It is stories like these that leave me thinking and feeling like Tooth ...I can't think of anyone who has been more adament about his innocence on testing positive for doping than Tyler Hamilton.
Not even Bad Boy Floyd.
I can remember back in '03 while riding along the Tour de France with Trek Travel with Tooth and Granny just how proud we were of Hamilton's effort and stage win despite a broken collarbone suffered early in the race.
Hamilton, like Landis, is the kind of guy you want to believe -- and believe in.
And then I read this from Deutsche Presse-Agentur:
Spanish authorities have uncovered a diary that reveals that U.S. rider Tyler Hamilton, gold medallist at the 2004 Olympics, actively used EPO, growth hormones, testosterone and insulin on 114 of 200 days during the 2003 season, according to the Danish newspaper Politiken.
The report said the programme of doping described in the diary was so extensive that an entire team of helpers must have been involved.
Hamilton finished fourth in the Tour de France in 2003 when riding for the Danish team CSC, and took gold at the Olympics in Athens a year later.
He tested positive for the stamina-enhancing drug EPO in September 2004 and received a two year ban from the sport.
The doping diary has been uncovered by Spanish police investigating a sports doping ring allegedly run by Spanish doctor Eufemiano Fuentes and said to involve several leading riders.
Team CSC director and former Tour de France winner Bjarne Riis meanwhile denied any knowledge of Hamilton's use of banned substances.
'I'd like to remind people that we were living in hotels and not in prison. When a stage is over, the riders have free time. Then, everyone looks after himself," he said.
A couple comments:
-- Riis's comments are disingenuous at best and insulting at worse. Everyone looks after himself? Indeed.
-- You know what? These guys are guilty until proven innocent.
I paraphrase a little story, compliments of my friend Sal Ruibal, the cycling writer from USA TODAY:
Remember Dave Stoller (Dennis Christopher) from the 1979 movie, "Breaking Away"? Dave is wrapped up in a fantasy world where he's an Italian bike racer. He has an opportunity to race against an Italian cycling team visiting Bloomington, Ind., that he has worshiped from afar. But when he shows that he can keep up with them, naively believing they will admire the purity of his effort, they throw him into a ditch and his fantasy world comes crashing down. "Everybody cheats," he says resignedly.
If you still want to believe, than check out James Raia's open letter to Floyd Landis.
If you want some excellent perspective, then read the New York Times' Harvey Araton's column, "Another Positive Test, Another Test of Faith."
3 comments:
OK, thanks. Always nice to hear a kind word. I'll leave my link to your site, though.
Note to Trust (if you check back):
Sorry I removed your post. I was concerned about the link, but I've checked out your site, and it's a good one. I hope we can cross post from time to time.
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