(Chris…I’m glad that the “Random Acts…” is becoming a “regular…”)
Anyway…
My respect for Greg LeMond dropped to negative when he became the “best known” critic of Armstrong. What made it even more chicken-sh*$ (in my estimation) is that he decided to make his feelings public during the Tour…
I agree…what ever he takes or DOESN’T take makes no difference…he rises above whatever threshold all the other competitors meet. Could it be:
1)That he trains on the Tour course for weeks prior like a man possessed…even on his climbing? (which is his main stength…)
2)That he a Master stategist? (Where to place his team; what stages to win all out, win “nearly” or simply to concede; when to “lay back”, etc., etc.)
That his cycling stroke is a thing to behold in it’s effeciency?
That his mastering of hills and mountains is unsurpassed?
That reportedly is VO-2 max, lung capacity and resting HR are almost non-human?
That he is simply one of the most amazing athletes around?
The list could go on and on. By the end of this Tour, all his “critics” began to sound like jealous, sniveling little grade school kids on a playground…
Lance Armstrong is potentially the greatest athlete of all time. He’s amazing. It’s too bad that when someone is at the top of his game like no one else has ever been because of his un-matched work ethic and capabilities, everyone wants to make themselves feel better by saying he’s taking or doing something illegal. It’s called determination, persistence, hard work, and it’s all legal! A great Lance quote “Life, to me, is a series of false limits and my challenge as an athlete is to explore the limits on a bike”. Words we can all live by!
CNN is reporting that Lance Armstrong may be stripped of his 6th Tour de France title. In a random check for banned substances, three were found in Armstrong’s hotel room.
The substances banned by the French that were found in his hotel room were as follows:
(1) Toothpaste
(2) Deodorant
(3) Soap
The French officials also found several other items
which they had never seen before, including a testicle and a backbone…
Earlier reports that French Government officials
attempted to surrender to Armstrong as he entered Paris were apparently erroneous.
All respect to Lance. Unfortunately, cycling, like most sports, is plagued by doping and cheating, and it seems hard to believe that a “clean” athlete could even remain competitive, let alone dominate the game. I have a hard time believing it myself, to be honest, but until he’s caught cheating (and god knows they’re working on it), all hail Armstrong.
Good point, DrS. It’s a shame. Even at my very low-level competition stage, I have to consider using illegal substances (even effedra - gasp!) or I can barely get a second glance from the judges. In order to be competitive with those at the top that have superior genetics and/or are using drugs, it’s very tempting.
As far as Lance goes, from everything I’ve heard and read that they do to find him guilty, you’d think they would have found something by this point if he wasn’t totally clean. Either that, or he has the most incredible team of scientists who know how to get around everything. If so, why can’t the Olympic athletes do the same thing?
Until there is clear and definate proof that his is cheating, all rumors, groaning, and bitching is just PLAYER HATING. The man is a freak of nature, deal with it. He isn’t human, deal with it. He is perhaps the greatest athlete of our era, DEAL WITH IT!