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Poll: 4 Days to go. Should Boonen ride? yes/no
- Thread starter RDV4ROUBAIX
- Start date
Susan Westemeyer
Retired Moderator
Susan Westemeyer said:
My stomach actually groaned as I wrote that. OK, time for my mid-morning snack.
Replace Lance with Valverde and Boonen, and then you have a real exciting Tour. Without those 2 it will be on the boring side compared to other Tours. Just an opinion.
Andre
Andre
Cocaine doesn't really enhance your performance at all and he's the only one that could really compete with Cavendish so I'd say YES!
Nope. He needs to take his career seriously and learn that he can't skate just because he's a successful celebrity with extraordinary talent.
If others can lay off the powder why can't he? Plus it's not his first offense. I just don't see him as hungry as before. Therefore his extra-curricular activities are taking priority over his racing.
Sorry Boonen! I'd love to see him vie for the green jersey but he needs to play by the same rules as everyone else, even if it's ASO's own rules.
If others can lay off the powder why can't he? Plus it's not his first offense. I just don't see him as hungry as before. Therefore his extra-curricular activities are taking priority over his racing.
Sorry Boonen! I'd love to see him vie for the green jersey but he needs to play by the same rules as everyone else, even if it's ASO's own rules.
Andre.J said:
I think the whole excitement from this year's Tour will come from one team: Astana.
Will they implode and just fall apart? Or will they unite and be able to carry the big egos of two top stars and bring one of them home in yellow?
That's your excitement. Everyone loves a car accident waiting to happen, especially with the biggest villain of all riding again.
Christian said:
I say yes too, but he isn't the only one that can beat Cav. What about Freire, Farrar, and Thor?
Hell yeah he should be able to race. If he wants to do coke on his own time I couldn't care less.
Gee333 said:
Taking coke has nothing to do with bike racing...lets stick to the cycling and let him ride.
Yes... he should be able to race since he has done nothing wrong, as far as cycling is concerned.
It seems crazy that somebody who tests positive for trace amounts of cocaine out of competition, that may well have been taken completely innocently, is excluded while other riders with a current or past history of taking performance-enhancing drugs are allowed to race. Boonen might be one of the few clean riders in the current pro peleton. He is an amazing and exciting rider to watch and the race will suffer from his absence.
The ASO needs to concentrate on being a cycling race manager and not try to be an enforcer of riders' morals.......
It seems crazy that somebody who tests positive for trace amounts of cocaine out of competition, that may well have been taken completely innocently, is excluded while other riders with a current or past history of taking performance-enhancing drugs are allowed to race. Boonen might be one of the few clean riders in the current pro peleton. He is an amazing and exciting rider to watch and the race will suffer from his absence.
The ASO needs to concentrate on being a cycling race manager and not try to be an enforcer of riders' morals.......
Gee333 said:
And he looked pretty damn hungry to me on Sunday when he took the BK champs...like I said people like Gee333 need to separate his private life from his cycling life.
How do you take coke "innocently"? He is a repeat 'offender'.
Ok, it's not a proscribed PED, but as far as I'm aware 'taking coke' (which implies 'having' some) can/does still lead to criminal prosecution in all countries?
No doubt, someone will point out the irony of my point of view given my location.
Ok, it's not a proscribed PED, but as far as I'm aware 'taking coke' (which implies 'having' some) can/does still lead to criminal prosecution in all countries?
No doubt, someone will point out the irony of my point of view given my location.
legally yes, morally no
(two times in one year seems too much, remember Phelps!) doping is not only about cheating for sport endurance, it is also about values, and sport needs to be exemplary for kids and youngs. So cocaine doesn't match in this game...
(two times in one year seems too much, remember Phelps!) doping is not only about cheating for sport endurance, it is also about values, and sport needs to be exemplary for kids and youngs. So cocaine doesn't match in this game...
Amsterhammer said:How do you take coke "innocently"? He is a repeat 'offender'.
Ok, it's not a proscribed PED, but as far as I'm aware 'taking coke' (which implies 'having' some) can/does still lead to criminal prosecution in all countries?
No doubt, someone will point out the irony of my point of view given my location.
Whats your point? having a parking ticket is breaking the law are you saying that any cycling who has broken the law should be stopped from racing...stick to the cycling....let the appropriate authorities deal with any criminal/law breaking aspect of peoples personal lives..
Not a Boonen fan at all but I want to see all the best guys duking it out at the Tour, so I wish all the top sprinters were going to be racing(McEwen, Greipel, Steegmans, Boonen, Petacchi, G Browne, Hunter, etc...anything but watching Cavendish win 5 times.
That said, he probably shouldn't be racing based on the precedent they set last year.
That said, he probably shouldn't be racing based on the precedent they set last year.
Aguirre said:
Agreed. Boonen is walking on very thin ice. I want to feel good about seeing pictures like this....
he a repeat offender drug user in a sport with a drug problem.
no way they should turn their head on this.
what if it had be heroin?
no way they should turn their head on this.
what if it had be heroin?
Amsterhammer said:How do you take coke "innocently"? He is a repeat 'offender'.
Ok, it's not a proscribed PED, but as far as I'm aware 'taking coke' (which implies 'having' some) can/does still lead to criminal prosecution in all countries?
No doubt, someone will point out the irony of my point of view given my location.
The analysis of his hair only showed trace amounts of the drug, which could have occurred by an environmental exposure (ie. being in a room with people using), or drinking a drink with it. A couple of years ago, a rider (I think Gilberto Simoni - could be wrong) tested positive for coke after eating chocolates from Columbia. Additionally, there was recently a recall of Red Bull because it contained cocaine.
As far as the legality of the situation goes.... drinking beer is illegal in some countries, so is cheating on your spouse. In Saudi Arabia it is illegal to have a Christmas tree. Driving too fast over the speed limit is also illegal. Possession of cocaine, over a certain amount, is illegal, but testing positive for it is not as far as I am aware.
The point, however, is that even if he tested positive for large amounts of cocaine, if it was out of competition then he should still be able to ride, since it is not against the rules of cycling. People are free to judge Boonen as a person, if they like, but that should not affect his ability to do his job!
RDV4ROUBAIX said:Agreed. Boonen is walking on very thin ice. I want to feel good about seeing pictures like this....
if he had a different job this wouldn't be such a big deal
he was skating on thin ice after the first time.
he then fell though the ice.
Christian said:
True... I may have to take back my statement as I can't find the interview I thought I read some time ago where Boonen said something to the effect that he didn't see himself riding much longer. Hence my "not hungry" comment. But of course, I can't find that article!!
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