With The Lance Armstrongs punishment of being stripped of titles that he cheated to win, can cycling continue as a sport without a strong The Lance Armstrong?
Well that's it then. Cycling is ****ed. What are we gunna watch next year when the tour rolls around again? Lance who?
All the international cycling fraternity have to do is put Nicky Henderson in charge of all the cycling teams - he gets away with drugging all his horses so doubtless they won't mind him drugging all the cyclists.
Just been announced today that the UCI has stripped Armstrong of all his titles. Sponsors are deserting the sport. Take a while to recover from this horrendous debacle. Dan: Please copy your comment to SBC!* I just cannot for the life of me understand why he makes him the nation's favourite trainer. He isn't, never will be, and never was. As you probably remember, I thought his problem with banned substances in his stable was pure carelessness on his part (and I was being kind, and gave him a massive benefit of the doubt), so how can he be the nation's favourite in his profession? Absolute rubbish IMHO. To even start to compare him in this regard with Sir Henry Cecil, is arrant nonsense? *Oh, why don't I do this myself, you might ask? Well, have to admit, he's popular and I ain't
Is this the end of cycling, well i dont think so, but i do follow pro-cycling other than just the Tour De France and that is where Armstrong made his name. This race is the one race that all casual followers of the sport will say straight away, 'yeah thats the one Lance Armstrong cheated in...' and that ALL cycling is bent, and that they are all at it. And to be fair most of them have got a point as most of the blokes who finished behind Lance back in the day cheated but just didnt cheat as good as him... The Tour De France is 'THE' race that all pro-cyclists want to win and all of the sudden the greatest winner of the event has been found guilty, stripped of his achievements and the sport is now in a tail spin. I do think though that pro-cycling will survive and there are a few teams out there who are serious in trying to keep the 'Drug-Free' message going. Obviously Team Sky are the main protagonists as they have the most to lose at the moment with the current champion in Bradley Wiggins, so if any of their riders would be to caught out then i agree where can the sport go to next... Maybe the sport needs to hit rock bottom to enable the sport to regain some credit from the people who are saying that the sport is no longer trustworthy. I suppose it will come back stronger but we have to have clarity from all the teams and riders and that will probably mean a few more riders 'retiring' or getting banned and leaving the sport. I can only hope that the revelations take the men out at the top who looked to have helped this cover up and then we can get people in who really believe in the sport and can get the sport of cycling back in the good books of the watching fans... The sport of cycling, and especially the Tour De France, has been forever tarnished with the drugs debate but it can become drug free and return as a truly great sport...
I think the Tour de france will survive because in terms of an annual event it is one of the most atmospheric there is. The spectacle of the race is incredible and that's coming from somoene who isn't really a cycling enthusiast. The sport is well under way to cleaning itself up and althoguh Armstrong has severely tarnished it there's enough positives associated with the event to make it great again. All sports survice their scandlas and i've no doubt cycling will too.
Dan/Red: The Tour de France is such a huge event that I guess it will survive, but it will take years for many fans of the sport to forget completely this long-running debacle? If they ever do. I just cannot get it into my old heed how this could have gone on for so long, but I suppose the modern lab. techniques in the end weren't so wonderful at all? Especially with EPO. Dan: Can't imagine you've forgotten! Again, another reason I cannot do it myself because the b***er always ignores me on t'other thread! Oh well.
Cycling is going through a rejuvenation period in the UK, interest in the TDF peaked with ITV's coverage but it has been sustained by Wiggo and his Olympic efforts and beyond. Dave Brailsford is doing everything to keep this momentum going and send out the right message to where it counts, and that is the kids who are looking at it now and thinking this is a great sport to get into, look at Wiggins and Cavendish etc... It's difficult with the likes of Contador winning La Vuelta for the stain to be removed fully, but along with the Giro there will be lots more for people to see next year esp as Wiggins is focussing on that in 2013 while Froome pushes for the TDF. I think this whole Armstrong thing resets the bar...those who've been following it for years will see it as somewhat tainted, those who haven't wont, and with the Tour of Britain getting the crowds it did even after the Armstrong story really started to gather pace it looks positive. To me at least.
Lewis Black on The Daily Show (Back in Black: Lance Armstrong, Butt Chugging, and Farm Animal Sex): http://www.thedailyshow.com/collection/420410/back-in-black/420068
