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Testing times

Road cycling
by Phil S - BBC Sport (U8520575) 14 September 2007
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Doping. Charging up. Juicing. Whatever you want to call it, it seems cycling is inextricably linked with the seamier side of sport... or is it just cycling?

It is well documented that cycling wasn't the only sport implicated in the Operation Puerto scandal last year – Dr Fuentes said so himself. The cycling authorities have been closely examining the evidence for more than a year and action has been taken. I have yet to hear of any other sport looking into the rumours involving their top stars.

Why haven't the Spanish judiciary outed all the athletes involved? Simple - doping was only made an offence in Spain after the Puerto raid and Fuentes refused to name names. It's a story that will rumble on for some time and unfortunately I doubt we will ever find out the whole truth.

One positive thing to come out of Puerto, if you'll excuse the pun, is that it has set in motion a change in attitudes. Everyone now agrees serious action needs to be taken to combat the problem and the UCI must at least be credited for having the stomach to confront the issue.

This has trickled down through a number of top teams as well. Team T-Mobile, Slipstream-Chipotle, and CSC are among the outfits to have set up impressive programmes. And at the Tour de France I talked to many riders, on and off the record, who were sick of the dopers and who were beginning to speak out. It seems the omerta of old is starting to erode.

Here at the Tour of Britain, it's business as usual for the dope-testers. Every day the van is parked up and every day random riders, jersey winners and stage winners are subjected to controls.

I caught up with Gordon McCauley of the Plowman Craven Evans Cycles team to ask him about the ins and outs of dope-testing from an athlete's perspective. He had some pretty strong views on the subject, and he also explained an initiative his team is financing to stand its riders in good stead.

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posted Sep 20, 2007

This is not the right thread to discuss Lance. As I said there is already more than enough debate on the issue on the net already. And the consensus of 95% of posters does not line up with your opinion on the matter!

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posted Sep 20, 2007

graniteKnoxville - during the TDF the BBC asked for contributions for a programme. I offered. They never bothered to contact me.

The BBC would never ever let a fan anywhere near the microphone since we'd end up showing up the BBC for the incompetent fools that they are

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posted Sep 20, 2007

This is not the right thread to discuss Lance. As I said there is already more than enough debate on the issue on the net already. And the consensus of 95% of posters does not line up with your opinion on the matter!
====================================

** Lance is part of issue since he is cleanly sandwiched between 2 of the most notorious periods in cycling history.

95% are the status quo which have brought this scandal on cycling and which you apparently approve.

Proud to be the 5% not drinking the koolaide.

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posted Sep 21, 2007

So people who believe LA was doped have "brought this scandal on cycling". What on earth are you going on about??? No, please don't answer that because it will make even less sense!
As I have said before, please go onto some of the many online Cycling forums and read up on the subject. Then when you know what you are talking about, come back make a sensible contribution.

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posted Sep 21, 2007

So people who believe LA was doped have "brought this scandal on cycling". What on earth are you going on about???
-----------=========---------------

** Some people are trying to clone baby females to raise as breeding stock for an anticipated alien visitation. The Raelians, check em out.

Others think the US government did a controlled demolition on the WTC from the inside, others think the moon landings took place in the Nevada desert.

People are going to believe what they want regardless of the evidence or lack of.

However, the honchos who run the high profile professional tours are responsible for creating a scandal ridden product they do not believe in. That's the bottomline, the current status quo. Might as well be producing junk toys with lead and mercury in them.


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posted Sep 21, 2007

Another thread gets hijacked by a Lance-loving nut job.

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posted Sep 21, 2007

Another thread gets hijacked by a Lance-loving nut job.
================

** Mrs?

[[["Mrs" originated as a contraction of the honorific "Mistress", the feminine of "Mister" or "Master", which was originally applied to both married and unmarried women.]]]

Where's the honor?

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posted Sep 21, 2007

I can't help noticing that the 606 Cycling boards have a few nutjobs who are just ever so slightly..... less than believable. Kanga, FigRoll, now LondonRingRules...... very odd.

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posted Sep 22, 2007

Nice one LRR. Completely irrelevent to the topic in hand.

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posted Sep 24, 2007

MJM/Invigilator - It seems I've missed the boat a little now on this thread (I've been away for a few days).

I will put a new posting up when I get the chance to discuss the issue we've been discussing in relation to effective cycling coverage and the way the media deals with issue of drugs in relation to this. We can but hope the BBC inputs into the discussion and answers some of the questions.

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