Saturday’s Mailbag: Scandal over sport; aggressive enforcement v. due process; that asterisk; and the rant

The Mailbag is a regular feature on VeloNews.com. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your full name and home town. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

This is a sad day for cycling.

Tom Stitt
Atlanta, Georgia

If only others were as aggressive in dope wars
Editor:
The Tour de France is a commercial enterprise originally created to sell newspapers, so I can understand the organizers’ right to reject riders based solely on their commercial image. While I and others will no doubt wonder if the TdF is a race among those who simply didn’t get caught, at the same time I wish more sporting organizations in the U.S. were as aggressive about reducing doping and reducing other such anti-competitive practices.

Daniel Norton
Austin, Texas

Yeah, what he said
Editor:
With a lot of the mainstream media bashing cycling, and even some cycling media piling on, I would like to point out that cycling is the only sport that has the integrity and the guts to kick out its top stars before the biggest event on its calendar for merely being associated with a doping scandal.

Think — would Major League Baseball tell Barry Bonds he couldn’t compete on the eve of the World Series because he was associated with known dope developers and producers? I think he would have been kicked out long ago if he were a cyclist!

Tim Waters
New Lenox, Illinois

Where’s the evidence?
Editor:
Has any of the “evidence” either been released or leaked out? If so, just what is it these riders are accused of? All I have seen so far was a statement that there was proof that the riders lied about ever meeting this doctor (or whomever is at the center of the scandal) in Spain. It is hard to imagine this is the type of evidence that would lead to the suspension (call it what you will) of several of the favorites, including Ivan Basso, who I think would have dominated the race.

It is entirely possible that there is some real damning evidence and the public is just not being informed at this time until a full investigation is complete. If that is the case, it is completely understandable. It might also explain why there has not seemed to be a huge backlash from those riders who have been implicated and tossed from the Tour. Of course, it could just be that in the U.S. we are not getting all the stories.

On the other hand, if the evidence is circumstantial and does not directly implicate these riders in the use of illegal performance-enhancers, then this should go down as one of the biggest farces in the history of sports. It is unfathomable that so many favorites could be tossed from a race on the eve of its start if there is not proof of actual doping.

Marc Miller
New York City

While the fans, riders and others are frustrated by the decision, we would like to point out that Friday’s exclusions were not the result of a decision by the Tour de France, the French authorities, WADA or the UCI, but rather a collective decision by the directors of the 21 teams, who voted unanimously to comply with the ProTour Ethics Code, which states that any rider who is the focus of a formal criminal investigation cannot participate in a ProTour event. It’s tough, but cycling’s record over the past decade would require that the sport take a tougher stand on the issue. We’ll let baseball and other sports solve their own problems. – Editor

Sad, glad, mad, bad
Editor:
Sad: Truly a sad day for cycling, its fans and for all “clean” cyclists throughout the world. They’ll all be painted with the same brush.

Glad: Glad as hell those SOB’s got caught. Here’s hoping they pay for it in full and then some. And that the rest of the cheats are found.

Mad: Mad as hell at the cheaters who have tarnished the world of cycling, lived a lie and cheated cycling’s fans.

Bad: How bad can cycling’s and doping control’s (WADA) governance be to let this go on? How bad is it that a newspaper had to find this out while cycling/WADA sat on their hands? Lance Armstrong is right that Dick Pound is incompetent – but he’s right for the wrong reason. There should be a bucketful of embarrassing resignations following this. There’s no excuse for letting a third party discover this, instead of those who are paid to do it, and have accepted the responsibility to find and expunge cheats.

Tom Smith
Ithaca, New York

That asterisk means a clean winner
Editor:
I’ve read a number of times now that the winner of the ’06 Tour will have an “asterisk” by his name, and well I think he should. The footnote ought to read, “This guy didn’t cheat.”

The Tour will be won by someone who has been beaten in the past by people who weren’t necessarily more gifted, didn’t necessarily train harder, and didn’t necessarily have better tactics; rather, this year’s winner has been previously relegated to the “top five” or “top 10″ category of various races because he wasn’t a cheat.

Instead of somehow diminishing the winner and his accomplishment, the exclusion of cheaters will elevate the yellow jersey holder in my book.

Rob Morrill
Palo Alto, California

Let’s hope the race goes on
Editor:
It is being said that today marks, “the biggest scandal to hit the Tour since Festina in 1998.” I think I disagree. This one is bigger. In ’98, we didn’t have four of the strongest contenders out of the race.

At this point — assuming he is innocent, since he has not been implicated, — I feel for Alexandre Vinokourov. He simply seems to be on the wrong team at the wrong time.

I hope that the race will now go on and will be fantastic, without any more scandal or protests as we saw in ’98. I also hope that whoever wins (Go George!) will not have an asterisk next to his name because “they didn’t race against the best.” One could argue that those who were the “best” were only that good due to doping – assuming the allegations turn out to be true.

I will still be getting up early to watch OLN tomorrow and every day of the race, following live coverage on the ‘Net, and rooting for the Americans! What are Bobby Julich’s chances now?

Tom Isaacson
Buellton, California

Paging Mr. Armstrong
Editor:
With respect to Operation Puerto: What truly terrible news. Let’s all just sit back and see what the reactions are from around the world. I’m sitting on the edge of my seat, waiting for Lance Armstrong’s comments on this whole mess. Mr. Armstrong? Hello?

Colin Bellwood
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Scandal taints everyone
Editor:
God, I hate doping news. It’s making me suspect everyone. When I got my butt kicked on a half-Ironman race last weekend, I looked at the winner’s times and said to myself “I wonder what drugs he’s doing.” Sadly, these doping scandals are ruining the credibility of all athletics and athletes that train hard and perform well.

Dan Morrow
Redmond, Washington

Forget pro racing, try randonneuring
Editor:
I used to be a serious bicycle racing fan, following the European season from start to finish and cheering on my favorites. When Tyler Hamilton tested positive for doping, my heart was truly broken and I stopped being such a serious fan.

I have found a new love: randonneuring.

It’s unsupported mega-distance bicycling, against a clock, with timed controls (stops). It requires careful preparation, stamina and strategy and promises great satisfaction to all who participate and finish a course. And since it doesn’t revolve around nationalistic fervor or the sponsorship dollars of multinational corporations, riders don’t feel pressured to “enhance” their performance with any substances stronger than perhaps a cup of coffee now and then. New riders are always welcomed, encouraged and tutored by experienced cyclists in order to achieve greater success.

If you want to see an example of bicycling sport that remains truly amateur and untainted, check it out. You can start by Googling “Paris-Brest-Paris” or RandonneursUSA.”

Beth Hamon
Portland, Oregon

Regarding the rant
Editor:
I can only sadly agree with this editorial (see Friday’s Foaming Rant: “Printing the Legend”). Pro cycling needs a clean sweep. Some riders may be gone, but the infrastructure and culture of doping cannot change that quickly.

I’m disgusted to see how directeurs like Bjarne Riis are denying any knowledge, and feigning innocence. Ivan Basso was never as quick as under Riis’s guide. I’m also sick of the response, “I’ve never tested positive for dope.”

This is the saddest day for this sport since the death of Tommy Simpson, but as fanatical a fan as I am, I can only conclude that it must be completely disassembled before it can ever really change. How many truly talented riders have toiled for years in Europe to only be ignored and underpaid for their sportsmanship? Does only the scum rise to the top?

On the plus side, I have much more time to ride this July. It’s all about the bike.

Ray Truant
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

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