Huge news in Landis doping case

[SteelBlue]

He may escape punishment after all due to lab miscues:

http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/cyclin...ory?id=2776315

[marsupial]

I hope he gets exonerated. He's wearing a hip made by the company I work for. I wouldn't want a druggie representing us.

[creekster]

Originally Posted by SteelBlue

He may escape punishment after all due to lab miscues:

http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/cyclin...ory?id=2776315

So does your phrasing reveal that you have concluded he doped? I am still not convinced, even now, that he did, just because of the absurdity of the situation. I have explained this before in this forum, and will avoid boring everyone to tears again with it, but suffice it to say the picture just doesn't make sense. OTOH, I would not be shocked if he did, but it would certainly be a remarkably and extraordinarily stupid thing for him to do. In fact, it would require the Pantheon of Stupidity in Sports to open up a new wing just for Landis. The whole bikes and drugs mess makes me ill, given how much I enjoy watching and following bike racing.

As to the article, they are pretty careful to say that some of the same techs who tested A sample also worked on the B sample, but it is unclear if they had an instrumental role. The fact the Landis is the party that wants to interview the techs further, however, does suggest that they may have had an important role in the B sample test.

Some might consider this type of issue a 'technicality' and so not worthy of dismissing the charges. OTOH, if the boneheaded French labs cant' get THIS right, it certainly makes you wonder about the integrity of their process. Think about it: Here is the most important B sample that the lab has probably EVER tested (in terms of notoriety, public scrutiny and lasting impact) and they manage to screw it up by violating the rules of testing B samples? And not by a little screw up but by having the same techs work on both samples? How hard is that rule to understand and implement? Les Miserables indeed.

[SteelBlue]

Yes, I guess I believe he doped. I think he felt like the tour was over for him if he didn't do something and that maybe he put a patch on just to heal a little quicker for the next stage.

[RockyBalboa]

Isn't Cycling, next to track and field considered to be the dirtiest sport in the world doping wise?

[bluegoose]

Originally Posted by RockyBalboa

Isn't Cycling, next to track and field considered to be the dirtiest sport in the world doping wise?

Probably so. But of course these are second and third to other sports that don't test or don't test very well (ie. football, baseball, basketball, hockey, etc). I've just come to the conclusion that there are very few sports, especially the "money" sports, that aren't tainted by some sort of illegal performance among the top-notch performers. Its kind of ruined professional sports for me, and if I actually cared I would stop watching them. But I don't really care, as it is just entertainment for me.