Landis Proven Guilty - Just In
It appears that synthetic testosterone has been found in the urine samples of Floyd Landis. There is no way that the synthetic stuff could be there naturally. He is now set to be the first winner in TdF history to have his title taken away for drug use.
"On Monday The New York Times reported that the same test found evidence of the illegal substance in Landis's system."
http://www.kusa.com/acm_news.aspx?OS...7-c589c01ca7bf
Its a shame that Landis had to lie about doping, but that's another thread!
Yes, it looks bad, and yet...
I have to say the release of the NYT story does make things look pretty grim for Landis. According to wire reports, the results of the B sample should be in by Saturday.
The thing that still doesn't make any sense to me is why Landis (and his staff of cutting edge sports professionals) would risk all by using an easily detected substance that would have no signficant immediate effect on his riding, in an environment such as the Tour where he knew he was likely to be tested.
A new twist in all of this is the latest claim of American sprinter Justin Gatlin (and coach Trevor Graham), who recently failed a drug test in a similar fashion to Landis. He maintains that a vengeful massage therapist rubbed a banned testosterone cream on him without his knowledge:
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-...adlines-sports
Now I know it would be easy to dismiss this as Gatlin making up far flung excuses, but in my mind it is also easy to see this actually happening.
FWIW, in addition to its rich tradition, the Tour de France also has an infamous history of all types of folks trying to sabatoge various riders and teams with tainted food and drink as well as planting damning evidence for officials or media to find.
It sure would be nice just to know the truth...
Re: Landis Proven Guilty - Just In
Quote:
FWIW, in addition to its rich tradition, the Tour de France also has an infamous history of all types of folks trying to sabatoge various riders and teams with tainted food and drink as well as planting damning evidence for officials or media to find.
I am fairly certain that testosterone can not be ingested with food or drink. The stomach acid destroys it. It is most often injected under the skin or through a skin patch. Could a massage therapist "rub it in"? Maybe, but highly unlikely.
Much more damning than the use of illegal drugs are the lies that Landis has been telling. If this story pans out as true, the damage to Landis' credability will be far greater than the damage to his career.