What do you think about the Rasmussen incident?

Question

So, the TdF leader has just been removed from the tour, even though he has been clean since it's beginning. I understand his team has a zero tolerance policy, and he had been blood doping before the Tour and possibly fabricated a story about being in Mexico when he was spotted in Italy.. Either way, it was his teams decision and I believe it was the right one. How do you feel about his removal from the tour after watching his recent performances while he was clean?

good points.. i would like to see a team Discovery member make another win, but it would be nice to see the Australian on the podium.

Answer 1

Well he may be clean. Heck he probably is. There is no indication otherwise. He knows the rules on how he is supposed to report things and he also knows the bad press his sport has recently gotten. He should have made better decisions. It is his own fault he got fired. Good riddance to bad rubbish I say.

Answer 2

I think the whole tour has become a farce! There is no point singling out just Rasmussen though.

i mean, a lot of the riders protested b4 stage 16 (i think it was 16) including Cofidis - who have since been thrown out, and T-mobile - who dumped Patrick Sinkewitz, and have been linked to nearly every doped rider in the last 6 months - Ullrich, Zabel, Kessler, Mazzoleni and Vino!!!

I agree with Tom boonen - lifetime bans!!! Maybe that will make the pro's rethink their actions b4 they turn to the juice!!!

What also angers me is that the 'clean' riders have been busting their *** to limit losses - Cadel and Contador - against cheats. Cadel should have been on the Podium after the Stage 13 (unlucky for some) time trial!!! i had a lot of respect for Vino b4, but now to me he is lower than a snakes belly!!!

i think this has answered your question about how I feel

Answer 3

Rasmussen has gone from appearance of impropriety at the start to near certain impropriety. Not reporting his whereabouts has only a few explanations: 1) total stupidity, and 2) hiding from the tests. Rasmussen showed that stupidity (which is his chosen excuse -- "I forgot! Twice in a year too!") doesn't work, since if he stupidly forgot, he'd remember where he had been, especially when it involved a transatlantic plane ride. (Well, unless he's just terminally stupid; not likely.) But the fact that he said "Mexico" when in fact he was in Italy at least part of the time shows he was hiding. And why hide? Hmm.

Firing is a very harsh punishment, but deserved. No matter the field, if you lie to your employer about damaging information, you get fired. And Rasmussen told his team that he was in Mexico the whole time. Au Revoir, Michael, hope you learned your lesson.

Answer 4

When you think that how much more bad press can this sport takes, there is one headline around the corner just waiting to rear it`s ugly head. I feel sorry for all those who walk up on that podium in Paris this Sunday, not the way to win a race, leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. But just how this damage will hurt pro cycling, you can just see the sponsor`s rushing to leave the sport such has Credit Agricole, Discovery..etc

Answer 5

I think it is suspicious that he lied about where he was. For all we know, he was trying out new ways to cheat the tests. I think that is what Landis was doing, but he didn't have a chance to run enough tests and he bought into the "wash your system out with water" line... hence the gallons he downed before he tested dirty.

The sport is rife witrh cheating, but what are you going to do? Sit back in the peloton, while the cheaters win and get all the glory (and endorsements)?

Answer 6

i think they should have never let him enter. look, if you intentionally skip tests, while making lies about where you are so that you can skip the test, you are hiding something. he may be clean now (mexico has some clinics specifically for hiding doping, so he may be telling the truth), but he wasn't. the tour wouldn't have let him enter had it known before hand, so the team did the right thing.

Answer 7

I concur, he flagged his dope tests and then was caught lying about it. he deserved more than the fine, but he should have had it levied at the start.

whats damaging now is that he has done very well in the tour, arguably won it enough to end in yellow. it leaves a lot of room for discussion.

Answer 8

I think it was the best thing for the tour. Imagine having two (alleged) drug fuelled winners in two years. I think in the end his team was asked to find an excuse to get rid of him, no-one wanted him to win.

I hope Cadel wins, but as long as whoever wins is clean I'm happy.

Answer 9

Its not fair to call rasmussen a cheat, since he has not failed a drug test during the tour. that being said, he broke the rules, he must pay the consequences. if his team feels betrayed by his lying, then they have the right to suspend him. unlike vino, he wasnt kicked out. he was suspended by his team. it is irresponsible to call him a cheat. GO SHLECK!!!

Answer 10

he knew the rules, he signed a contract, he broke the rules, he got what's coming. idiot.

the part that chaps me is that regular non-fans will think cycling is full of dopers, when the fact is every other sport has the doping problems (even golf!) but they just ignore them.

like my neighbor, who won't watch because of the doping, but loves baseball and his favorite event is the All Star home run derby. Like there's no juice there. But good luck convincing him, since nobody gets busted, it must be clean. right?