Sympathy for Lance Armstrong (Reds, titles, race, athletes)
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He was somewhat of a hero of mine, its tough to see him destroyed for just doing what every one else was doing.
Although the evidence looks compelling he still hasnt had a trial to confirm his guilt, and its kinda a shame for all those that benefited from his cancer program as that will probably disappear as well.
Everyone else was not doing it. This is the very last line of rationalization left to the fanboys, after years of denial of the obvious. Let me give you the name of a clean rider who was absolutely capable of winning the Tour against other riders playing it clean: David Moncoutie. Winner of stages at the Tour and Vuelta. Four-time king of the mountains at the Vuelta. Top 15 finishes in the Tour.
There, you have one guy who was cheated out of wins by Armstrong and Ullrich and the rest. I can give you others. Would you like some others who rode clean?
Lance is being singled out like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens got singled out.......remember the rule of thumb, its ok to cheat as long as you're not great. Most average citizens couldnt name you ONE other bike racer. Lance Armstrong is the only guy most people have heard of in the cycling world, especially in America. Plenty of other cyclers cheated, but since they didnt actually win, they get a pass. Cheating is cheating whether you win or finish last, tough break to be the only guy singled out.
Like 99% of the people who weigh in on this, you have no idea what you're talking about. For years and years, it was the domestiques and also-rans getting busted within the sport. Armstrong got away with at least two positives through pay-offs and intimidation.
I don't weigh in on hockey or baseball because I don't like either and I don't follow either. It would keep things a lot less messy if the folks who know nothing about cycling would save the pontifications for their NFL talk or the blessed politics board where knowing nothing makes you more popular.
Everyone else was not doing it. This is the very last line of rationalization left to the fanboys, after years of denial of the obvious. Let me give you the name of a clean rider who was absolutely capable of winning the Tour against other riders playing it clean: David Moncoutie. Winner of stages at the Tour and Vuelta. Four-time king of the mountains at the Vuelta. Top 15 finishes in the Tour.
There, you have one guy who was cheated out of wins by Armstrong and Ullrich and the rest. I can give you others. Would you like some others who rode clean?
Give it up.
And how do you know he was clean? In the face of overwhelming evidence that no one was clean? The sport is/was dirty. Does that justify being dirty as well, no. I agree it's a poor rationalization and justification for bad choices. However that's what riders did and continue to do. Why? Because it works.
Cycling is about as dirty of a sport as one will find outside of boxing and the olympics in general.
I have a really hard time caring what happens with armstrong, the sport etc. when it was clearly dirty as heck. I'm just not into wasting my time on a sham.
Armstrong is a cheater, liar, fake pr*ck whose only goal was his narcisstic con of us all....for MONEY and PRESTIGE.
Even IF "everyone" is doing doping, it takes a narcissist to stoop to that low of deception.... better NOT to bike at all than to do so and win under the ugliest of ways. They have NO INTEGRITY. He and all the rest of the failures, from baseball to biking, are among the most despicable of us, because:
CHILDREN (and the rest of us) look up to these "athletes", set their own goals based on the "success" of their idols.......Nothing worse than being a sham in the eyes of a kid. And rightfully so... their dreams smashed, hearts broken.
He (and ALL the rest) deserves NO compassion at all....only if he would work dilligently to wipe out doping in the biking world could he get a 1% of understanding out of 100% from me.
I don't care about him cheating as much as I do about him being a disgustingly arrogant man who basically tried to crush everybody who truthfully implicated him as a cheater all while continuing to bask in his facade as some kind of virtuous hero.
Rick Reilly can go to hell for slurping him all of these years too.
but how do you really feel about it, gbh? Let it out.
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