We realize that in the world of professional cycling, you're not cool unless you accuse Lance Armstrong of cheating. At a certain point, however, we have to say that if everyone's saying it, it must be true. Right? That's logical, right? We just love bandwagons.
Tyler Hamilton, a former teammate of Armstrong, is the latest to pile on the seven-time Tour de France champ. Hamilton made his accusation on 60 Minutes, which is a show that people over the age of 60 watch and which only makes an impact on mainstream media when somebody like Tyler Hamilton says he saw Lance Armstrong doping. The extent of Hamilton's claim is that Armstrong took erythropoieten (EPO, a favorite blood booster among cyclists), testosterone, and blood transfusions.
Of course, Armstrong denies all of this and points to his long history of clean drug tests as evidence, which certainly helps his case. Armstrong's team also points out the fact that Hamilton wants a book deal to support their claim that he's a dirty rotten liar. But which of these scenarios is more likely: a) Lance Armstrong used PEDs in a sport littered with PEDs and won seven Tours de France because he kept up with the competition, or b) Lance Armstrong is such a superior athlete that even with his closest competitors taking all sorts of drugs, Armstrong was able to beat them year after year? We're going with 'b.'
Our second point, however, is that whether or not Armstrong took PEDs is irrelevant. We have already established that many cyclists take PEDs; would knowing that Armstrong took PEDs diminish his accomplishments? Yes, certainly to a degree it would, but if we take idealism out of the equation, winnning SEVEN STRAIGHT Tours de France is a pretty f*cking impressive feat. Armstrong could have had horse lungs and a baboon heart transplanted into his body, and it stillwould have been impressive. Many riders don't even finish the Tour de France, let alone compete for a win. Armstrong is still one of the most talented athletes ever. At least in our book he is.
Tyler Hamilton, a former teammate of Armstrong, is the latest to pile on the seven-time Tour de France champ. Hamilton made his accusation on 60 Minutes, which is a show that people over the age of 60 watch and which only makes an impact on mainstream media when somebody like Tyler Hamilton says he saw Lance Armstrong doping. The extent of Hamilton's claim is that Armstrong took erythropoieten (EPO, a favorite blood booster among cyclists), testosterone, and blood transfusions.
Our second point, however, is that whether or not Armstrong took PEDs is irrelevant. We have already established that many cyclists take PEDs; would knowing that Armstrong took PEDs diminish his accomplishments? Yes, certainly to a degree it would, but if we take idealism out of the equation, winnning SEVEN STRAIGHT Tours de France is a pretty f*cking impressive feat. Armstrong could have had horse lungs and a baboon heart transplanted into his body, and it stillwould have been impressive. Many riders don't even finish the Tour de France, let alone compete for a win. Armstrong is still one of the most talented athletes ever. At least in our book he is.
