Pro athletes are human science experiments, pushing their bodies to new limits. But should they be punished for that?
Lance Armstrong is a great champion. There is no question. The first time I met him in 1991, you could see that the kid had it all: ruthlessness, enormous power and a savage desire to win that was almost frightening in its intensity. All that, and he was always ready with a soundbite. Lance was the complete package. And two years later, at age 21, he became the youngest rider in modern history to become the World Professional Road Champion.
We all know the rest of the story. After his bout with cancer in 1996, his recovery and subsequent metamorphosis into a lethal, streamlined Tour de France contender was stunning — as was the new laser-beam focus that earned him the nickname “RoboCop” in the peloton. The rest of the pros never had a chance.
So now that he has been stripped of his seven Tour de France wins and banned from cycling for the rest of his life by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), we have to ask the question. Did Lance Armstrong really win all those titles, beat all those other cyclists, endure the unimaginable hardships of long-distance competition just because he’s a cheater?
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2 comments:
He never failed a drug test. The only accusers/informants were previously caught doping. The DOJ didn't pursue their case. The ICU is the only governing body that could strip Armstrong of his Tour De France titles, and they haven't.
The USADA has no jurisdiction in the case, and their evidence is circumstantial and only comes from dopers that were caught. That's like basing a case entirely on jail rats. This case would get thrown out by ANY judge and the Prosecutor would likely be held in contempt for bringing charges on such flimsy "evidence".
Regardless,he's still my hero.By my definition,a hero is someone who can do what I could never dream of doing.No American will ever accomplish his feat again.The fact that he's an American might possibly factor in as well.What if he had been from Argentina,or Brazil,or say France? Let's just say he was from any country OTHER THAN the US.The issue would have flared up and then died,just as the Chinese female swimmer issue did at the Olympics.She was swimming faster than practically any of the men.Illogical that she was'nt doping.
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