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The Tour de France With Drugs?

Posted: 13 Feb 2014, 12:14am
by Jughead
I need to admit that I'm not a fan of the TdF. However i recently saw the film with Lance Armstrong and his so called cheating. They use the word drugs and all of its negative conotations but it seemed to me that it was scientists being clever with improving human performance. They would cycle at altitude which produced blood they would take and later inject back in a race and give an advantage. No drugs. It would give the extra couple of percent that would make a difference.

This accounts for a small percentage of the effort required to win the TdF. It makes a small difference this so called cheating.

After watching the film, rather than despising Armstrong I was impressed at his work ethic.

Re: The Tour de France With Drugs?

Posted: 13 Feb 2014, 8:44am
by rualexander
There were 'drugs' involved as well as blood transfusions.
e.g. EPO http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erythropoietin

Re: The Tour de France With Drugs?

Posted: 13 Feb 2014, 9:14am
by iviehoff
Back in the 19th century, to train for a sporting contest was considered rather ungentlemanly. To some extent, once you have special diets, special clothes (esp swimming), altitude training, special equipment (which many sports then try to put a lid on to prevent it becoming a technical contest), etc, then techniques like re-transfusing your own blood seem but a very small logical progression, and drugs not so much more. In athletics they've got themselves in an awful tangle with (the terrible mistake of) letting Pistorius run with those blades - Pistorius isn't so special as an athlete and others are coming along who with such equipment will beat "able-bodied" athletes; is it legal to amputate and wear the blades, or do you have to have had a "genuine" accident/disease/deformity, because you will run faster after amputation. Perhaps at this point we realise that there does have to be a line drawn somewhere.

Re: The Tour de France With Drugs?

Posted: 13 Feb 2014, 11:41am
by Psamathe
I used to live in France (returned to UK 5 years ago) and even one year the TdF went through our local town. Everybody loved it but was absolutely clear in that they regarded it as a competition between pharmaceutical companies, not riders. Maybe things have changed more recently but I suspect that even if things are better, the "locals" have not yet changed their opinions.

(Just recounting my experience here as I don't really follow the TdF and have no personal opinion)

Ian

Re: The Tour de France With Drugs?

Posted: 13 Feb 2014, 4:12pm
by Mick F
Yes, it's a fine line between equipment and training, and drugs and enhancements.

Re: The Tour de France With Drugs?

Posted: 22 Feb 2014, 11:18am
by Tizme
The point with Lance Armstrong is that he maintained throughout his career he did not use drugs, he sued people who suggested it, he spent a large amount of money ensuring failed drug tests disappeared and made a very large fortune out of being a "clean" cyclist. Read David Walshs' "7 Deadly Sins" and you may change your opinion and I was a Lance fan for many years.

Re: The Tour de France With Drugs?

Posted: 3 Mar 2014, 11:54am
by TrevA
Tyler Hamilton virtually bankrupted himself, trying to defend his good name in the courts, but all the time he knew that he'd been blood-doping and taking drugs. I think riders do it for so long, they no longer see it as cheating.

Re: The Tour de France With Drugs?

Posted: 9 Mar 2014, 11:24pm
by pete75
iviehoff wrote: In athletics they've got themselves in an awful tangle with (the terrible mistake of) letting Pistorius run with those blades - Pistorius isn't so special as an athlete and others are coming along who with such equipment will beat "able-bodied" athletes; is it legal to amputate and wear the blades, or do you have to have had a "genuine" accident/disease/deformity, because you will run faster after amputation. Perhaps at this point we realise that there does have to be a line drawn somewhere.


Not bothered about him being in the running races just don't let him anywhere near the shooting...

Re: The Tour de France With Drugs?

Posted: 1 Apr 2014, 5:34pm
by whiskywheels
Jughead wrote:I need to admit that I'm not a fan of the TdF. However i recently saw the film with Lance Armstrong and his so called cheating. They use the word drugs and all of its negative conotations but it seemed to me that it was scientists being clever with improving human performance. They would cycle at altitude which produced blood they would take and later inject back in a race and give an advantage. No drugs. It would give the extra couple of percent that would make a difference.

This accounts for a small percentage of the effort required to win the TdF. It makes a small difference this so called cheating.

After watching the film, rather than despising Armstrong I was impressed at his work ethic.



It's good to read something sensible on this subject at last.

Re: The Tour de France With Drugs?

Posted: 1 Apr 2014, 5:54pm
by jezer
I'm sure Armstrong was dedicated and trained hard to achieve what he did. What I find unforgivable is that he used the cancer ticket to make a fortune whilst cheating. That alone did great detriment to cycling in the minds of the general public :?