- Mar 18, 2009
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tockit said:Also, you guys have tossed it around a lot, but me being the skeptic that I am (assuming that Armstrong is doped) wonders how does Lance continues to beat the doping controls with their biological rider profiles, hair, urine, and blood samples, etc, etc, going into his 8th season while drug testing all the while has progressively gotten more advanced?
Let me argue this by using a counter-argument ... how many high level cyclists have been caught using a doping test? Most of them are stupid (homologous blood transfusions for Hamilton and Vino, perhaps Landis with testosterone) or didn't realize that the manufacturer had worked with doping agencies in the case of CERA (which nabbed the likes of Kohl, Schumacher, Ricco, Pipeoli and Rebellin). For the latter group, these riders did not test positive using standard tests for EPO, and nor were their blood profiles sufficiently abnormal on the biological passport. Most high level cyclists are actually caught through doping affairs, such as Operacion Puerto (including Basso, Ullrich and Valverde) or through means not directly related to doping tests like Rasmussen. Ullrich's reported drug program, which involved blood transfusions, EPO, HGH, and testosterone amongst others, was never detected. Then there is the tests themselves: EPO was first introduced in 2001, HGH is not detectable after 2-3 hours, and exogenous testosterone was only recently introduced.
Digger wrote this post in another thread about sprinter Dwain Chambers: http://forum.cyclingnews.com/showthread.php?p=48717&highlight=balco#post48717
Obviously a good doctor also helps in avoiding positives as well.