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With the grand finale of the classics, Liege-Bastogne-Liege, run and won for another year, two major events from the spring stand out for reflection.
Little more than a day prior to the LBL rider presentation, the UCI announced that Michael Rogers’ provisional suspension was lifted. I understand the case was in the hands of WADA, but the UCI would have been relieved at the outcome given the suspect food samples were presented by a UCI delegated provider.
The positive reading for clenbuterol was discovered during a test Rogers gave in a routine control during the Japan Cup last October, but Rogers claimed it was the result of contaminated meat he consumed at the Tour of Beijing five days earlier.
This claim had some credibility, as it’s well known that farming practices in China have led to consumer meat products showing traces of clenbuterol. It also echoed with fans that had become all too familiar with the substance after Alberto Contador’s positive reading for the same drug in 2010.
The lift on his provisional ban last week effectively validated Rogers’ defence and absolved him of facing further penalties.
The contaminated meat saga continues and with more cases cleared the story gains credibility. How did the sample slip between the cracks, find itself on the UCI-sanctioned event menu and only be eaten by a small number of riders?
Many commentators were quick to condemn Rogers at the time, with claims that ‘a professional should be more careful; he deserves what he gets’. This is a shortsighted approach.
Anyone who has attended the Asian professional circuit knows how difficult it is to be self-sufficient, and that the only viable option much of the time is to use the dining hall provided by the event organisers.
The organisers are professionals after all, and should have been able to supply their athletes with food that is not contaminated.
I’m sure there is some relief within the ranks of the sport’s governing body that this case has passed by – we need to look forward not back – however clenbuterol positives will now have case law to support a clearance.
It seems there is little way to determine whether a rider has doped or genuinely been the victim of contamination.
This leaves far too much grey area around an issue that affects the livelihood of both wrongly accused riders, as well as the clean riders who might be at a disadvantage because doping riders found a loophole.
The uncomfortable question on everyone’s lips is, if this one positive has been deemed the result of contaminated meat, then why do we not see more positives at Chinese sporting events?
Furthermore, Contador’s case was eventually deemed by the CAS to be a case of contamination, yet his ban was upheld nonetheless.
One could draw many conclusions from this, but there is no-doubt that some things about it just don’t add up. Doping positives shouldn’t be marked by unnecessary ambiguity, especially in 2014.
On a related note, Rogers’ form at Liege-Bastogne-Liege, his first race for six months, was remarkable. Many have noted just how good he looked on the front of the peloton, driving the pace over the Stockeu and Haute-Levee.
Rogers certainly didn’t look like a rider deprived of racing, and he raised a few eyebrows (including mine) by decimating the field with strength that just didn’t seem normal for a rider just returning to racing.
The difference of intensity between racing and training is huge. I would never have imagined returning from time off to immediately start ripping apart a peloton primed from a classics campaign.
It’s hard to not be overly cynical in the face of unusual performances these days, especially with the haziness surrounding certain doping cases. I really hope that in this instance we saw a great, clean return to racing by Rogers.
On a more positive note, Simon Gerrans continues to impress beyond any expectation!
As Simon matures he never ceases to amaze me. He was very active as a child, playing school sport with his mates and riding motorbikes around the family farm. Motor sport was his passion but a couple of bad “offs” put an end to his Moto dreams.
If it wasn’t for the inclusion of cycling within his rehab program, last weekend’s win in the world’s oldest classic would never have been awarded to an Aussie.
Over the last twenty-four months, Simon has accumulated an impressive collection of trophies. The Liege-Bastogne-Liege will rest as the centrepiece of an expanding poolroom collection.
Simon has hit some monumental targets late in his career. Amstel and LBL have long been in his crosshairs but it was also always going to have to be a perfect race for him given the strength of the fields.
It is interesting to note how the racing style in the classics has changed through the years. During my career (80s to mid 90s), it was always a pretty select group coming to the line with significant time gaps to the field. I can’t recall a large group arriving in the finale like we have seen recently.
Part of this can be put down to individual and team decisions on the road. Course manipulation by the organisers to create suspense and more open racing, such as in the Ronde and LBL, has also changed the outcomes.
I can’t help but think, though, that in this age of radios and clinical tactics, the Merckxs and Hinaults would not have run away with so many wins as they once did. The racing now doesn’t always guarantee that the very strongest champions will always make the race.
This is a double-edged-sword, and there has been much criticism of the 2014 LBL for being a boring race, lacking animation and successful splits and attacks.
Like Simon, I rode LBL just about every year and it became an obsession. However, unlike Simon, I never climbed onto the top step of podium. Regardless of how entertaining this year’s edition was, it was an outstanding win for him personally and a much-needed one for Orica-GreenEDGE.
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