ontheroad said:
Freddythefrog said:
To the rescue, the press release just oozes with understanding and resolve:
http://www.msn.com/en-gb/sport/other/julie-harrington-accepts-task-of-restoring-faith-in-british-cycling/ar-AAnTRa0
"....the nation's elite riders which she admits may have been tarnished by ongoing doping investigations."
There is a raging fire going on. Wiggo has gone to ground citing a broken leg (that requires no plaster !) for getting himself out of a celebrity game show and out of the public eye, the whole squad are silent - on everything - only Adam Duggleby broke ranks and supported Cooke's criticsm of Sir Brad. Just what evidence exists for
"may" finding its way in there ?
"Making sure the reputation of our athletes is clean and that they are seen to be achieving success in the right way is paramount, and we owe that to our athletes.
Perception trumps fact - go for it girl - SDB, Fran and Michele are backing you all the way. It's a circus with magic tricks and illusions. Concentrate on sight lines, don't let anyone sit where they can see behind the curtain.
"We are committed to making sure that our athletes are able to represent themselves strongly in that way.
"I'm thrilled to be taking the lead. I think it's an organisation that is ready for a new chapter in its history and I'm hoping to bring a mix of commercial and leadership skills to get the whole organisation ready for that next chapter."
New chapter - yeah - time to turn the page and see what fiction is on the next. Can't wait. How about dropping the BS and doing a bit of reality. "I am looking forward to gaining an understanding of the scope and breadth of the problems that beset this organisation. We owe it to the membership and the public who invest over £30million, the largest sum of any sport in the UK let me remind everyone, in British Cycling each Olympic cycle. We owe it to them to ensure that money is spent wisely and productively on what it is meant to be spent on and not buying steroids to help SDB deal with his weight issues or letting staff who have BC cars and fuel cards, claim for rail-tickets to and from Manchester. And I look forward to the "pharmacy" being closed down with perhaps Asprin being the limit of what the public fund our sports-stars without the most stringent checks and balances.
Thos comments from Harrington are utterly depressing. I wonder who selects these people. It appears we have another incumbent for whom perception is more important than reality. A continuation of Sky's mantra from the get go. Kerrison said as much in the interview a few years back at 5:00 in the video below. Kerrsion was another shifty individual who knew the reality.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVROhTHxWP8
it is merely an evolution of Mark McKinnon and Public Strategies and Armstrong, where they believe PR and communications strategy and operations strategy dictates reality.*
It is arguable, the strategy of McKinnon and Armstrong as a brand, and a brand of cancer, was more important than his brand of cycling, on asphalt, hotpour, tarmac and lime, tarmac and line. cycling and July was a given, Nike shilling widgets like Jordan basketball shoes was a given, but the underlying brand that took him to the Whitehouse and on Today with Katie Couric, on Oprah, on Lateshow with Letterman and Leno, it was not cycling. Lemond never had cut-thru and traction. Lemond was not a baseballer or footballer. Americans dont understand cycling. cancer was the conduit and brand. McKinnon axiomatically understood this. Stapleton saw his apotheosis. Wonderboy was cancer jesus. And Americans understand religion, dont believe the separation of state hogwash.
*they are sportsmen/women, and are lured by the groupthink.
What they cannot see is their Icarus project or attempt to scale heights and win a prize that necessitates them on an industrial scale doping and doping logistics program, and if they are successful at backing up and repeating, and creating a franchise, the media spotlight will uncover the less palatable aspects of this achievement. It is a paradox, to succeed again and again, to sell this success in the media, will also reveal the operation behind the success. And the public will not deify you then, it will crucify you.