Lance Armstrong confesses

[NumeroUno]

Most people wanted to be believe the winner of 7 Tour de France titles was clean..

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/1 ... d%3D257123

[ontheblack]

Cycling is the dirtiest sport on the planet. I don't really care if he did or not, the whole tour is corrupt. The guy lost a nut and won 7 times on what was essentially, for cycling, a level playing field. The Euros have always hated any American that was successful in the Tour. Not like you can hand the award down to the next in line, he is just as dirty.
Bottom line the guy, and his story, raised millions of dollars for charity. Nothing was gained by this and much was lost.
Tygart \was on a mission to make a name for himself and his useless USADA.

Agree on all counts but there is one problem - and that is the people Armstrong threw under the bus.

[NumeroUno]

I thought his team mate dumped him under the bus. I haven't followed the whole story

[GIMNEPIWO]

Cycling is the dirtiest sport on the planet. I don't really care if he did or not, the whole tour is corrupt. The guy lost a nut and won 7 times on what was essentially, for cycling, a level playing field. The Euros have always hated any American that was successful in the Tour. Not like you can hand the award down to the next in line, he is just as dirty.
Bottom line the guy, and his story, raised millions of dollars for charity. Nothing was gained by this and much was lost.
Tygart \was on a mission to make a name for himself and his useless USADA.

Agree on all counts but there is one problem - and that is the people Armstrong threw under the bus.

Like who? The snivelers that couldnt compete with him and got tired of living in his shadow?

Like Sosa complaining McGuire juiced ... ... I believe that most sports were dirty during this era ... One giant asterix ... a dam* shame ...

[PDad]

Cycling is the dirtiest sport on the planet. I don't really care if he did or not, the whole tour is corrupt. The guy lost a nut and won 7 times on what was essentially, for cycling, a level playing field. The Euros have always hated any American that was successful in the Tour. Not like you can hand the award down to the next in line, he is just as dirty.
Bottom line the guy, and his story, raised millions of dollars for charity. Nothing was gained by this and much was lost.
Tygart \was on a mission to make a name for himself and his useless USADA.

Nothing gained by this?

How about vindication for all the people Armstrong went after for daring to suggest he was cheating? He ruined Greg LeMond's business after the 3-time Tour winner got suspicious because Armstrong was seeing Dr. Ferrari, a known figure in the doping world. Armstrong also won at least one defamation lawsuit against a newspaper as part of his cover-up.

How about reparations for all the people he damaged (e.g. LeMond, sponsors, etc.)? They deserve far more than a public apology and he has the money ($100 million?) to do it.

The consequences of the cheating (i.e. being stripped of the titles) are minor compared to what in store for him due to the lengthy fraud and cover-up.

[NumeroUno]

who is LeMond?

[GIMNEPIWO]

The cancer that Armstrong had was testicular cancer, right ? ... Isn't testicular cancer a possible side effect from steroid use ? If all that is true ... Isn't the entire 'Livestrong' thing based on a lie / farce ? Or does his work to raise money for cancer awareness & research etc. make the possibility that he brought it on himself, was living a lie and destroying peoples lives ok ?

[NumeroUno]

dad said " He ruined Greg LeMond's business"
how?

[PDad]

Greg LeMond is a three time Tour winner and since Lance has been stripped of titles the only American to win the tour. He won his first then was injured in a hunting accident. Came back a couple years later and won 2 more.
He is also a anti doping advocate which is funny considering cycling is probably the dirtiest sport around.

Spaz beat me to it... Greg was also the first non-European to win the Tour and the face of American cycling before Lance came along.

[PDad]

dad said " He ruined Greg LeMond's business"
how?

Lance used his influence with Trek bikes to terminate their agreement with Greg. BTW, Greg was a pioneer in the carbon fiber frames.

From http://velonews.competitor.com/2013/01/ ... ong_271109:

“[LeMond] said, ‘If Lance’s story is true, it’s the greatest comeback in the history of sport, if it’s not, it’s the greatest fraud,’ and of course that was just raising the question that it might be a fraud,” Walsh told GCN’s Daniel Lloyd. “Armstrong, of course, went insane with anger, and Greg then was vilified by Armstrong, [he] was put under unbelievable pressure.”

Armstrong’s influence led to his bike sponsor, Trek, dropping its support of the LeMond brand it had licensed for 13 years from the three-time Tour winner.

In 2008, Trek president John Burke told the trade magazine Bicycle Retailer and Industry News, “Had all the stars aligned with Lance and Greg, if [LeMond] had kept a positive relationship, [the LeMond brand] would have ended up a $30 [million] to $35 million brand.”

Instead, it wound up a memory.