Does anyone believe Floyd Landis?

Answer 1

I'm deeply disappointed to say it, but no I don't believe Floyd's declarations of innocence.

1. His biggest complaint is that the testing lab leaked information, violating their protocols. He's not exactly saying that he's innocent, only that he didn't have time to prepare his response because it was leaked to the press first. It's the classic defense tactic of putting the accuser on trial.

2. He can't come up with a consistent explanation for the test results.

3. He uses weasel phrases like "I am not on a doping program" (which doesn't exclude a one time use) and "I have never ingested any prohibited substances" (as opposed to injection or a testosterone patch).

4. Phonak is a team with a history of doping scandals (Tyler Hamilton, and a couple other riders caught up in the pre-Tour scandal).

5. If I were concerned about a urine test at the end of the stage, I might try to dilute the sample by drinking water all day long.

I have read that an overnight testosterone patch will help speed recovery. Sure it doesn't build muscle, but that's not what Floyd was after. He needed a great overnight recovery to boost his performance in the following days. I think he was desperate to get back in the race, decided to take a chemical gamble and has now come up snake eyes. It breaks my heart -- I want to believe that was the greatest ride I've ever seen -- but I think he cheated.

Answer 2

I believe him for a number of reasons:
1. Stage winners are automatically tested. Anyone that would knowingly take something like that would not be stupid enough to win the stage, and Landis' team manager who was right with him would not have allowed that either.
2. The ICU (or whatever it is) let alot of damaging information leak out from the beginning, which is against their rules. The information isn't even verified, but they knew it would be verified. This shows they either willingly do not follow their own rules, or have people in their midst that don't, and that completely blows away any test credibility or any statements that they may have made or said they have made.
3.Landis was Armstrong's right-hand man for years, and he sacrificed his own performance to help someone else for all of that time. It does not match up that he would all of a sudden become selfish and cheat to win.
4. I saw his interview and I believe him. I've worked amongst lying criminals for the last 21 years and I think I know when someone is lying, and he wasn't.
5. The French tried to get Armstrong as well. It was rediculous, and I don't believe this sample that they say they have found from 99 that they just happened to find and test all of a sudden.
6. The French are not above sabotage. They sank the Rainbow warrior, Green Peace's ship that was protesting their atomic tests in the Pacific. That has been proven Also, at a French airshow, they covertly crashed a French jet into a Russian SST that would have been competition for the Concorde. That has been proven.
7. The French have been outraged whenever outsiders win their races. That happened with each American winning the Tour. And it happened with Senna in Formula One when the Brazilian passed Prost for the lead in the rain at Monaco. They were shocked and stopped the race because of rain, bringing the last completed lap back to where the Frenchman was leading, giving the win back to the Frenchman.
8. The French love controversy, protests, and turmoil. Nothing against them, it's just the way they are.
9. Most people just cook and eat their food and are satisfied, but the French have to mess with it until you cannot even tell what it was. Same with the Tour this year. First they throw out half of the best ingredients, and then after we still have one of the best Tours ever, they have to dump a can of hot sause into the mix and ruin it all after the fact.
10. I could go on, but I think I'll go have something to eat instead. ;).

Answer 3

Call me crazy, but I believe the guy. I don't doubt that the tests showed traces of synthetic testosterone, or that his t/et ratio was abnormal.

On the other hand, experts agree that testosterone will do an athlete no good when taken the day before a performance. It can aid in building muscle, but it takes weeks before the results are noticeable.

It also doesn't make sense that the stuff was detected on one day and at no other time during the TDF.

There was no doubt about his victories at the Tour of California, Paris-Nice and Tour de Georgia. Why did he need to start doping now?

The whole thing doesn't add up. Floyd seems genuine to me. I think it's the French who've cracked. They're ruining the TDF.

Answer 4

The effort he used on Stage 17 is completely possible and here's why. If you watched stage 17, he was eating and drinking like crazy, and if i kept eating energy gels and bars and use 70 bottles of water, i dont think i would bonk. On top of that, cycling includes strategy, something which he used for the race. It was a predominantly mountain stage, which means it is totally individually powered, no peloton drafting you, except on the short flat before the final mountain where he did lose time. And he is one of the best downhillers in the peloton, whihch means if one of the guys in the front of the peloton arent also one of the best descenders, he is yet again putting time on them. The other contenders didnt want to put out an effort on other climbs besides the last, so they took it easier and went slower and yet again, Floyd lost a little more time on the last climb because he was weaker, but made it up on the decent because he decends better than Satsre. Also, long solo breakaways are exactlly how people won the tour from the beggining to the years of Bernard Hinault, so people were doing this before performance enhancing drugs were used. His coach even said that that is the way he trains, long and solo after stage 17 in the oln post race show.

Now, epitestosterone, like testosterone can be taken as a drug, which means that you can have high levels of testosterone but a normal ratio. He tested for a suspicous ratio of testosterone to epitestosterone. Now he would have to be so stupid that if he was doping, he forgot to take any epitestosterone the day he knew he was going to be under intesnse speculation because they do make their strategy before the race starts, and you would have to be really stupid to do that.

Now, cycling to the French and Europeans is like baseball and football in America. If a French baseball player or team came into America and won the World Series and got MVP, i think Americans would be very angry too.

In conclusion, the feat he accomplished was absolutley possible, if he was doping, why wouldnt he be taking epitestosterone with it, and cycling is extremelly important to the French. I am not a complete beliver of the French conspiracy theory either, but i do see it as a possibility. i have reason to belive Floyd didnt dope because of what i stated above. I hope you look at my answer with an open mind, and dont shun me because i might contradict what you belive.

Answer 5

From the difference between his previous performance and sudden improvment, it seems that he or his team medic/trainer are guilty.

In my opinion, he attempted to purchase the "normal" sport-centric high-grade cadeaver-derived testosterone and/or HGH (from dead humans--very popular--undetectable), but got cheated with a synthetic substitute.

While it is not his fault that he didn't manage to buy the regular drugs that almost everybody else was using, not getting caught is part of the sport, and getting caught should certainly have the usual consequences.

However unlikely it is for the TDF leaders to be drug free, there is an equally unlikely possibility that the samples were tampered. Sample tampering is the most unlikely possibility.

Much more likely is food/drink tampering so that he would indeed intake a banned substance.

Of course the French were quite upset at losing to an American. I'm thinking that his remarkable performance improvement may have given them a bulletproof means/excuse to knock him out of the race.

As betting on the TDF is quite legal in France, the unexpected winner faces many thousands of enemies.

Therefore, it is most likely that he was cheated with his regular "supplement" purchase or that inferior drugs were added to his system without his knowledge.

Answer 6

I do. I think he honestly doesn't know how the tests turned up positive. Think of how you'd react in that situation. You know you didn't do anything wrong, so how could this happen? You'd rack your brain for any possible explanation, and that's exactly what Landis has been doing. This is not a case of "making up excuses", this is a case of someone who's been wronged.

Answer 7

I believe Mr. landis, If he was tested 8 times and 3 blood tests, and that's for the TDF, not counting his other wins and other tests,Someone just doesn't dope one time, Why would someone dope knowing if he finished in the top 3 knows that you will be tested. It doesn't make since. something stinks in France.

Answer 8

Yes I believe him. there must be some explanation for this test.
They tested him 8 times during the tour.
My understanding is that this kind of drug does not give you more power just for the day, you need to take it for awhile before it would help if at all.
It is a bum wrap and it will hang in there.

Answer 9

Guilty!

Answer 10

I partly do, but still from what I read and that guilt in his behavior and eyes I think he could be innocent or GUILTY!!! Still he does seeem truthful.