Most of the posts on this blog involve running, but with such a huge impact in endurance sports, the abundance of news and controversy surrounding Lance Armstrong has left me with more questions and even fewer answers.
I’m not capable of stating whether someone did or did not do something. I have no idea. Sure, I’ve seen all the articles written about the reports and seen the tweets and Facebook shares that are almost (now) synonymous with news and statements (depending on the source).
Short of an admission of guilt, not one implied, is the ONLY real way we would know. Sad that a declaration of innocence doesn’t carry the same weight.
That is why this post is simple questions. I don’t have the correct answers, very few people do. Just simple questions that many of us are probably also wondering.
Question Time:
Did Lance Armstrong use performance enhancing drugs?
If so, for how long?
If he did not, how can we ever believe his innocence when the sport is filled with top place finishers found “dirty?”
Is the creation of his foundation, Livestrong, enough to give him a pass in the court of public opinion?
If he saved just one life or inspired just one person, does it make it worth it?
Is this another case of a really good athlete, made really great by PEDs?
Is everything he has done since his last Tour de France win (foundation, riding as a team member, triathlete) his way of repentance?
If he DID NOT cheat, how do you prove that something didn’t happen?
Let’s imagine someone asked you to prove you ran your last race. Could you?
Garmin? That could be manipulated.
Photos? That can be photoshopped.
Ran with a friend? They’re lying.
Chip time? Easily faked.
Seen on course? You were driven there.
Becomes difficult, right?
Is there any way that we will be 100% certain, one way or the other?
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I am shocked but I’m not shocked – it could go either way eh?
It’s a shame that he felt he had to resort to PED’s. I think he was an incredibly gifted athlete that was made even greater with PED’s. As much as I love the sport of cycling, I really think that there needs to be 1) more accountability and 2) a ZERO tolerance rule. None of this slap on the wrist, 6 month suspension crap. You dope, you’re OUT. Period.
I do think the evidence against him is pretty damning though. 11 of his teammates testified against him, and each one of them admitted to doping (apparently being forced into it by Armstrong himself), thus ruining their own reputations in the sport. Why on earth would anyone do that unless it was true?
At this point, I really don’t care. It sucks that he could have done it, especially for those who looked up to him, but all I think about him if he did do it, is that he made a stupid choice that will mark him as a cheater for the rest of his life. But I also can’t pretend to know what it’s like to work that hard for so long and need to out-push the competition by fractions of a second in some situations, and just how badly those riders want it that they will do anything to get the edge. Especially if ultimately, they still feel it’s their honest, hard work that got them there to begin with.
My husband has been following this story for weeks now. I think that 5th question is a good one. If i were him, i’d be ready just to give it up and go on with life.
Great questions raised. Only one thing I know for certain is that the Livestrong Foundation has touched many, including mine. For that, I’m grateful.
SO SAD! I love Lance! He is the original darwinian fail, and a HUGE inspiration. And I think unfortunately with all the medical records and etc that have come to light, it is pretty clear that yes he did cheat…sigh. I will still always have a soft spot for lance though, and he’ll always be the face of LiveStrong in my eyes.
I don’t think we will ever know the full story. I feel bad for his family who have to listen to it from all angles as well. I am thankful that he has brought attention to all cancers and healthy living.
Oh boy. I’m not sure I even want to comment about this. Might take a stab at it.
I’m shocked, yes. I try not to look at elite athletes and question whether their ability is enhanced by drugs. I look at them as sources of inspiration and motivation, and most times it’s strictly in terms of fitness. Sometimes I find them inspiring because of their involvement in charity as well. Example: Lance. There has been no admission of guilt and it IS sad that because of everything that’s happened in the past, we cannot strictly “believe him”. Once the finger has been pointed, the doubt sets in.
The way I see it, though, is that while it’s upsetting to hear of his fall and to see another addition to the list of doping athletes…who’s suffering here? Us? No. Sure, we’re shocked. But the one suffering is Lance. Whether it’s because he truly IS innocent and his reputation’s been tarnished or because he’s guilty and duped himself out of the REAL glory of his accomplishments, he’s the one suffering.
I think that, in terms of being guilty, he’s probably fully aware that he’s “faked” his way to victory. (Sorta like the people who win marathons only to find out they hitched a ride from mile 3 to mile 25.) Athletes that use drugs only cheat themselves out of the true sense of accomplishment. How do you hold seven titles and NOT think about how you really got there whether innocently or not? Cheating myself out of the real glory would kill me more than losing out on sponsorships or titles. (Thank God I’m a slow runner…no performance enhancing drugs needed for that. lol If I suddenly pass Kara Goucher, you can question me then. ;))
As far as Livestrong…WHOLE separate entity. Charity is charity, and it shouldn’t suffer because of what’s going on. His intentions with Livestrong are still there…and if anything, I think the charity needs our support more now than ever. To separate charity from competition…SO important.
(Did I make sense? lol)
very well said.
Ugh…this topic frustrates me. I’m sticking with the innocent until proven guilty, it’s crazy to me how many accusations people can get away with and still not have proof. It can destroy a person and we don’t know one way or the other. I have no idea if he did it or not, but I’m going with didn’t until there’s proof otherwise.
I don’t even know where to begin with this – I’m a huge Lance fan and want to think the best of him, but…..
“If he saved just one life or inspired just one person, does it make it worth it?” – great question! Probably the one I struggle with the most.
I think it is sad that someone’s reply can’t be just accepted as it is…..but it is also so hard to beleive when there is so much against….it is just a cruel twisted world anymore. Scares me for my kids sake.
Good progression of questions. I believe at this point, he’s kind of done. Even if they somehow do prove that he is “innocent” there are ALWAYS going to be people who disagree or view him differently. So I guess it’s on him personally whether he cares what the public thinks of him at that point. Interesting!
When I tell you that I believed in him until the bitter end, I mean it–I loved him. But the evidence is really irrefutable–even his ex-wife was helping out. I can’t stand the whole thing.
Does it make me hate him, though? No, but I’m incredibly disappointed. My biggest relief is that he raced here at the Half Full on Oct. 7–a few days before the affidavits were released. He came here to help raise the profile of the race, which funds the Ulman Cancer Fund–something near and dear to my heart. It’s a local charity that does SO much for young adults with cancer. They had a 200-participant spike when it was announced he came. Good stuff. I doubt that would have happened if all this came out before the race.
What a mess!
I feel bad for Lance, he is not the first sports person to take or “not take” drugs. I think overall he has done a lot and it should not change the way people view his foundation.
I really wish it wasn’t true but the evidence is getting worse and worse. I think doping is the every single sport out there now. Cycling is just getting hit the hardest. Lance has done wonderful things for cancer research and awareness. I’m most saddened by the loss of the $$ that his name brings in to events.
Great questions- I agree completely. I’m very disspointed that Livestrong will suffer for this when he has done wonderful things for cancer research. The 5th question is so tough.
From my understanding, and I’ve been following this story for a while — not because of Lance himself, but because his foundation helped me when I was ill, so I have huge respect for the LIVESTRONG organization as a whole. I would be 160 grand in debt if it wasn’t for them..I’m still in medical debt, but no where near as steep, thanks to them. that’s neither here nor there though.
There is evidence saying he failed one test. Evidence saying he has passed every single one since then. I don’t and probably will never know what the truth is, unless he comes out and tells us he was doping. But, I do give him huge props for walking away when one of LIVESTRONGs Biggest sponsors decided to sever ties. At least he put the well being of the organization over his own pride.
I will also say I’m disappointed this means he most likely wont be running the LIVESTRONG austin marathon.. Regardless of his doping he was an inspiration. NO denying that. It would have been an incredible experience to have run a marathon he was running. Even if he probably would finish while I’m on mile 6 ;)
I’m so sad that everything went down the way it did regarding Lance Armstrong. Unfortunately I really think he did use illegal PED. Which is such a shame because as bad as that is he has done a lot of good for the world. I have such mixed feelings.
I have a hunch that many more professional athletes use PED than we are willing to admin. Some get caught, most do not. I don’t think cycling is any worse than any other sport in this regard.
One more question…why do we idolize our athletes to the point where we are so crushed when we find out they did wrong?
I’m ignoring the “media hype” – I still believe he is an amazing athlete. On the topic of cheating a race… Have you heard about “marathon man”? ( a very interesting story recently in the New Yorker – find it on their website)
I was thinking of the same questions that you posed at the very end. How do I prove, how OR whether, I even ran my last race ?
Coming from a life threatening CANCER, how much could have PED’s boosted your performance ?? You are already living on medication, so you need more than PED’s, to perform at that level.
Additionally, his LIVESTRONG foundation, has definitely benefitted millions worldwide. People have gained immense hope just from the life of Lance.
Why don’t we just take the good things from Lance’s life, and move on ?
I also don’t even know where to begin with this. I really really wanted to believe in him, to believe in the story. While I don’t necessarily think that he’s the best person in the world, he did provide so much hope – to those individuals and families whose lives have been touched by cancer and to athletes in general. More than anything, I’m disappointed because that hope has been squashed and I feel like that hurts more than if he was Floyd Landis or any of the other of numerous pro cyclists who doped.
I think that your question, “If he saved just one life or inspired just one person, does it make it worth it?” gets at the crux of it.
i feel a lot like misszippy. I really believed him and it’s a bummer all this evidence just keeps coming out…I am not really taking a stand because I don’t want it to be the truth :)
This whole situation is upsetting/frustrating. I like your questions as I have a lot of the same myself.
When I see stars fall from grace like this, it makes me wonder if the pressure in the limelight is to intense. Is riches really worth the price many pay for being famous. See if you can give me one star that has escaped totally running their lives in the ditch.
It is a decision they made themselves. Only very few stars are actually pushed in that direction. To the contrary, many seek stardom and in my opinion it is a certain type of personality that does that.
Hi, someone told me to check out your blog so here I am. The Lance topic is an important one to me so I thought I’d opine.
Pro cycling was (and unfortunately may still be to some degree) an arms race for years. It only took one to dope (the drug du jour doesn’t matter) and the entire peleton followed suit, just to stay competitive. I’m not saying this is right, I’m just saying it’s the way it is.
I’m a massive cycling fan, so the choice I had to make was to accept what happened and move on. I like to think that I’ve always had a good sense of fair play and thus have been against cheating in any form since I was a kid. But I can forgive too, and that’s what I’ve done.
But I’ve lost all respect for Lance. Not because of the doping but because of everything else that happened around his attempt to cover it up – the bullying, the arrogance, all of it. Guys like David Millar and Tyler Hamilton came clean in what I consider an honorable way. Not Lance – his ego, attitude, whatever you want to call it, caused him to dig in and make it so the truth had to be dragged out in a long, overly public and painful way. And I just think this is irresponsible of him, given (and to your point) given all the net good he’s done. Public opinion is fickle and tends to be polarized – it will take Livestrong awhile to get all the goodwill back.
And the other half of this is how incredibly inconsistent the response has been. But I guess that’s what happens when the UCI, WAD, CAS + each country’s governing bodies gets to weigh in – confusion, finger pointing and embarrassment for everyone involved.
Let’s put it this way – it would have been impossible for something this long-term and endemic to happen in the NFL or MLB…