Roar Guru
Joined February 2013
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My goal is to be the first middle aged stagiare in pro cycling, either that or win a C grade club race. Probably the club race.
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To most fans watching Australia's Olympic athletes on the telly, it's all about the sport. Elite athletes doing what they're very good at. Unfortunately…
On Friday evening Rio time, Great Britain’s track pursuit team beat Australia to take the gold medal. Both teams broke the world record, with…
On Thursday, it was revealed that rising British road cycling star, Olympic prospect and Orica-GreenEDGE professional team member Simon Yates had tested positive for…
As a footy and cycling fan, I'm genuinely sympathetic to how devastating the CAS verdict must be to the Essendon players. However, like many…
This year's Tour de France - taken out by Sky Racing's Chris Froome - was defined by a number of key stages, attacks and…
Having read a number of articles of late on Essendon's alleged use of proscribed substances – specifically Thymosin Beta 4 – I thought it…
I have two confessions: the first is that I'm fascinated with the psychology of doping in sport - both that of the athletes who…
Largely missed by the mainstream media, last night saw what is arguably the climax to the ongoing drama that has been Operacion Puerto, the…
As a cycling tragic, I want the sport to be cleaned up. And I am very dubious about claims that, having dispatched of Lance,…
I can’t see any comments since half time break. Not updating on my Chrome browser.
I’m not missing much, unfortunately.
Australian Boomers vs Serbia highlights: Rio Olympics Men's Basketball semi-final scores, blog, result
It’s not over but Boomers will need to rediscover their form and dominate the 2nd half from the whistle to bring this one back
Australian Boomers vs Serbia highlights: Rio Olympics Men's Basketball semi-final scores, blog, result
That air shot looked almost like a pass! Serbia can do no wrong. No boxing out by Boomers 🙁
Australian Boomers vs Serbia highlights: Rio Olympics Men's Basketball semi-final scores, blog, result
This is slipping away from the Boomers
Australian Boomers vs Serbia highlights: Rio Olympics Men's Basketball semi-final scores, blog, result
I take it back. They are looking shakey now.
Australian Boomers vs Serbia highlights: Rio Olympics Men's Basketball semi-final scores, blog, result
Boomers look solid. Shots not dropping but that happens. They are still playing, the points will come.
Australian Boomers vs Serbia highlights: Rio Olympics Men's Basketball semi-final scores, blog, result
Good connected couple of plays there by the Boomers. They aren’t panicking.
Australian Boomers vs Serbia highlights: Rio Olympics Men's Basketball semi-final scores, blog, result
Too many forced shots. As Drewy Gaze said, keep their structure, patience, don’t force the offence.
Australian Boomers vs Serbia highlights: Rio Olympics Men's Basketball semi-final scores, blog, result
Good pickup. The difference is that Sun Yang isn’t competing against a bunch of fellow dopers. I suspect. I admit this is pretty subjective!
Would it really matter if Usain Bolt was a cheat?
I’d say there’s an important difference between observing something as reality and justifying it.
Australian swimmers banned from closing ceremony
In fairness to Kitty, that’s arguably her job. The problem may well be misguided or unrealistic expectations put on her. This is how the nanny state evolves. People are given responsibilities to oversee something, then they feel pressure to ensure nothing goes wrong on their watch. The result is oppressive management and nanny-stating. The solution is to counsel the person (Chiller) on reasonable bounds of her role – communicating to her that they won’t be burnt at the stake for letting athletes out at night to party, say. But that requires a bit of courage in itself, as the person giving that direction then assumes some responsibility. And they often don’t have that courage.
Australian swimmers banned from closing ceremony
How can we expect our swimmers to have the maturity and wisdom to overcome the enormous pressure of expectation on them to win gold medals, yet at the same time tell them they are basically big kids who can’t be trusted on their own and they’ve been naughty before, no more chances. It’s curfew from now on young boys and girls. Oh, but in the pool you’ll be world beaters.
There’s something very wrong here.
Australian swimmers banned from closing ceremony
As an avid cycling fan, I would argue that the Tour de France is cleaner now. No way is it totally clean. But the UCI, after many years of sweeping the dirt under the rug, has finally understood that the way forward is to actually try and stop doping. And they’ve made progress.
Athletics, like many or most other sports, is definitely still in sweeping mode. The American pro sports don’t even bother sweeping.
Would it really matter if Usain Bolt was a cheat?
Firstly, you’ve got to split road and track. On the road at senior level, it’s a competition between elite pros. They operate outside the Winning Edge program. At the junior level, CA’s development program is influential. But there’s no junior Olympics. Those junior World Champs medals don’t cross over to the Olympics.
Mountain biking is the same – it’s a pro event at the Olympics. You can’t throw $20k at it and develop a champ. You won’t get close.
The major opportunity for bagging cycling medals at the Olympics is on the track and BMX. Traditionally, these are 2nd tier cycling events where a well-funded, dedicated program of talent-identification and training can yield results. But it’s getting harder. As others have pointed out, British Cycling have professionalised track cycling. There are no easy medals on offer any more. The Australian track pursuit team’s performance was absolutely world class, what would have been a world record time ride – except that the Brits did even better.
If you want value-for-money medals, invest in Archery. Or synchronised swimming. They don’t come easily in cycling anymore.
Swimming made a bigger splash, but our cyclists need a blowtorch too
Instead of leading the Australian team out of stadium for the closing ceremony, she had a long march back to the team base the next morning.
Australian swimmers banned from closing ceremony
Armstrong was paid handsomely for his appearances at the Tour Down Under! I wouldn’t feel too much gratitude towards him there.
I don’t know if Bolt is doping, but I doubt you can tell from his muscles or sprinting style. Carl Lewis didn’t look like a steroid junkie but he was caught anyway.
Would it really matter if Usain Bolt was a cheat?
Yeah sure, I think you’re right. But to do what Armstrong and other elite champions do – in Lance’s case 6 hours a day training, you need to be a pretty weird person. They’re all freaks. It’s unreasonable to expect them to be nice, balanced people.
Would it really matter if Usain Bolt was a cheat?
That’s true. But I’m also saying that as a pure sporting endeavour, his victories are not much tarnished by being caught doping. Lance’s achievements – the steps he had to take in winning 7 straight Tours – remain highly remarkable. I think Glenn is implying similar for Bolt in this article. Although Bolt’s achievements may be greater if he’s clean.
Would it really matter if Usain Bolt was a cheat?
A big story would be finding a 100m champion who was running clean. It may be Bolt, who knows?
Would it really matter if Usain Bolt was a cheat?
Yes, there’s a whole range of factors at play. With cycling and grand tours, an important factor is the benefit of doping in maintaining riders’ blood parameters weeks into the race. It’s not as important in one day races.
The problem with the 100m sprint is that steroids seem to be quite effective as a means of improving your performance. This is the reason that so many 100m athletes have been caught doping. It’s not that the 100m event attracts dubious characters.
Would it really matter if Usain Bolt was a cheat?
Walsh understood perfectly what Armstrong was up to, but was hamstrung by libel laws in what he could publish. He did what he could, but there is a lot more material around today, including by Walsh, than could be published prior to Lance being exposed.
The exception was in Europe, where the libel laws allowed them to publish their accusations/evidence. The French hated Armstrong, because they knew he was doping. They’d read the newspaper reports, etc. The irony is that western fans were effectively kept in the dark by our own laws.
Would it really matter if Usain Bolt was a cheat?
Armstrong won 7 straight Tours de France against a bunch of the world’s best cyclists who were also doped. Believe me, taking drugs is maybe 5% if that much of what it takes to win a Tour de France, let alone 7 straight. So much can go wrong. He still trained as hard as he said he did, even if people with poor knowledge of the sport now assume he was at home watching TV and letting the drugs do the work for him.
I agree – it’s likely that some, if not all, of Bolt’s competitors were doping. If he is doping, he’s still the king. So was Lance, in the bizarre sport that was/is pro cycling.
Would it really matter if Usain Bolt was a cheat?
Why would Meares dope? She doesn’t earn anything like the money of Bolt or even male cycling stars.
If you read up on dopers’ memoirs, they are typically riddled with guilt and paranoia. The main reason they do it is to make money, lots of money.
It’s possible Anna Meares is doping, but she has far less incentive than other athletes like Bolt.
Would it really matter if Usain Bolt was a cheat?
The mistake people tend to make is to view doping as a moral issue. It’s about money primarily, and perhaps fame and notoriety to a lesser extent. Where you have major prizes and big money, combined with opportunity, you will find cheating. Often in the form of doping. We’ve seen it in elite sports consistently.
Does it mean Bolt is doping? Nope. Does he have motive and opportunity? Like all his competitors – yes.
The real story for me would be to find out that he was competing clean. That would be wonderful.
Would it really matter if Usain Bolt was a cheat?
We can’t blame the refs for this.
Australian Boomers vs Serbia highlights: Rio Olympics Men's Basketball semi-final scores, blog, result