Lance Armstrong and doping in sport : Fri Oct 12, 2012 11:07 am  

USADA report on Lance Armstrong The evidence shows beyond any doubt that the US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team ran the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen. Wow! Is there any question that anything remotely like such a conspiracy could exist within rugby league? Armstrong stands comprehensively condemned, yet last I heard he was still 100% protesting his innocence. The point is, he underwent so many tests during his career and never failed one. Are the drugs cheats really that good?

USADA report on Lance Armstrong The evidence shows beyond any doubt that the US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team ran the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen. Wow! Is there any question that anything remotely like such a conspiracy could exist within rugby league? Armstrong stands comprehensively condemned, yet last I heard he was still 100% protesting his innocence. The point is, he underwent so many tests during his career and never failed one. Are the drugs cheats really that good?

Re: Lance Armstrong and doping in sport : Fri Oct 12, 2012 12:04 pm  

Ferocious Aardvark wrote:

Is there any question that anything remotely like such a conspiracy could exist within rugby league? Armstrong stands comprehensively condemned, yet last I heard he was still 100% protesting his innocence. The point is, he underwent so many tests during his career and never failed one.

Well, that's probably not true. The French press have campaigned against Armstrong for years and have alleged he's failed tests many times. It seems the scale of the doping scandal went well beyond the team. There is testimony in the report that the team knew when the testers were going to test their team, as if they had inside knowledge. There are also allegations of him failing a test at least once and it being covered up by the authorities.

His protesting his innocence just shows how arrogant he is. He's either the victim of one of the most thorough and sophisticated witch hunt or he's guilty. Given a lot of those testifying against him have had their achievements ruled out, their reputations ruined and been banned from the sport, it seems highly unlikely to be a conspiracy and completely lacking in motive.

As for it existing in RL. It could easily. As with cap breaches, the sport's governing body is so incompetent and disorganised that it would be pretty easy to achieve.

Re: Lance Armstrong and doping in sport : Fri Oct 12, 2012 12:20 pm  

Ferocious Aardvark wrote:

Is there any question that anything remotely like such a conspiracy could exist within rugby league?

I very much doubt that anything on such a scale could happen in RL. But the Gleeson incident didnt paint RL in a good light, perhaps hinted at an inclination to brush bad news under the carpet?

If, hypothetically, it was believed that a number of players from a team had taken a banned substance before a big game, perhaps out of ignorance rather than intent, would the RFL be prepared to expose that? Particularly if some of those players were high profile? I would like to think they would but who knows?

Re: Lance Armstrong and doping in sport : Fri Oct 12, 2012 12:40 pm  

I'm certain something similar could exist in RL or any other sport for that matter, but think it probably doesn't. As I understand it, one of the drugs he was taking naturally occurs in the body anyway and so the taker only needs to avoid testers for a limited time-scale before the levels that would be discovered in any test could be explained away as naturally occurring. This required the complicity of his backroom staff including medical staff.
The reasons why I don't think this happens in RL is that for a start cycling is a far more individual sport, for instance would it make that much difference to Cas if one of their players were taking performance enhancing drugs? Probably not, certainly not enough to warrant taking the risk of getting caught. On the other hand in cycling a small individual improvement could be a huge difference in result. I understand there is a team element to things like the Tour de France (which is why Armstrong apparently encouraged/demanded/forced team members to take too) but its not the same as team sports like RL or football, where also there is more a "skill" element than simple performance.
Also I hereby invoke McLaren/JC's Big Daft Lad Theory. I don't think most rugby league players could organise or keep going some kind of conspiracy like this without it being found out.

I'd also object to the allegation that somehow the RFL are "disorganised" on this issue. RL is one of the most drug tested sports in the world.

Re: Lance Armstrong and doping in sport : Fri Oct 12, 2012 1:07 pm  

Cibaman wrote:

I very much doubt that anything on such a scale could happen in RL. But the Gleeson incident didnt paint RL in a good light, perhaps hinted at an inclination to brush bad news under the carpet?

If, hypothetically, it was believed that a number of players from a team had taken a banned substance before a big game, perhaps out of ignorance rather than intent, would the RFL be prepared to expose that? Particularly if some of those players were high profile? I would like to think they would but who knows?

I might be wrong about this but didn't RFL know that a large number of Hull's team might potentially test postive because Rule rang them up and told them?

I could have remembered that entirely incorrectly.

Edit:

And thinking about it, if I have remembered that correctly, the Hull club proved Mr. McField/Jerry Chicken's theory almost straight away.

Re: Lance Armstrong and doping in sport : Sat Oct 13, 2012 3:02 pm  

The best part of all this is watching Armstrong's former team-mates, who were also doping, trying to make him out to be some evil dictator who forced them to do it.

They had a choice. They chose to put their livelihood and personal wealth ahead of the integrity of their sport. Hearing the likes of Tyler Hamilton attempting to take the moral high ground now is sickening.

Re: Lance Armstrong and doping in sport : Sat Oct 13, 2012 7:31 pm  

Some excellent background info. It appears the Britain's (or more accurately England & Wales) libel laws did much to aid the continual cover up

Some excellent background info. It appears the Britain's (or more accurately England & Wales) libel laws did much to aid the continual cover up