael
- Viatcheslav Ekimov
- Johan Bruyneel
- Floyd Landis
- George Hincapie (based on reports of his grand jury testimony)
- Various pro riders and team doctors/physios/soigneurs from 1999-2010 from US Postal Service, Discovery Channel, Astana, & Radio Shack
Complicated? Absolutely. What’s your opinion so far?
Ride on…
No related posts.
This whole doping business has become so sticky & tricky. I’m so torn about it too. I used to praise those who claimed to be ‘clean,’ now I feel proud of those who come forward with the truth that they doped. It’s more of a given now that most of the field has, at some point, doped. Now it’s more admirable for individuals to divulge the details, come clean, do their time, and intend on cleaning up the peleton for the greater good.
Nobody can discount what Lance has done for cycling and for cancer research, but his defensive attitude and mud-slinging directed towards anyone who attempts to ‘out’ him is really getting old. It seems like the facts are stacking up against him with regards to his past doping record, but only time will tell. If sporting history is re-written and TDF wins are relinquished, I hope his positive legacy can live on in his fight against cancer and his positive impact of getting more people on bikes and into bike racing around the world.
Agreed that the facts seem to be stacking up. Amazing that this story is now over 10 years old with no real end in sight. Also agreed that it’s great when riders like David Millar own up to it, serve their time and come back as advocates. He’s a great example but in a much different position than Lance. For now, we’re still left guessing.
I choose to stay nuetral. I love Lances heart and passion for the sport. I am huge advocate of NOT doping. I know it sounds wishy washy to me even.
I know there is a great possability it is true. But fortunately for me I can lean on the facts that we had then and have now.
Yup. Science and testing are currently the facts. But many point to Marion Jones and other track athletes when saying testing doesn’t work. I’m with you, we’ll wait and see. But it’s hard to tell who’s lying.
I remember in 1998 when the Festina scandal emerged, thinking.. this is the big expose that’s needed to clean up the sport. Here we are 13 years later, with a much longer list of cycling superstars having been busted, as well as governing bodies, sponsors, and top Doctors being implicated. Who knew this issue was so widespread & pervasive.
I thought Festina was the beginning of the end for doping. What a huge deal at the time. Seems like it was really just the beginning of the beginning.
I used to love LA. His drive, his passion, and all the great things he does for cancer. Not so much any more. I think it started to change when he came out of retirement. His real colors came through with the whole Astana/Contador riff. We saw 1st hand what happens to those that cross LA, but Burt didn’t need LA and he wasn’t in that circle, so he said screw it. All these other guys needed LA. I don’t have a doubt that LA was involved in systemic doping on a grand scale. Can I prove it, no. But the list of those caught doping during the LA era is telling (and how they have performed since being caught) Ivan Basso looked like the next LA way back when he came in 2nd in the TdF. He has never looked like that since. Yet, we are to believe that LA was the only clean guy and beat all these dopers? He lived in the era or doping and played in that world, yet didn’t participate? I just can’t buy it any more.
I thought it was very telling in the 60 Minutes report when they stated that every podium finisher except for one during Lance’s 7 wins have been implicated in some kind of doping scandal. They didn’t say who the one rider not implicated and I can’t recall off the top of my head – Rumsas in ’02 maybe? Unbelievable stat.