From cyclingnews.com
"The editor-in-chief of French sports daily L’Equipe has denied that his paper is engaged on a “witch-hunt” against seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong.
“If Armstrong was a Frenchman and we had seen the same data, we would do the same thing,” Claude Droussent told French TV station LCI."
They definitely would have looked… It has nothing to do with LA’s nationality but with his prominence. When you’re #1, there is a lot more scrutiny.
Cheers,
Alex
They definitely would have looked… It has nothing to do with LA’s nationality but with his prominence. When you’re #1, there is a lot more scrutiny.
Cheers,
Alex
Right, then, why haven’t they reported the names of the others who tested positive in their “investigation”? It is a witch hunt and attempt at character assasination and is most likely undertaken to sell papers a la Hearst. jaune journalism.
I don’t get the witch hunt theory…
What makes you think that a race director, Jean-Marie Leblanc, would want to tarnish his event, the Tour de France, with having its most famous and most recent winner exposed as a cheat?
What makes you think that L’Equipe, who is owned by the same holding (Amaury Sport) as the Tour de France, would want this event to be turned into ridicule? Remember that the Tour de France’s reputation was nearly ruined in 1998 when so many teams were either pulled out of the competition (or subsequently pulled themselves out) for doping charges?
Take the following, closer to home, fictitious example: replace Amaury by NASCAR, l’Equipe by Nascar Magazine, Tour de France by Indianapolis 500, and Armstrong by Weldon (2005 winner). Would it make any more sense?
Last but not least, believe it or not, French people actually do like Lance Armstrong (so do the Germans, and Italians, and Spanish, etc.). Why would they hate him anyway?
Cheers,
Alex
If 14 positive results come out, 6 with the same number while the other 8 belong to 8 different people, it could explain why they would focus on the case with 6 positive samples, no?
BULLSHIT Frank…
Lance isn’t getting any more crap from l’Equipe than any other top athlete who’s suspected of doping…Virenque was assassinated by l’Equipe during 2 years until he admitted…As a matter of fact the whole Festina team was demolished.
some football players too…
If 14 positive results come out, 6 with the same number while the other 8 belong to 8 different people, it could explain why they would focus on the case with 6 positive samples, no?
No. Why not just report the findings, all of the names? Did they ever go back and question Hinault’s victories or Ullrich’s or Pantani’s? Why did they choose 1998 alone? I question their motives.
Frank
BULLSHIT Frank…
Lance isn’t getting any more crap from l’Equipe than any other top athlete who’s suspected of doping…Virenque was assassinated by l’Equipe during 2 years until he admitted…As a matter of fact the whole Festina team was demolished.
some football players too…
So, who are the others?
Geeee…it’s like talking about infinite sets all over again…
You BET they questioned Pantani and Ullrich’s wins…Pantani after returning a really high hematocrit in the Giro 99 was not treated nicely by l’Equipe.
L’Equipe has also always suggested that Ullrich being an ex-east german, was likely using the ‘old school approach’ and his weight problems were related to corticoid use…
Hinault was also accused several times…
But tell me Frank…How many times in your whole life did you read l’Equipe??
Ah…ok…that’s what I thought…
if the 8 others are all different athletes, then they have the benefit of the doubt obviously because there is only one sample per athlete…now if one guy gives 6 samples that are positive, then you may want to reconsider the benefit of the doubt…
“Did they ever go back and question Hinault’s victories or Ullrich’s or Pantani’s? Why did they choose 1998 alone? I question their motives.”
Who is they?
I may be naive, but I don’t think the lab has any motive in focusing on any specific year. You can question Le Monde’s motives but the fact that Le Monde may have an agenda against Lance does not explain how 6 of his samples test positive for EPO.