CBC’s The National featured an investigative report on doping in professional cycling. Cycle of Denial looked into reports of doping/cheating my Floyd Landis, last year’s Tour de France “winner” and by perennial cycling champion Lance Armstrong.
My biases: cycling is by far my favourite sport, its the only professional sport I follow in the media and I watch the Tour de France every summer. I am a big fan of American Tour winners Greg Lemond and Lance Armstrong; my road bike is a Centurion – Lemond model. I have read Armstrong’s book “It’s Not About the Bike”, have worn one of his yellow bracelets to fund cancer research and want to believe his denials that doping was a factor in his Tour wins.
The CBC report, clearly intended to portray the worst about cycling (note the segment title) but in the end was little more than a “he said vs he said” expose. No new evidence was introduced aside from some sworn evidence from a former Armstrong team-mate before a US Congressional hearing. Frankie Andreu claimed to have heard Armstrong admit to drug use when he was diagnosed with cancer and that is what he testified. But Armstrong also testified under oath that he has never doped. Andreu admits he is on the “outside” in professional cycling for reasons of his criticism of other riders and champions. Is he the honest one or an embittered second tier rider?
The report also interviewed Floyd Landis about his 2006 Tour de France “win”, which is under dispute as a result of a positive doping test. Why this hasn’t been resolved six months later was not discussed except indirectly in a reference to Landis’ participation in the 2007 professional circuit depends on a hearing by the regulating authority in the spring. Landis denied he doped to achieve his spectacular win last summer and stated the truth will come out.
Finally. Dick Pound was trotted out to promote Dick Pound and tell viewers that all sport is suspect. Nothing new from him.
On the basis of the material presented in the report, the CBC proved nothing, except that it will use controversy to attempt to draw an audience for The National during what is usually a quiet news week in early January. A lot of noise but very little light.
My biases: cycling is by far my favourite sport, its the only professional sport I follow in the media and I watch the Tour de France every summer. I am a big fan of American Tour winners Greg Lemond and Lance Armstrong; my road bike is a Centurion – Lemond model. I have read Armstrong’s book “It’s Not About the Bike”, have worn one of his yellow bracelets to fund cancer research and want to believe his denials that doping was a factor in his Tour wins.
The CBC report, clearly intended to portray the worst about cycling (note the segment title) but in the end was little more than a “he said vs he said” expose. No new evidence was introduced aside from some sworn evidence from a former Armstrong team-mate before a US Congressional hearing. Frankie Andreu claimed to have heard Armstrong admit to drug use when he was diagnosed with cancer and that is what he testified. But Armstrong also testified under oath that he has never doped. Andreu admits he is on the “outside” in professional cycling for reasons of his criticism of other riders and champions. Is he the honest one or an embittered second tier rider?
The report also interviewed Floyd Landis about his 2006 Tour de France “win”, which is under dispute as a result of a positive doping test. Why this hasn’t been resolved six months later was not discussed except indirectly in a reference to Landis’ participation in the 2007 professional circuit depends on a hearing by the regulating authority in the spring. Landis denied he doped to achieve his spectacular win last summer and stated the truth will come out.
Finally. Dick Pound was trotted out to promote Dick Pound and tell viewers that all sport is suspect. Nothing new from him.
On the basis of the material presented in the report, the CBC proved nothing, except that it will use controversy to attempt to draw an audience for The National during what is usually a quiet news week in early January. A lot of noise but very little light.
