Fabio Aru 6.5w/kg

[Libertine Seguros]

Where the hell is this "five EPO positives in the last year" coming from? Ilya Davidenok tested positive for steroids. During the Tour de l'Avenir, so while he was still at Astana Continental. Same overarching organization, but different doctor to the main team. Kreuziger is a bio-passport violation. Aru, if the rumours are true, is a bio-passport violation as well. The only EPO positives in the last 12 months are the Iglinsky brothers. There's no "five EPO positives in the last year". Astana are shady as all hell and nobody believes they're a clean team, and they've had four, now possibly five incidents in the last year (six in the last 18 months if you include the continental team, cos of Gorbunov). No need to weaken your point with unnecessary exaggeration.

The problem at Astana is not incompetence, or they'd have disappeared long ago. Remember, they formed out of the ashes of Liberty Seguros in the wake of Puerto, promptly won the Vuelta with Vino and Kash, and then supplanted a whole bunch of the USPS/Discovery Channel team over the top a couple of years later; most of these guys only know doping teams. They'd have been falling like dominoes if they were really that incompetent. Instead, it seems their cards are marked, and they're either too blasé or too slow to react to avoid the hit. Even now that they know the hits are coming.

 

[observer]

If it is a passport violation, it could be political, the ball started rolling when Cookson found out that they were keeping their licence. Made mutterings that this whole process is a warning to everyone. Then Aru gets popped.

It's interesting. The other possibility is that he is just sick, and will be back in a couple of weeks. That too can also happen.

 

[mrhender]

A passport case can take years as we know.. So if there is no verdict as to Aru being guilty it shouldn't make much difference short term wrt a licence being taken. Unless of course they are just communicating and exerting pressure on the team to acheive some kind of goal..

And I'am strictly speculating.. So far we don't have any idea how much there is to this...

 

[131313]

Glad to see born-again-reformist Hendo is on the case. Does he think no one remembers his apologist days?

"It's sad because there are people out there thinking cycling is dirty," said Greg Henderson, who finished second to Haedo. "There might be a tiny, tiny part that is dirty. The rest of us, we're out here having fun."

http://articles.latimes.com/2006/aug/14/sports/sp-cycle14

I mean, maybe he's just a wide-eyed idealist, but that's hard to believe when he was riding for Androlators at the time of those comments.

 

[ciranda]

The riders are always the first to know comment is stupid. No one can know if others are users. If by knows he means suspects because of performance why not write stupid *** about Froome, Impey, Rogers, Porte etc etc

There might be a case against Aru soon but all Henderson *knows* seems to be that he is super mad about this doping and so choose to selectively blame some athletes, not others. If only these (european) people weren't so shady. They continue to ruin our (anglosaxon) sport.

 

[Saint Unix]

Henderson still owes Sky and Froome for that epic push he got back in Froome's sucking days.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Re:

Henderson still owes Sky and Froome for that epic push he got back in Froome's sucking days.

This made me laugh

Hog's favorite picture

 

[TourOfSardinia]

Alternative 2010 Giro photo caption:

Team Sky’s Chris Froome ended his Giro d’Italia today after the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) communicated it disqualified him for holding onto motorbike during the 19th stage to Aprica.

back on topic guys!

 

[observer]

lol someone should send that through to Henderson and ask him about amazing transformations.

 

[Der Effe]

Why are people even surprised? Aru has the word cheat written all over him, easily the most suspicious rider in the peloton in the last 3 years.

 

[TourOfSardinia]

Re:

Why are people even surprised? Aru has the word cheat written all over him, easily the most suspicious rider in the peloton in the last 3 years.

Sardinians are known better as being bandits, but honourable ones - not cheats.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0W--FHqbKo&t=0m17s
So this would be a considerable surprise to me.
My advice for him is to learn from Vicenzo and stay tranquilo

 

[Eshnar]

Re:

Why are people even surprised? Aru has the word cheat written all over him, easily the most suspicious rider in the peloton in the last 3 years.

Even more than Horner?
EDIT: More than Santambrogio???

 

[Der Effe]

Re: Re:

Why are people even surprised? Aru has the word cheat written all over him, easily the most suspicious rider in the peloton in the last 3 years.

Even more than Horner?
EDIT: More than Santambrogio???

You're right. I guess I'm kinda agitated, because from riders like Horner I expect nothing else than to be dirty. Somehow - and that might be naive - you hope the younger generation to give a good example and from that generation the one rider I never trusted is Aru. Not trusting someone is hardly evidence but if those suspicions get a little more weight to them it's really disappointing. I'm hoping he's clean obviously, for the sake of cycling, but if he gets caught I fear a new shitstorm coming.

 

[Pricey_sky]

Re: Re:

Why are people even surprised? Aru has the word cheat written all over him, easily the most suspicious rider in the peloton in the last 3 years.

Even more than Horner?
EDIT: More than Santambrogio???

Yes those two easily scream dope more than Aru.

 

[Eshnar]

Re: Re:

Why are people even surprised? Aru has the word cheat written all over him, easily the most suspicious rider in the peloton in the last 3 years.

Even more than Horner?
EDIT: More than Santambrogio???

You're right. I guess I'm kinda agitated, because from riders like Horner I expect nothing else than to be dirty. Somehow - and that might be naive - you hope the younger generation to give a good example and from that generation the one rider I never trusted is Aru. Not trusting someone is hardly evidence but if those suspicions get a little more weight to them it's really disappointing. I'm hoping he's clean obviously, for the sake of cycling, but if he gets caught I fear a new shitstorm coming.

I have no trust in any rider whatsoever, but I frankly don't see why Aru should be more suspicious than any other top rider.

 

[Der Effe]

Re: Re:

Why are people even surprised? Aru has the word cheat written all over him, easily the most suspicious rider in the peloton in the last 3 years.

Even more than Horner?
EDIT: More than Santambrogio???

You're right. I guess I'm kinda agitated, because from riders like Horner I expect nothing else than to be dirty. Somehow - and that might be naive - you hope the younger generation to give a good example and from that generation the one rider I never trusted is Aru. Not trusting someone is hardly evidence but if those suspicions get a little more weight to them it's really disappointing. I'm hoping he's clean obviously, for the sake of cycling, but if he gets caught I fear a new shitstorm coming.

I have no trust in any rider whatsoever, but I frankly don't see why Aru should be more suspicious than any other top rider.

If finishing your 2nd GT 3rd and your 3rd GT 5th (plus 3 stage wins) all in the same year, while riding for Astana, doesn't ring any alarm bells, what does?

 

[Eshnar]

Re: Re:

Why are people even surprised? Aru has the word cheat written all over him, easily the most suspicious rider in the peloton in the last 3 years.

Even more than Horner?
EDIT: More than Santambrogio???

You're right. I guess I'm kinda agitated, because from riders like Horner I expect nothing else than to be dirty. Somehow - and that might be naive - you hope the younger generation to give a good example and from that generation the one rider I never trusted is Aru. Not trusting someone is hardly evidence but if those suspicions get a little more weight to them it's really disappointing. I'm hoping he's clean obviously, for the sake of cycling, but if he gets caught I fear a new shitstorm coming.

I have no trust in any rider whatsoever, but I frankly don't see why Aru should be more suspicious than any other top rider.

If finishing your 2nd GT 3rd and your 3rd GT 5th (plus 3 stage wins) all in the same year, while riding for Astana, doesn't ring any alarm bells, what does?

I don't know. What about getting a 2nd place at the Tour at your second GT and a 1st at the Giro at your 3rd?

 

[mrhender]

Every time a rider is under scrutiny the argument about others being similar or worse emerges.,..

It is a natural thing to happen and in this case there seems to be plenty of will to "do something" about Astana.

Meanwhile others are seemingly ignored and we all know there is more than one dirty team around..

This is the core of worries for cycling fans and followers...

At least with the dope we know or think many/most of them do it and there is an equalty to that which is undermined by this sudden efficiancy towards a single team and it shakes the perception of fairness to the core...

But then again it can be argued that you have to start somewhere but then again again it seems politcally motivated because if UCI can pull positives out of their behind when they whish we all think that some gets a free pass...

To me the crisis in cycling is as worse as ever...

I would prefer consistency and a certain amount of likelihood in events.. For now it seems like picking a fight against someone to fulfill some undefinable purpose...

Secrets here and secrets there..

I think to myself, even if Astana get's the boot... What is accomplished?

 

[Gung Ho Gun]

Re: Re:

Why are people even surprised? Aru has the word cheat written all over him, easily the most suspicious rider in the peloton in the last 3 years.

Even more than Horner?
EDIT: More than Santambrogio???

You're right. I guess I'm kinda agitated, because from riders like Horner I expect nothing else than to be dirty. Somehow - and that might be naive - you hope the younger generation to give a good example and from that generation the one rider I never trusted is Aru. Not trusting someone is hardly evidence but if those suspicions get a little more weight to them it's really disappointing. I'm hoping he's clean obviously, for the sake of cycling, but if he gets caught I fear a new shitstorm coming.

I have no trust in any rider whatsoever, but I frankly don't see why Aru should be more suspicious than any other top rider.

If finishing your 2nd GT 3rd and your 3rd GT 5th (plus 3 stage wins) all in the same year, while riding for Astana, doesn't ring any alarm bells, what does?

(Almost) Winning your 4th GT at age 26 after being nowhere in the first three

 

[Der Effe]

Re: Re:

Even more than Horner?
EDIT: More than Santambrogio???

You're right. I guess I'm kinda agitated, because from riders like Horner I expect nothing else than to be dirty. Somehow - and that might be naive - you hope the younger generation to give a good example and from that generation the one rider I never trusted is Aru. Not trusting someone is hardly evidence but if those suspicions get a little more weight to them it's really disappointing. I'm hoping he's clean obviously, for the sake of cycling, but if he gets caught I fear a new shitstorm coming.

I have no trust in any rider whatsoever, but I frankly don't see why Aru should be more suspicious than any other top rider.

If finishing your 2nd GT 3rd and your 3rd GT 5th (plus 3 stage wins) all in the same year, while riding for Astana, doesn't ring any alarm bells, what does?

I don't know. What about getting a 2nd place at the Tour at your second GT and a 1st at the Giro at your 3rd?

With the huge difference these results are from seperate years. Quintana is an insane talent. Not saying Aru isn't highly talented but even GC riders at their prime would seriously have a hard time finishing 2 GT's in top 5 in the same year. Imagine doing that when you're 23/24. I understand where you're coming from, as it doesn't prove anything, but I am not surprised at all if true.

 

[ebandit]

long journeys start with the first step...............................

given the requisite for teamwork in cycling i'm surprised others don't admire froomes earlier selfless devotion in

putting in such ..........a big push

Mark L

 

[Eshnar]

Re: Re:

With the huge difference these results are from seperate years. Quintana is an insane talent. Not saying Aru isn't highly talented but even GC riders at their prime would seriously have a hard time finishing 2 GT's in top 5 in the same year. Imagine doing that when you're 23/24. I understand where you're coming from, as it doesn't prove anything, but I am not surprised at all if true.

But I wouldn't be surprised either. I personally believe there's not a single rider who can be clean in the top-10 of any GT of the last 20 years. I simply don't think Aru is any worse than the others.
Btw, if he didn't get sick during his 1st Giro, he would've got a pretty comfortable top-10 while working for Nibbles...

 

[SafeBet]

Former Sky rider calling out other riders on doping. You can't make this stuff up really.

 

[mrhender]

Re:

long journeys start with the first step...............................

Mark L

Yes but is the right first step?

Could there not be undertaken more effecient measures so secure a long term fulfillment of a cleaner sport....?

Instead we have the UCI struggling to find a loophole in their OWN good damn rules...

Change the rules first and foremost.. Then much easier to change the players...

 

[Eshnar]

Re:

long journeys start with the first step...............................

We've been seeing this lots of times in the last 20 years. Lots of pointless "first steps".