As you may know, Lance Armstrong may be stripped of his seven Tour De France titles as a result of an investigation by the US Anti-Doping Agency. In August, Lance refused to participate any further in the USADA investigation. We heard back then that he would have his titles revoked, but it hasn’t happened yet.
Just last week the agency put out a report on Lance in which they concluded that “The evidence shows beyond any doubt that the U.S. Postal Service Pro Cycling Team ran the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen.” The report was a whopping 1,000 pages and included testimony from 11 of Lance’s teammates. One of them is Tyler Hamilton, a 41 year-old who was in the Tour de France with Lance in 1999, 2000, and 2001. Hamilton has a new book out called The Secret Race: Inside the Hidden World of the Tour de France: Doping, Cover-ups, and Winning at All Costs. As part of his promotion for his book, Hamilton was on Anderson Cooper 360 talking about his experiences doping with Lance. I have to say the guy was a total dud. He seemed to have no personality whatsoever. Hamilton says that Lance got him started doping, that he was pressured to do it to stay on the team, and that they were able to game the system by having good doctors on hand. They would sometimes get cortisone pills delivered to them by people close to Lance and they would time everything in order to pass the tests. Here’s more, and a video is below:
On Friday night’s edition of Anderson Cooper 360, former pro cyclist Tyler Hamilton said “the first time I ever blood doped was with Lance Armstrong.”
Hamilton rode with Armstrong for several years as part of the U.S. Postal Service-sponsored team, and is currently under a nine-year-long ban from competition because of his own failed drug tests.
Talking to Cooper on his CNN show, the author of The Secret Race insisted he doped “so I could be a good teammate for Lance.”
He also said Armstrong applied intense pressure on other, younger teammates to dope, something the United States Anti-Doping Agency chronicled in its scathing report about the seven-time Tour de France winner.
As RadarOnline.com has been reporting, Armstrong has been stripped of his Tour de France titles. He is also banned from competing in any competition in any sport covered by the USADA.
Armstrong remains defiant, insisting he never did anything wrong.
In the interview, Tyler was asked if he sees Lance as a hero still despite the doping (that’s at 7:00 in the video below.) Tyler launched into a story about how Lance ran into him at a restaurant in Colorado and tried to intimidate him. I wasn’t impressed by that guy or his story at all.
As for how I feel about this story – I’m conflicted. It really looks like this guy Tyler is too and that he’s just putting out this book to defend himself and make some cash. He’s so blase about everything it’s like he feels obligated but his heart isn’t in it. Lance has called this a “witch hunt,” and some people say that it’s being driven by the personal vendetta of one man, USADA head Travis Tygart. So many people have rolled over on Lance, and the investigation has so much evidence, that it’s easy to believe the team was doping and gaming the system. Why are they being exposed and punished now, though? Why is it all falling on Armstrong’s shoulders? Why weren’t there better controls in place to catch this when it was happening? The sad thing is that we’ll never know if they would have won all those biking titles on their own. They’re still incredible athletes, but they cheated and may have stolen the glory from another team that played fair. We’ll never know, though.
Here’s the interview with Tyler Hamilton. He’s so hot until he opens his mouth. Is that harsh?
Photo credit: WENN.com
Ugh I remember listening to the BBC reports of the doping investigation years ago and thinking there must be something to it, I think it was just a matter of his arrogance being so extreme and the French so protective of their trophy that they wouldn’t give up until they discredited him. Of course there is elitism and vendetta involved but he did cheat it just took them ages to figure out how.
“Of course there is elitism and vendetta involved but he did cheat it just took them ages to figure out how.”
Totally agree.
A few years ago I was at a party and started chatting with this chemist from France, and he pretty much convinced me that Lance Armstrong had been doping. One thing this guy mentioned that doesn’t seem to be discussed in the press is Armstrong’s cancer. The chemist pointed out to me that testicular cancer itself, especially in someone who is only in his 20’s, is itself a sign of doping. I realized he was right – yes, testicular cancer happens to people,and it is awful, but to a professional cyclist in his 20’s? That looks more like a smoke/fire situation.
I agree…and celebitchy, I think it would help if you read Tyler Hamilton’s book…you’d know that him and all the other guys who have come forward against Lance actaully have a lot to lose with fessing up. Its a very legit book with facts in it that are repeated ten times over in every other cyclists book that covers the Tour and Lance and doping. Lance is a douchebag and comes across as such in at least 5 different books by 5 different cyclists. The more you hear about the real “win at all costs” Lance, the less you might want to support him and his supposed awesomeness that is the shield of “Livestrong” that he has created.
“Armstrong remains defiant, insisting he never did anything wrong.” Translation? Lance doesn’t think that he was doing anything wrong while doping because everyone was doing it! The fact he has stuck by his “I never did anything wrong” thing and “U never caught me” thing…he will now look like the biggest uber douchebag of all time when he falls.
I for one will not be sorry to see the truth hit home for that guy. He has thrown many other good guys, fellow teammates, under the bus, Hamilton included. So yeah, read up, do your research before saying Lance is awesome and Hamilton is a dud. The truth is far from it.
Totally agree with you.
Also, as doping techniques tend to be more advanced than the tests developed to detect them (this is logical, in order for athletes to evade drug testing), this would explain LA’s positive retroactive drug tests. I do not see anything dodgy about that.
There are no angels here, and Armstrong is at the very least a tremendous disappointment. Somehow I always knew this was coming too.
You know what continues to surprise me the most about Armstrong? The consistent quotes saying what a flaming bully he is to anyone and everyone.
I believe them, too.
I used to live in Austin (back when he actually lived there too) and knew people who had run-ins with him and that was the word from them – he was a bully.
A bully and a cheat! I’ve believed this of Armstrong for some time, especially after the article with his former assistant/friend. I think the only person who believes Lance is his mother. I hope his kids are really proud of him.
This guy is claiming he doped “so I could be a good teammate for Lance.” ?
Mmmmkay. I doubt anyone forced him to take performance-enhancing drugs.
I hate Armstrong and I think he’s a master manipulator and an arrogant liar but I honestly view this whole thing as a witchhunt. They’re trying to make an exmaple out of him and I think stripping him of his medals-fine, but then the authorities need to do a FULL-ON investigation of anyone who ever won the tour de france. Hell, then we need to investigate every athlete that has even won any medal or an achievement of any kind.
Almost all athletes do something to give them an advantage. With all the money riding on endorsement deals, these guys are all susceptible to the lure of having an “edge” over the competition.
I don’t know…On one hand, I think it’s kind of ridiculous to single him out, on the other hand, I dislike Armstrong and his perpetually arrogant behavior so it’s hard for me to be too sympathetic.
That’s pretty much my stance as well… I think he is an arrogant asshole. But I do think this whole thing is getting out of hand.
It’s a shame that there is such a high demand on performance in sports that they almost all have to dope to be able to compete because so many others dope.
It’d almost be easier to just let everyone dope- there probably wouldn’t be much difference in performance overall because there is so much use of performance enhancing drugs as is.
I cannot stand Lance but I tried to give him the benefit of a doubt for years. Now I’m not sure if I buy the witch hunt theory, there are just too many people coming forward saying they all doped.
As for Lance “forcing” his teammates to dope, that I can believe. He was the leader of that team, worshipped by the media and others as the comeback kid. I could totally seem him intimidating his teammates into doing whatever he wanted.
I am curious to know if Lance will ever come clean about anything. His ongoing denial of any wrongdoing whatsoever is pretty unbelievable, almost OJ-esque, in the face of so many allegations.
As for Tyler’s lack of charisma, I think this is why he rides a bike professionally instead of setting the world on fire as an entertainer or rocket scientist, lol.
I think I remember reading somewhere that he pretty much has to deny everything forever because if he changes his story now he would basically be perjuring himself. Kinda like Barry Bonds if I recall correctly.
Yep, he’s an arrogant asshole (I’ve met him) who cheated–just like everyone else in cycling’s upper echelons. They’re making an example of him because he’s owned the sport for years AND because people view him with almost mythic reverence. They’re toppling the king.
As far as Hamilton’s quote about “taking drugs to be a good teammate,” there’s some truth to that. Professional cycling is a team sport, and everyone on Armstrong’s team had to be good enough and strong enough to properly support him.
Yeah, I was thinking that about having to dope with him. The team that dopes together wins together. If someone on Lance’s team was not up to par with what the expectations were, I can imagine they’d be bullied into doping as well.
Come on guys. Regardless of pressure or “bullying”, Tyler had a choice, he could have chosen the high road and not been on Lance’s team, period.
The fact that he admitted to doping before Lance joined the team shows that he was doing it more for himself than to benefit Lance. I’m sure he wasn’t crying about it when he was winning.
Additionally, I’m not trying to defend performance-enhancing drugs but no matter how much EPO or anabolic steroids I take, I’m STILL not going to win the tour-de-france. Sometimes people forget that even without the enhancements, these guys are still really talented athletes.
Same with baseball players-I don’t care how much steroids they use, they still have to hit the ball, which is pretty damn difficult, in case you didn’t know.
“It’d almost be easier to just let everyone dope- there probably wouldn’t be much difference in performance overall because there is so much use of performance enhancing drugs as is. ”
@Erinn-^THIS is how I feel. I know it seems wrong but honestly, we can keep testing for doping and making an example of the athletes that we “catch”, but all that does is spur these guys to find new ways of doping and hiding it. It’s pretty much a neverending battle.
Again, even if everyone is doping, someone still has to win. There has to be a level of talent and capability there to begin with, regardless of what enhancements they’re taking.
I think it is unrealistic to think a lot of people are going to take “the high road” and mess up their careers. Lots of whistle-blowers or people taking the high road are not rewarded by our society. I’m not excusing the guy, but if you wanted to be on the best team, you were going to dope. If you didn’t, Lance wouldn’t have you on the team.
Everyone in cycling dopes, which I’m sure if where Lance’s pressure comes from–your whole team is at a disadvantage if you’re not doping.
Of course, it is clear that this guy is also just trying to make some money here and is no angel. He speaks the truth, but he isn’t a sympathetic character.
Moneypenny424 –
Where did I say that it would be realistic for him to take the high road?
My point was that he had options.
I think it’s rather naive to paint this guy as a victim who was “bullied” when nobody held the guy down and forced him to dope, period. He had a choice and he needs to OWN his decision.
Accountability sucks, dude.
I didn’t mean to imply that Hamilton’s a victim–no one in this scandal is. Obviously, he opted to use EPO, just like every other high-ranking professional cyclist, in order to succeed in the sport. That was his choice and his alone. I just meant to point out that in order to be a high-performing member of the Postal Service team, he had to dope; it gave him an incredible advantage–one he needed in order to keep up with the other cyclists who were doing it. That doesn’t mean he isn’t an incredible athlete. Lance is one of the most incredible athletes EVER, in my opinion. (You remember, he was a triathlete before he focused on cycling.)But the fact remains that he cheated. As did Hamilton.
And, if the whole team dopes together, then nobody on that team can speak out about the doping without incriminating himself.
Christope Bassons was the only cyclist on the Festina team who didn’t dope, and could thus speak out against doping in cycling. In fact, in 99, he was already calling out Armstrong.
For speaking out, Bassons was threatened and hectored by the other cyclists, especially by Armstrong, until Bassons quit cycling.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/aug/26/lance-armstrong-doping-whistleblowers?newsfeed=true
The 99 Tour could have been a turning point after the 98 Festina bust, where many cyclists were scared to dope and get caught.
But, after Armstrong gets busted in 99 and it gets swept after the rug, everybody understood that it was back to business.
And, the 99 victory disproves the claim that even if Armstrong won, he did it against a field that all doped as well. In 99, at least, that claim is not true.
@TheOriginalKitten
What is naive is to think he had options
Armstrong was the king and you had to obey or you would be finished not only in your team but with the others as well.
I think Hamilton just gives bad interviews – maybe he gets nervous or something, or maybe he does have mixed feelings about sharing all of this. I read his book, and it’s very good – it’s hard to doubt him because he is so detailed about what happened, and because in the book, he’s harder on himself than anybody else. Hamilton makes clear in the book that he was doping before Lance joined his team, and that doping was his (Hamilton’s) choice; Lance didn’t force him into it. Lance took the doping to a more organized level though, with the help of Dr. Ferrari.
Plus, when he tested positive at the Tour of Switzerland and he told Hamilton he was not worried about it. Lance donated large amounts of money to cycling union and they covered it up. No other cyclist has ever given money to the union which should have been a big red flag.
oh just watched the CNN interview – when he’s talking about ‘blood-doping’ for the first time ‘for Lance’ he doesn’t mean *doping* for the first time – he was doing that prior to Lance joining his team. Blood-doping is a specific form of doping where they take blood-transfusions of their own previously donated blood during a race. He did that at Lance’s suggestion (according to his book).
I agree, OKitten. My husband was a manic cyclist, and follows professional cycling. He’s been reading nonstop about Lance since the news came out.
Lance doped, I think he did. I also think the entire peloton dopes. the entire sport dopes. If they take his Tour victories away from him, there’s no one to take it because just about every great cyclist has been busted for doping. To think that humans can ride that hard for almost a month at the speeds they do is unrealistic. The sport itself is as much to blame as the athletes.
So, yes, I think this is a witch hunt, and I also think Lance is probably an a–hole. You aren’t that competitive and driven to succeed without some a–hole in there. It’s part of the fuel.
@Bluhare-They ALL dope. All of them.
My BF was at the tour-de-france a few months ago and was speaking to his French friends about it-they said it’s a given that all the cyclists dope. So even in France where the T-D-F is HUGE, it’s a known thing–Lance isn’t alone in this.
And ITA that the sport and all the corps that provide endorsements are as culpable as the athletes for creating a toxic environment.
Armstrong is being made an example of. Sports are a metaphor for a larger world view being propagated by a power elite that intends to make the point that a ruling “authority” is always necessary.
http://www.thedailybell.com/28144/Lance-Armstrong-Investigation-Not-Really-About-Sports-at-All-
I used to think it was a witch hunt and no longer do. I think evidence has trickled in for a long time that convinced officials he was doing it, but they did not have a sufficient case to go forward and take action. That said, I agree that maybe other cyclists who won should be fully investigated. Unfortunately, the US body does not have the authority to investigate foreign bikers participating in the Tour de France or other overseas races.
It wouldnt be a witch hunt if Lance simply fessed up. The USADA has had to get involved because US Postal Service was a tax dollar funded Govt run team…do you know how it looks for them to simply “accept” that there was widespread doping going on?
Its not as cut and dried as “no one forced him”. Thats a childish way of looking at it. These guys don’t have day jobs. Cycling is it. Many of them didn’t go to college. If they are not winning, they are broke. As a team, if you are not winning, you are scraping the barrel for money. As a team they were doping because there was money in it. Its not a matter of choice anymore, it is expected and the norm. The USADA is stepping in to try to rectify that norm and make it a thing of the past, to try to clean up the sport. The sport will never be clean without Lance finally coming clean…which of course he will never do. Now do I think they should test his samples all the way into the future to make an example of him? F–k yeah. Liars deserve to have their asses handed to them, especially ones that ratted out other team mates after they left the team, spiteful and cutthroat, thats what Lance comes across when described by many of his ex team mates.
I don’t understand why this is being called a witch hunt. I even looked up that term in the dictionary, but it was defined as “the searching out and deliberate harassment of those (as political opponents) with unpopular views”.
Now, if you’re using the term to mean Lance is being singled out, that doesn’t make sense to me either since the Armstrong supporters have pivoted to the argument that everybody else was doping after its become increasingly clear that Armstrong doped.
Other winners and cyclists got caught doping too, and they were punished- their titles were stripped, they were suspended, etc…
Armstrong is do different except it took longer to catch him doping because he was better at doping than the others- he had the better doctors and the better drugs and was always one step ahead of the drug tests.
I thought I heard that the USADA can’t revoke his titles because they were won overseas?
I think they all doped but I do believe it’s BS that they’re putting it all off on Armstrong. They are grown damn men and they could have said no.
The Tour de France organizers could and, trust, the French would just about die from giddiness if they did!
“I thought I heard that the USADA can’t revoke his titles because they were won overseas?..”
You would be correct.
Tour de France, I believe has already stated they would not be taking anything away from him. He passed their urine tests numerous times. And that was that.
I agree that this has turned into a huge witch hunt.
But Armstrong is such a pr*ck, I have always assumed he finally p*ssed off the wrong person. And here we are. The never ending witch hunt.
I am curious though, who exactly is financing this witch hunt.
It has had to cost the USADA tens of millions of dollars by now. What exactly are they getting for all that money?
And who is approving all this money getting spent? I really am curious where all this cash is coming from…
“Tour de France, I believe has already stated they would not be taking anything away from him. He passed their urine tests numerous times. And that was that”
That’s incorrect. TDF is part of the UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) who makes those decisions. UCI said they woudln’t take anything away until they got the evidence file from USADA, which was presented last week. UCI is still in talks about what they are going to do. They admitted it would be hard to give it to someone else as so many other riders from that era were dirty. There’s talk of leaving the record books blank as a ‘lost decade’ or putting a asterisk next to his name.
Indeed, last I saw of a soundbite from the UCI it said that for 7 years of TDF there would be “no winner” listed.
Now he’s a complete dope.
There will never be other winners for that period (1999-2005?), because all the athletes were doped, the cyclism should be stopped, or totally changed it’s too extreme, too hard, no one can do on a Tour De France as people as Armstrong do: it’s above human abilities. They should find the gut to admit it, but I imagine there too much money around it.
I never liked him after he dumped his wife and kids right after she had twins, got with Sheryl Crow, she got cancer and then he dumps her then moves on to some new blonde, forgets about his other 3 kids and has 2 with this chick. Ugh. Just a typical B*st*rd guy. Sorry, my opinion, it is totally possible I have it all wrong, just how I remembered it, maybe it’s the unforgiving woman in me that thinks most men are slimy.–not all, but most. Yayaya, he had cancer too, but whatever.
Yep. He’s a douche!
Don’t forget about when his daughter tried to congratulate him at the finish line of some race and he blew her off since it wasn’t the right time for a picture-perfect photo op. All caught on video, nice.
Really? Ew. What a d-bag. Some people should not have kids.
Also, I wonder when our beloved bloggers will stop expecting sports stars/serious athletes to have good personalities?
😉
Yup. He’s an ASS. HOLE. (And that’s how I remember it, too.)
One of the many reasons I think he’s a sociopath.
The “I did it to be a good teammate to Lance” seems like a total cop out, but I don’t doubt Armstrong’s doping contributed to an increase in doping across the board as other cyclists realised the tests could be beaten and strove to keep up with him.
I don’t think so…I believe it could have been easy to be bullied back then. He was like a rock star/god to that guy.
Lance Armstrong is a master manipulator and knows how to find the weaknesses of those who look up to him. And when they no longer look up to him he throws them away. Including his family — sad.
Bingo, they looked up to him as a father figure and they were young especially Tyler Hamiliton. They were told to do it for the team, it was just part of the sport and it was expected. Lance’s first wife knew and said it was a necessary.
Ok I can see that scenario, but why was he using before he was on the team? I still believe it was a case of keeping up with the Armstrongs, which is almost as bad because it means Armstrong set a bad precedent for others to follow if they wanted to have chance at winning, or be on his team.
It’s totally believable that they doped to be good teammates. If you listen to Tyler’s interview, he talks about how Lance was their leader and they would do anything & everything they could to get him the win. He was their (corrupt) king.
The thing is, these guys are big names in cycling and have been for years. George Hincapie just retired, but was a pro for almost 20 years.
So I don’t buy the whole ‘we were doing it for the team’ crap. Maybe when they were domestiques, but if you read their statements nearly ALL of the riders who confessed continued to dope after leaving USPS. They wanted to win-they cheated. Everyone (lance included) are all just fingerpointing and trying to save themselves.
So if everyone cheats, does no one cheat?
Cycling itself needs to do something when every single champion is busted for doping. I think Miguel Indurain is the only recent (by that I mean in the last 15-20 years as Lance’s career was right after Indurain retired) cycling superstar who wasn’t busted for doping.
It just sucks really. Especially when I was younger and I was wearing those yellow Livestrong bracelets with pride. Just sad.
I don’t think any of this takes away from what Armstrong did. For anyone to come from basically the brink of death to where he went is amazing.
And he did it just like everyone else at his level. He doped.
GMAFB .. Armstrong is a petulant, arrogant man who has been enabled for years by yes-people and others that sought to profit from his flagrant disregard for truth, sportsmanship and general decency … that he was able to surreptitiously amp up his body in order to win races and accolades over a decade does not prove his athletic prowess, in fact it calls it into question no matter that “everyone was doing it”
Don’t kid yourself that he’s still an “amazing athlete” or “inspiring” .. he is a megalomaniacal bully who routinely and with malice broke the rules to win, and forced younger riders and teammates (who were beholden to him for their own success) go along with his cheating program. That he continues to this day to lie about it and blame everyone but himself shows how far gone he really is.
This. Thank you.
And every other team leader did the same thing. Lance is just way more visible than Bjarne Riis, Jan Ullman, Whatzisname Cantellaro, Marco Pantani, Floyd Landis . . .
And I bet LeMond did as well, no matter what his posturing is today.
Even if you really don’t want to believe it, I don’t see how anyone can still have doubts that he doped. George Hincapie, who was Lance Armstrong’s closest friend and a guy who has a completely stellar reputation within the cycling world, is cooperating with the investigation and has now admitted that he doped with and for Lance. There is seriously no one more trusted as an honest and good guy within cycling than George, so even if you believe nothing else I would believe him.
And while it is COMPLETELY their own fault that they didn’t say no, I do believe that a lot of these guys were pressured into doping for Lance. Cycling teams are all about trying to get a win for the team’s star. Most people on the team aren’t trying to win themselves, they’re there to support the star and keep him in a position where he can get to the front at the end of the race. The entire Postal Service team was built around Lance Armstrong, and he had a lot of control over it. That doesn’t mean that people should have said yes when he told them to dope, but I do think it makes him more responsible when he was the guy de facto running the show and telling people that they could either dope or he would ruin their careers.
Totally agree – Michael Barry from Toronto (my home town) was a team-mate of Armstrong’s and has also admitted to doping.
Armstrong was and is the kind of athlete who will do anything to win, including using performance enhancing drugs. He’s all smoke and mirrors but his continued indignant denials of drug use is only making him look worse and worse. If his team-mates can come clean why won’t he?
This is not a witch hunt, it’s a long overdue cleansing of a truly dirty sport with Lance being one of its worst offenders.
I completely agree with you, and this is well put. I was very hesistant to believe it because as a (very) amateur triathlete, I looked up to Lance. I knew he was a jerk, but I thought he was an amazing athlete. When I read this latest round of accusations, including Hincapie (although he doesn’t directly implicate Lance) I finally had to admit it to myself. He lied. Totally. I am so disappointed. Are there no heroes left?
“Are there no heroes left?”
I’d say there are plenty, as long as you stay away from the professional athletes, even those who have set up cancer foundations and other non-profits (I’m not just talking about Lance). It seems when money is involved corruption all too often comes into play.
Of course there are heroes. There are ordinary people who, in addition to probably working full time, maybe raising a kid or two or maybe some pets, and dealing with life without great riches at their disposal, train for and compete in things like amateur triathlons. You know, people like YOU. I have friends like you and you all inspire me, even if it’s just to take the stairs instead of the elevator. Be your own hero!
Very true esmom and TQB. I admired Lance for his endurance and his fight, but it’s always the people who don’t make big deal out of themselves doing the really amazing stuff.
If people are going to defend Lance because doping is endemic in cycling, what about triathlon competitions? There’s also evidence that he Lance was doping for triathlon races too. I hope the triathlon races see the big picture, and don’t let Lance in or else he will help spread a culture of doping in that sport too.
They’re trying to make it out like they’re all so noble by coming out and telling the truth…
Tell the truth before you profit from all the fame and glory of winning, not after. Or better yet, don’t cheat at all?
And if you do cheat, don’t then go sell your cheating stories trying to make yourself look good and blame others for YET more money…
This is all so pathetic
I don’t know about the others, but Tyler does not come across as thinking he is ‘noble’ for coming forth with his story. After all this time he actually seems very disturbed by the whole thing and the only time he shows life during the interview is when he talks about what a huge weight was lifted after he finally told the truth.
He’s selling a book.
Exactly. For all this noble poor teammate stuff, these guys are all now established riders in the world of pro cycling. George has his company Hincapie racing to think of and his own legacy-17 TDF starts more than any rider in history.
year-the only reason any of them have come out is because their backs were against the wall.
I’ll be the first to admit I was leary of the USADA arbitration process, but now that the evidence is public? They should all get punished equally.
Greg LeMonde started speaking out about doping in cycling ruining the sport and instead of looking into it everyone turned on Greg. Greg had a big endorsement deal and was developing an new bike to come out. Well guess who called the company and ruined that endorsement deal for Greg. Tell me why did he feel the need to do that if he was so innocent. There are 20 more stories like that BTW…read the report.
Lemonde’s turn-around in ’89?
The guys was doping. Let’s not kid ourselves.
I’ve read your comments, and I’m curious what your end goal would be. Is cycling not allowed to do anything ever to police itself because everyone is dirty in some way? If they’re not prepared to tear every bit of their establishment apart first, they aren’t allowed to go after Lance?
Are people not allowed, ever, to sort out the greater and lesser crimes, or symbols of those crimes who did in fact commit the crimes? Lance Armstrong’s crimes of hypocrisy and cynicism always struck me as dwarfing most of the rest of those in the world of sport. It’s human nature that when you go down for that scale of hypocrisy, you go down hard.
Hamilton’s still pretty hot, even after opening his mouth. I was expecting a dud on the level of Ryan Lochte, but Hamilton’s speech is actually multi-syllabic.
Jeah!
Tyler was also very talented racer the shame of it is the doping ruined all that. I always liked him, he never had that arrogant attitude that some other cyclists have.
As a side note, Lance’s new wife looks like her right breast is sliding and/or melting down her dress in that third pic.
I thought the same, she looks JUST like Lance’s first wife.
The guy most definitely has a type. Creepy.
meh, i believed marion more.. that she was doing whatever she was told and not asking questions (ignorance and naiveté of course did NOT save her from a tarnished reputation, incarceration, losing all her money and almost losing her child). now THAT was a witch hunt.
so if it is good enough for her, why not lance? i would like to see him go to jail as marion did… THEN i will be satisfied
(note: i think neither athlete should be charged with anything. if you are smart enough to beat the system. good for you.)
Marion Jones didn’t go to jail for doping or for any doping type offense. She went to jail for intentionally lying to a grand jury. Most people have a problem with that, although perhaps somebody who thinks it’s fine for athletes to cheat and lie, and then says good for them, wouldn’t.
Lance has perjured himself in court too (though not to a grand jury)… We’ll see if he faces any consequences.
So every top cyclist has admitted cheating except Lance?
I’m a huge cycling fan, so I’ve been following this really closely. Tyler Hamilton is a pompous jerk and always has been. He’s also a notorious liar and has changed his story so many times in the last 5 years that it’s no wonder that people gave him the side eye.
I was on the fence about Armstrong until I read the evidence file that USADA gave to UCI last week. It makes me sad, but he’s guilty. Take those tours away and throw the book at him. The legacy is a fraud.
What breaks my heart? George Hincapie. What infuriates me? All of the current riders who are still active who helped with the investigation getting to compete in all of the grand tours this year and only getting a six month suspension in the off season. They will all be back racing next year. What the heck? Christian Vande Velde, Tom Danielson, Dave Zabriskie, Levi Leipheimer and Michael Barry are all active riders. Levi Leiphemer admits to doping from 2000-2007 and has been busted for it TWICE via testing. So much for keeping the sport clean.
L: totally agree with you.
I don’t know why cycling doesn’t admit that without doping, cyclists can’t perform as is now expected. The Tour de France won’t do anything about it as their profits will sink if everyone’s just poking along for three weeks. Cheating’s been endemic for years; this is nothing new. Personally, I think they should just quit testing for it, and if people want shriveled testicles and brain cancer for a trophy and jersey, let them.
Just about every professional sport has cheating. Look at football players today. They’re huge compared to 20 years ago. Wonder why that is.
I disagree that because it is widespread, it shouldn’t be pursued.
Do you know the biggest reason why so many sports have high doping rates? Because sports has become entertainment. Crowds want to see baseball players who can hit home run after home run. They want bigger football players who can smash eath other better. And now, performance is instrinsically tied to SALARY. The better the performance, the bigger the checks.It’s that simple.
If you watched the Olympics, you saw a better picture of how sports should be. Most non-professional athletes make barely enough to stay afloat in their sports. Nobody there makes anything close to what american pro athletes make (except maybe Usain Bolt and Phelps).
I also disagree that its not an issue. Most serious athletes take up their sport of choice when they’re kids. Right now, tons of kids who want to break into sports are seeing the people they idolize getting busted for drugs, and that message they’re getting is that if you want to be the absolute best, you’ve gotta cheat. And yes, there is a relationship between seeing the people you idolize do it and doing it yourself.
Doping is not a cause of the erosion of sportmanship, it is a symptom. The culture has become so hungry for better, faster, stronger, bigger that its warped what sports is supposed to be. I am an athlete, and it bugs me. And the fact that its widespread shouldn’t make people say “oh, just let them go!” It should make them take a good critical look at themselves and ask why so many athletes think doping is worth the risk.
I agree-I believed LA was innocent until proven guilty until George Hincapie’s statement, if he was dirty then they probably all were. Very depressing, I got into cycling because of LA and even though I was no fan of his personality he was my athletic hero because of his dedication & determination. Bummed…
So sad how greed & narcissism can ruin a sport, and crush the admiration of so many. I read an interview with Sheryl Crow about her testimony…I wonder if she’s lying too or if he was sneaky enough to keep her in the dark.
We’ll never know? We do know. The evidence is conclusive. Believing that dozens of witnesses, including a whopping eleven of his teammates, were all lying while testifying under oath means believing that everyone else is perjuring themselves except Lance, even those with nothing to gain. You would have to believe that even George Hincapie is lying. George Hincapie, who was not caught cheating and who was close with Armstrong for years. Why would he lie? He’s gaining nothing. He is simply testifying because he was subpoenaed to testify and is doing his duty. Believing that Lance didn’t dope despite the fact that records show he made nearly a quarter million dollars in payments to a doctor banned from cycling because of doping (Michele Ferrari), for two years after he claimed he cut off contact with that doctor, requires that you believe the financial records are fabricated or forged. Believing that the lab tests of Lance’s samples which scientifically prove he used EPO requires that you actually buy the notion that they were contaminated. You have to believe that everyone and everything else is lying, but only Saint Lance is telling the truth. You might as well believe in fairy tales.
THIS.
The reality is that cycling is one if not the dirtiest sport out there.
My little brother started in a club at age 7 and was number 1 in the province (state)for his age group by age 11. By age 13 his good friend and main competition started taking performance enhancers; actually no, he was given these enhancers by his father who had last his wive to cancer the year before. That was the last year my brother competed.
A lot of the kids in his club when on to have some great successes but most have been found guilty for doping since.
Just sad all around that kids who genuinely love the cycling have been conditioned to accept doping as in integral part of the sport.
Armstrong has a long and storied history of trying to intimidate people who cross him.
It’s not just Armstrong who is being punished; most of these guys who have testified against him have been suspended or banned at some point themselves. Armstrong isn’t the first guy to lose a Tour title due to doping, and he won’t be the last, he’s just the highest profile.
I heard Lance is going to take a lie detector test to prove his innocence. I don’t know, I do believe he’s an arrogant jerk but it’s hard to believe he’d be so incredibly stupid to do things like shoot up on the team bus and pass out bags of drugs like Halloween candy (especially given that riders change teams from year to year and the French would have LOVED to have caught Lance in a scandal). I’ve been to the to the Tour de France 5 times and for the most part the French can’t stand him & his cockiness. He’s such a control freak, so why be so open about illegal activity? And both Tyler & Floyd Landis are serial liars, you should read their earlier books earnestly proclaiming that they never cheated.
his lawyer just speculated about the lie detector test; who knows if Lance will actually take it. And who knows, maybe lance will pass the test if his conviction that he was doing the right thing, while doping, is strong enough. He may have spent so much time lying that he now believes those lies.
I gotta say, I’m pretty cynical about this Nuremberg defense Lance’s teammates have come out with. If you read most of them back-to-back, it’s like they were all using a template of the same apology letter. They start off by saying why they got into the sport, how despite noble aspirations they were backed into a corner to dope, and how they only did it a handful of times and quit long before they were asked to.
…right. My BS meter is through the roof. I believe Lance was a bully, I believe there was pressure. But have some accountability, own up to the fact that there’s always a choice. In my opinion, Frankie and Betsy Andreu are the only noble parties involved in this mess.
My husband totally agrees with you, Down and Out. He thinks Betsy (is that her name?) Andreiu is the heroine of the story.
Lance has always struck me as an asshole, and I maintain that he IS, in fact, an asshole.
I also read that Sheryl Crow testified in the investigation. Now there’s a juicy little tidbit I’d like to read!
Has Lance Armstrong ever denied taking drugs or did he say he never failed a drug test? There is a difference. With the code name, “butter” (drugs hidden in the butter bin) and “Lance’s wife is rolling us a joint” (pills wrapped in foil)…speaks volumes about Lance Armstrong. He’s a bully, a fraud, liar, imho, a thief.
He also seems to treat women like crap.
Don’t know if I can link outside sites, if not do take the link down but this guy convinced me:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/richkarlgaard/2012/06/13/lance-armstrong-hero-cheat-and-tragic-figure/
quote: “All of the Tour’s winners from 1996 to 2006, with one famous exception, were later caught, or admitted to, using performance drugs. The exception was Lance Armstrong, who was never caught despite being the most tested athlete in modern sports. That’s the story, anyway. Actually Lance was caught, twice: One in 1999 for steroids and again in 1999 for the red cell boosting drug, EPO.”…he got off on a technicality each time
“Mountain-climb times produced by the top climbers in the 2010 Tour de France were oddly but consistently 5% worse than the numbers generated by the Tour’s top climbers from 1996 to 2006. Now, why would the climbing performance numbers get worse even as bicycles have become faster and knowledge about training, nutrition and recovery has advanced? The most plausible answer is that the anti-doping testing standards have become much better. In 2008 professional cycling’s governing body implemented the final pieces of the so-called biological passport.”
Enough said for me , and that’s if you don’t believe the 10 peopel who have actually testified so far. It’s not just the one guy.
I’m offended by the self righteousness of Armstrong than by the atual doping. They all do it. Then in comes down to natural ability, hard work and who has the best doctors. But to those who cry foul what’s the difference between that and an NFL or MLB team that has 3 times the money their competitor has and therefore can afford better players, doctors, coaches etc… nothing in professional sports is on an even keel… but Amrstrong’s image this “clean living” image he wants to cram down our throats is just insulting.
This is not a witch hunt it’s the truth finally coming out about cycling and Lance Armstrong. Lance was cycling’s poster boy so naturally they are going after him, he was one of the kingpins in the cycling doping world. The only thing that surprises me about Lance is what a vindictive bully he is determined to ruin other people’s lives when they told truth about him and cycling. Truth be told Lance is a liar, a cheat, a bully and a fraud.
So what if he’s a jerk.
This agency needs to be dismantled.
The idea that a “quasi-governmental” agency goes to the press convicting one guy before a trial and then tells the world they’ve taken all his medals away when they aren’t allowed to do that is frightening.
You have to admit, sometimes people who hate someone aren’t right just because they’re “sure.”
This agency is out of control and should be dismantled for this.
You want to know the agency’s motivation? Their whole existence is just busting athletes (who are rich and famous jerks while they’re paper pushers whose big power is destroying athletes.)
Armstrong passed all their tests and now they just go to the press and threaten.
Granted, sometimes a guilty person walks which we all hate. But this isn’t murder. This is career. I mean, if the agency is wrong they’ve destroyed lives.
If they’re right, he’s gotten away with biking.
The onus should be on them. They can destroy a man’s life’s work, and if they are wrong not one person’s life is in jeopardy.
A gov’t allowed to get all Captain Ahab on one person is without conscience.
Don’t you all understand why you don’t want gov’t to be able to chase it’s own citizens, hound and destroy them on hearsay, rumors, anger, hate and hunches?
Because it’s called “competing on a level playing field”. Why should he and his team win time after time when they’re using banned substances?
It’s illegal, immoral and say what you want about the US Anti-Doping Agency, illegal PEDs are making a level playing field and real sportsmanship a thing of the past.
Well said SWIHAJ!
it seems you all don’t want justice, just some ridiculous petty revenge against a guy you don’t really know because he’s noted as a jerk of a celebrity. So what? He’s not the only one.
And the person is right…Lance is being held guilty without trial by a non-govt entity. It IS a witch hunt…there’s no court, just enough people to scare. How would you like that done to you? He’s most likely guilty but the evidence is so non existent (ie a couple of tests that may or may not be positive) and Tygart came out so arrogantly about LA that it had the opposite effect of actually supporting LA by the general public rather than hating LA because Tygart never said how he got away with passing several tests. I had to read in-depth sports articles by others to get to that.
I couldn’t care less about this dude. But like Tiger Woods (who cheated on his wife like millions of men do) there is this unbalanced hate for them. So Lance is a jerk…what does that have to do with YOUR life?
To all you folks saying ” They should just allow doping” I do not think you all realize how DANGEROUS steroids and human growth hormones are…. You are 10 times more likely to have a heart attack and with women it can damage your reproductive organs and also cause cancer (which might be where Lance got his from ) … there is a documentary on youtube about the east germans when they were doping during the Olympics… some of those young athletes have permanent problems and developed enlarged hearts and cancer ….
That would be completely immoral and just wrong to allow that … It just is not worth it… Now I know we are talking about money hungry people but in the end dropping dead at 40 from a heart attack or cancer is not worth it… I mean you certainly can not take the millions with you
While I agree Lance is probably guilty and should lose his titles, it is a witch hunt in the sense that he seems to be the only one being punished/stigmatized. It seems the rest of the team are placing all of the blame on him, I mean come on everyone who doped is culpable for their own actions. And agree the bosses/coaches and whatnot were surely kne deep in it too, I just don’t get why he is being so singled out. Because he beat the system for so long and everyone is holding a grudge? How is it fair that teammates of his are still competing if his name and achievements are stripped? I don’t get it, but I haven’t read all of the ins and outs, maybe I have just missed something?
I think he is being singled out because he was the leader of the USPS team. He encouraged/demanded doping by his teammates and he led the cover-up. Shouldn’t the leader(s) be held most accountable? It’s the flip side of being the champion and getting the title in the sport where you can’t win without the sacrifices of your teammates.
many of the accusations are heresay
I think Lance Armstrong is probably a sociopath. He does nothing that isn’t in his own interests, and he doesn’t feel bad about the cost to other people because he doesn’t have a conscience.
A lot of people give him an out because of cancer; because of what his ‘comeback’ represents and because of the inspiration he has undoubtedly provided to many people. And according to reports I heard this morning, donations to LiveStrong have increased since the latest revelations about his doping.
On that note, I think the relevant authorities should keep a close eye on how those funds are managed and used. Imagine what Lance could get up to if he had a yen for financial malfeasance as well.
I think Livestrong is shady. At the very least they are happy to let people think they are helping fund cancer research when they mostly are not:
http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/athletes/lance-armstrong/Its-Not-About-the-Lab-Rats.html?page=all
Livestrong is questionable. Just another way for Lance to exude his arrogance.
I mean, don’t get me wrong, I think starting a “cancer awareness” (not cancer research) foundation is fantastic and obviously they have done a lot of good and helped plenty of people along the way and all that. I’m just saying,the more I read about him the more I think that Livestrong is kinda more about Lance’s ego than anything else.
Totally. There are even some cynics who say Lance founded it only as a “cushion” of goodwill in case the doping allegations ever did prove true. Disgusting.
I can’t believe the people supporting doping because everyone else is doing it and that they don’t blame tyler or others for not taking the high-road because it would hurt their carreer. I prefer people with courage and a moral compass and also what is the joy in winning if you cheated? I would never be able to enjoy my win no matter how much money I made. I always admire those with courage of conviction and I think that will take you places in life where you can lie down at night with a clear conscience. I always hope I will have the courage when it matters, no matter what the situation, I guess you never know until you are tested but I think it is clear that Hamilton and Lance and all the other dopers have been lacking in character long before they ever got on a bike.
Armstrong’s colleagues responded to their conscience. Help Nike find theirs (again). Sign and share the global petition http://www.change.org/en-AU/petitions/nike-anheuser-busch-trek-and-others-quit-corporate-support-for-lance-armstrong
I don’t think it was conscience they were necessarily responding to, so much as overwhelming evidence and a desire to get it over with & move on.
I wish you would all quit calling it a witch hunt and call it for what it really is.
It’s a douche hunt
As a former competitive cyclist, (I raced in France, too), I always thought Armstrong was lying. Pretty much EVERYONE dopes on something at his level. It’s a grueling sport the stakes are high. The teams are indispensable to winning, like legs on a spider, the team members are 100% necessary to the strongest member of the team. Armstrong wanted that title that no American ever took before. His megalomania is the biggest part of his being, leaving no room for honesty.
I think Celebitchy is the only website website in cyberspace still maintaining that Lance Armstrong has any credibility whatsoever. I saw Tyler Hamilton interviewed extensively on TV in Australia last night, and he was holding his wife’s hand and seemed genuinely sad and intimidated and humbled by everything. I certainly didn’t get the impression that he was a “dud” with “no personality.” And the reason it all appears to be falling on Lance Armstrong’s shoulders is because he’s the only one who hasn’t admitted wrongdoing, has actively perjured himself, and allegedly spearheaded the doping campaign. He’s also obscenely wealthy, and clearly thinks he can get away with anything. And he has until recently.
You might be right. I was shocked yesterday to see a cyclist friend of mine, who lives in Austin and who has ridden with Lance many times and worshipped the guy forever, say “yeah he did it” on FB. I was thinking if he doesn’t support Lance anymore then I can’t imagine anyone does, lol.
They all dope in that sport. It is so widespread thati’m kind of blase about it. If what he took could increase his chances of a return of his cancer, he’s an idiot. And if he really put a lot of pressure on a teammate who didn’t want to do it, I will have zero respect for him.
The whole sport is corrupt, like many others. Doping happens to this day and likely will continue. I for one am glad that it has been revealed. No way would Armstrong have backed down if they didn’t really have his one nut in a vice; he was had and he knew it.