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> Perhaps thinking of Lance Armstrong, he added: “I was a big fan of a certain cyclist and a part of me understands the pressure to succeed at all costs. ..."

by ben509 6y ago

> Perhaps thinking of Lance Armstrong, he added: “I was a big fan of a certain cyclist and a part of me understands the pressure to succeed at all costs. ..." Lance Armstrong didn't just cheat, he set up a whole doping ring.[1] The full report is at [2]. Section VI of the Reasoned Decision lays out his efforts to keep a lid on the whole thing. There are plenty of athletes who get caught up in doping due to the pressures, but Armstrong is not a good example of that. [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lance_Armstrong_doping_case#USADA_reasoned_decision,_UCI_and_IOC_sanctions https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lance_Armstrong_doping_case#US... [2]: http://cyclinginvestigation.usada.org/ http://cyclinginvestigation.usada.org/

AtlasBarfed 6y ago
So did Festina, and so did practically every other cycling team in the EPO-nuts 90s. Armstrong has a toxic personality, but nevertheless he is the scapegoat of that generation of cycling. If you know cycling, there is a rotating cast of champions heralded for their clean competition that are then cast aside as scapegoats: Festina, Armstrong, Team Garmin, Team Sky.
umvi 6y ago
"Doping" sounds bad like he's taking drugs, but isn't doping just putting your own blood back inside of you to get higher red blood cell counts? How is that much different from living on top of a mountain for a few months and then coming down on race day with elevated red blood cell counts? Is the latter cheating as well? Why not just legalize doping in sports, that way everyone can do it and therefore not gain an advantage by doing it? It would also remove the advantage of people who live in high altitudes.
- lakis 6y ago
  If he did this on the first day of the Tour de France, yes, they are the same thing. But if he is pumping fresh blood on the ten or twenty day of the tour, it's like you take a few months in the mountain recouping before you run the next day race. Do you think it's OK if one cyclist is running stages day after day while the other cyclist has a week to recoup between stages to recoup? Is this even the same race?
- ben509 6y ago
  Doping itself isn't bad, and drugs aren't bad in moderation, either. So, yeah, the issue is someone getting an advantage, which in turn puts pressure on athletes to have to dope or take PEDs to have a career. I'm not sure what the equilibrium outcome is if the restrictions are lifted, but the usual assumption is that it's a race to the bottom. But WADA clearly has a perverse incentive to ban more and more drugs simply to justify its own existence. Maybe the solution is to let athletes themselves figure out the rules, since they have to live with them.

by ben509 6y ago

AtlasBarfed 6y ago

So did Festina, and so did practically every other cycling team in the EPO-nuts 90s. Armstrong has a toxic personality, but nevertheless he is the scapegoat of that generation of cycling. If you know cycling, there is a rotating cast of champions heralded for their clean competition that are then cast aside as scapegoats: Festina, Armstrong, Team Garmin, Team Sky.

umvi 6y ago

"Doping" sounds bad like he's taking drugs, but isn't doping just putting your own blood back inside of you to get higher red blood cell counts? How is that much different from living on top of a mountain for a few months and then coming down on race day with elevated red blood cell counts? Is the latter cheating as well? Why not just legalize doping in sports, that way everyone can do it and therefore not gain an advantage by doing it? It would also remove the advantage of people who live in high altitudes.

lakis 6y ago
If he did this on the first day of the Tour de France, yes, they are the same thing. But if he is pumping fresh blood on the ten or twenty day of the tour, it's like you take a few months in the mountain recouping before you run the next day race. Do you think it's OK if one cyclist is running stages day after day while the other cyclist has a week to recoup between stages to recoup? Is this even the same race?
ben509 6y ago
Doping itself isn't bad, and drugs aren't bad in moderation, either. So, yeah, the issue is someone getting an advantage, which in turn puts pressure on athletes to have to dope or take PEDs to have a career. I'm not sure what the equilibrium outcome is if the restrictions are lifted, but the usual assumption is that it's a race to the bottom. But WADA clearly has a perverse incentive to ban more and more drugs simply to justify its own existence. Maybe the solution is to let athletes themselves figure out the rules, since they have to live with them.