The Cycliste Moderne, September 16, 2005

Reporters and Cops are not your Friends

It has now come out that what appears to be the key to linking the 1999 Tour de France urine specimens to the identities of the riders who provided them was provided to L’Equipe by the UCI with the consent of Lance Armstrong. L’Equipe represented to Armstrong that it was seeking to do a story on whether he had special medical clearances in order to race as a result of his cancer treatment. Armstrong claimed that the reporter from L’Equipe represented that he was doing a story that would be beneficial to Armstrong. Based upon that representation, Armstrong permitted the reporter to access what all reports indicate was a single document in the possession of the UCI. What L’Equipe did not tell Armstrong was that it was already in possession of results from the 1999 tests. The document that the paper sought apparently allowed L’Equipe to match the individual specimen codes with the individuals tested.

World Anti Doping Agency chief Dick Pound has railed against the UCI for not adequately investigating. Worrying only about the leak of information, Pound has claimed Armstrong’s financial contributions to UCI to combat doping are just his attempts to buy off cycling authorities. Pound has also claimed that EPO could not appear in samples unless it was there originally, and Pound has further claimed that only the UCI possessed the evidence which implicated Armstrong. Dick Pound is getting really old. He is like the mother of the wildest girl in your senior class who rails against sex, drugs and rock music, apparently oblivious to the conduct of her own children. The louder he screams, the less credibility he has. His actions are a lot like police officers I encountered early in my career as a capital crimes prosecutor. Those individuals take the view that the ends always justify the means and that any one who questions their actions must be soft on crime. It just is not so. We do not have to cut corners to clean up sports.

What is additionally troubling is the fact that this week two Spanish triathletes who had failed urine tests for EPO had their suspensions overturned due to legal questions about the test. They are the second and third triathletes this year to have their suspensions overturned as a result of deficiencies in the urine testing process.

There are several lessons to be learned from this. First, recognize that reporters are always trying to get something. Use reporters before they use you. They are not your friends. Second, if you value your privacy, do not ever waive your right to privacy even if you think it may benefit you. People never want your private information to benefit you, they want it for some nefarious reason. Third, cops are not your friends. At the end of the day, if these tests do show Armstrong took EPO then his own pride is what ultimately caused his downfall.

No Come Back

The other news related during Armstrong’s press conference on how L’Equipe was able to match his samples was his announcement that he would not be coming back. Thank goodness. Glad it is over.

Now this Cyclist is probably Canadian

From the stupid cyclist file is the story out of Eugene, Oregon regarding a cyclist who was observed by police pedaling down the street in the early evening this last Monday with what appeared to be a bush under his arm. It turned out to be three marijuana plants that the cyclist had stolen from an individual who was growing them for “medicinal purposes.” When the cyclist was told to pull over by the police, he did what any rational person would do, he threw his bicycle at the police. He then dropped his stash, and attempted to evade the police on bicycle. He was ultimately apprehended and, it being Oregon, the grower of the “medicinal” marijuana came forward to claim that he had been robbed.

Almost too strange to believe but here is the link.