The moment cycling's Tiger Woods announced he was coming back to race again, doping issues have exploded.
Will Lance Armstrong take substances to help train? Will he take substances during the races? What substances will he take?
Well, it turns out, the French anti-doping agency wants to take samples of Armstrong's urine from all the way back in 1999, the year rumors swirled that Lance's urine had failed portions of a drug test. Stupid urine, you can't pass anything anymore!
The French anti-doping authority has thrown down a challenge to the seven-time Tour de France champion, proposing he agree to retesting of his 1999 urine samples to see whether a French newspaper was right when it reported they contained traces of EPO, a banned blood-boosting hormone that enhances endurance.
A positive test from the samples could not lead to a ban that would thwart the 37-year-old's much-heralded return to cycling after three years in retirement. Too much time has passed for disciplinary measures to be taken and only part of Armstrong's samples were kept. Even so, the proposal renews debate about one of the most contested questions surrounding Armstrong: whether he was clean when he won.
The biggest snag is they want urine samples from 1999, where only one portion of the test still exist. Not like I'm a urine expert (swear) but supposedly when being tested your urine is divided into two samples, the "A" and "B" samples. Both samples have to show a banned substance for you to fail, and the only ones remaining from Lance's 1999 pee is "B." So, if they test it and it comes up showing something banned, it will still not be confirmed because there is zero "A" samples. Whew, that's a lot to stomach, now I know why it's tough to land that job teaching "Urine Testing 101" at Fort Manor Community College.
The president of the French anti-doping agency, Pierre Bordry, said he wants to be the intermediary in this whole situation, even though, you know, he already thinks Armstrong doped.
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Quoted by L'Equipe, Pierre Bordry said he wanted to act as "a referee" between the newspaper and Armstrong. But Bordry already seemed to have an opinion, speaking to the newspaper of samples "which contain erythropoietin [EPO]."
"I want this comeback to take place in the best circumstances," L'Equipe quoted him as saying in its Wednesday edition. "If he agrees, we'll launch the operation."
He added: "This way, he will perhaps have the chance to affirm that he never cheated during his brilliant career."
It sure is hard to know if Armstrong ever doped or not, but I hate all the negative attention on the guy after he said he's coming back mainly to "raise awareness of the global cancer burden." Also, his new team, Astana, is hiring a drug-testing expert to follow the seven-time Tour de France winner around and continually keep his test updated and posted online. The French have always had it out for this guy, but honestly, in our country you're innocent until proven guilty. Maybe it's time they accept the same set of ideals.
