Reactions from the Pro Peloton to #USPSConspiracy (USADA) - post here

[Race Radio]

The IOC won't kick cycling out. They are a dope-friendly organization. As long as they can manage the appearance of an anti-doping stance then it is all good.

Look at the bigger picture, the IOC's revenues are international on a scale all sports federations envy. There's no way the IOC is going to get tough on doping. They don't want any more bodies piling up, that's for sure. The bio-passport addresses that and keeps things looking legitimate.

IOC came close to kicking cycling out, Verbruggen talked them out of it. The situation has improved so it is unlikely that will happen again

 

[Jeremiah]

IOC came close to kicking cycling out, Verbruggen talked them out of it. The situation has improved so it is unlikely that will happen again

Did they talk them out of it using words, or "talk" them out of it?

 

[lean mean &green]

In his closing statements on last night's Real Sport's Bryant Gumbel called Armstrong a fraud who needs to be "Cycled out of the sport" Also talked about Karma and lumped him in with a bunch of other dirtbags

Real Sport's is probably the hardest hitting, and IMO, the best sports news program on american TV. i think BG has a lot of editorial control and does not pull punches. sadly, as a premium cable channel their audience is relatively small.

 

[rata de sentina]

not a current rider but a rather nuanced response from
Phil Anderson

“Lance is a great figurehead and hopefully he isn’t caught up in this. It would be terrible for the sport but it would certainly show that they’re doing their best to scrub out any cheats.”

from here

 

[Northern rider]

Phil Liggett interview

Phil "the Voice of Cycling" Liggett interviewed by a South African radio station. As you might expect ;

Never failed a test - check
Transformative power of cancer - check
Who else gets the titles - check

He also talks about EPO in the 90s and points out the lack of a test, but then makes an odd comment that that meant it wasn't on the banned list.

I'ts a video skype call so any experts at body language might see something of interest. He keeps fiddling with his ears.

http://www.ballz.co.za/sport/phil-liggett-speaks-out-about-lance-armstrong-doping-allegations/151

He does give other "the voice of..." commentators a bad name.

 

[fatsprintking]

IOC came close to kicking cycling out, Verbruggen talked them out of it. The situation has improved so it is unlikely that will happen again

Road cycling is under the pump with the IOC due to the amount of resourcing that is required to stage events. The last olympics were a stuff up for road cycling with a generally dreary vibe.

London will obviously redeam things a little bit, but the IOC would be happy to give road cycling the ****.

 

[thehog]

Phil "the Voice of Cycling" Liggett interviewed by a South African radio station. As you might expect ;

Never failed a test - check
Transformative power of cancer - check
Who else gets the titles - check

He also talks about EPO in the 90s and points out the lack of a test, but then makes an odd comment that that meant it wasn't on the banned list.

I'ts a video skype call so any experts at body language might see something of interest. He keeps fiddling with his ears.

http://www.ballz.co.za/sport/phil-liggett-speaks-out-about-lance-armstrong-doping-allegations/151

He does give other "the voice of..." commentators a bad name.

Apparently the testimony of the 10 athletes is not proof.

Also Marion Jones passed her tests in an era where the tests weren't as sophisticated so it's entirely different.

 

[Northern rider]

I expect Phil travels with a large bucket of sand, ready for him to insert his head whenever dope comes up in conjunction with LA. At least he won't have to clear his hair of sand afterwards.

 

[sniper]

Phil "the Voice of Cycling" Liggett interviewed by a South African radio station. As you might expect ;

Never failed a test - check
Transformative power of cancer - check
Who else gets the titles - check

He also talks about EPO in the 90s and points out the lack of a test, but then makes an odd comment that that meant it wasn't on the banned list.

I'ts a video skype call so any experts at body language might see something of interest. He keeps fiddling with his ears.

http://www.ballz.co.za/sport/phil-liggett-speaks-out-about-lance-armstrong-doping-allegations/151

He does give other "the voice of..." commentators a bad name.

he's not the brightest bulb, our Phil:
"I've got the 15-page letter here with me, and believe me, it's complicated"
No, Phil, it's not complicated!

I wonder what makes a guy like phil talk crap like this.
afraid of lance? or true admiration? a mixture?

 

[fatsprintking]

he's not the brightest bulb, our Phil:
"I've got the 15-page letter here with me, and believe me, it's complicated"
No, Phil, it's not complicated!

I wonder what makes a guy like phil talk crap like this.
afraid of lance? or true admiration? a mixture?

You are either on the bus, or outside the bus. Phil wants to be on the bus, but its just not really heading in a direction that he is going to like. Good luck Phil you muppet.

 

[sniper]

You are either on the bus, or outside the bus. Phil wants to be on the bus, but its just not really heading in the direction that I think he is going to like. Good luck Phil you muppet.

another quote from that interview:
"most of those cyclists [who are willing to testify under oath - sniper] have been discredited and some have received money to make such statements"

as an interviewer, I wouldn't let nobody insult my intelligence like this.

and en passant Phil also explains to us Alberto wasn'T doped:
"Schleck didn't want the jellow jersey because he didn't believe Contador doped to win".
smart phil.

 

[silverrocket]

You are either on the bus, or outside the bus. Phil wants to be on the bus, but its just not really heading in the direction that I think he is going to like. Good luck Phil you muppet.

I won't stand idly by while The Muppets get wrongly associated with the likes of Phil Liggett. Besides, I believe the following quote can be attributed to Kermit the Frog:

"I don't have a brain, nor can I even move unless I have a human hand stuck inside of me, but even I realize the evidence against Lance Armstrong appears to be overwhelming".

I can't seem to find the link for this quote, however...

 

[Maxiton]

he's not the brightest bulb, our Phil:
"I've got the 15-page letter here with me, and believe me, it's complicated"
No, Phil, it's not complicated!

I wonder what makes a guy like phil talk crap like this.
afraid of lance? or true admiration? a mixture?

 

[hrotha]

That's what motivates the UCI too, but they still know when to leave a sinking ship. They tried to save Contador until it was beyond their power, so they switched sides to save face. It's harder with Armstrong because the ties run much deeper, but the UCI statement to the effect of "we have no idea, we'll see how this one pans out" is in stark contrast with the outright denials and insults Landis got from the UCI at first.

 

[roundabout]

Liggett, eh? What next, asking Armstrong's mother whether her son doped?

 

[Maxiton]

That's what motivates the UCI too, but they still know when to leave a sinking ship. They tried to save Contador until it was beyond their power, so they switched sides to save face. It's harder with Armstrong because the ties run much deeper, but the UCI statement to the effect of "we have no idea, we'll see how this one pans out" is in stark contrast with the outright denials and insults Landis got from the UCI at first.

True. And you might recall when we worked out here that Landis's positive coincided with the desire of Armstrong and his partners (including Hein Verbruggen) to drive down the value of the Tour so that they could buy it. So UCI's denials and insults of Landis may have had some thought behind them.

 

[fatsprintking]

Liggett, eh? What next, asking Armstrong's mother whether her son doped?

I think they are chasing Robin Williams for a comment.

 

[Houndbike]

The worrying thing is Phil is the president of the CTC in the UK. The largest of the national cycling groups.

We're not talking Bob Roll here!

 

[MrRoboto]

Does Phil Liggett believe any anglo rider have doped? Probably not.

 

[soverylarry]

I won't stand idly by while The Muppets get wrongly associated with the likes of Phil Liggett. Besides, I believe the following quote can be attributed to Kermit the Frog:

"I don't have a brain, nor can I even move unless I have a human hand stuck inside of me, but even I realize the evidence against Lance Armstrong appears to be overwhelming".

I can't seem to find the link for this quote, however...

Oh! This just killed me! Funniest i've read in a long time.

 

[2008885]

The worrying thing is Phil is the president of the CTC in the UK. The largest of the national cycling groups.

No he isn't.

 

[mercianman]

The worrying thing is Phil is the president of the CTC in the UK. The largest of the national cycling groups.

He used to be but Jon Snow took over in Jan 2007

http://www.ctc.org.uk/DesktopDefault.aspx?TabID=4473

 

[Northern rider]

I won't stand idly by while The Muppets get wrongly associated with the likes of Phil Liggett. Besides, I believe the following quote can be attributed to Kermit the Frog:

"I don't have a brain, nor can I even move unless I have a human hand stuck inside of me, but even I realize the evidence against Lance Armstrong appears to be overwhelming".

I can't seem to find the link for this quote, however...

Yes, the muppet reference is unfair. Mind you, I could see Phil and Paul as the human embodiment of Statler and Waldorf, only without the wit, originality, critical acumen or charisma

 

[Ney the Viking]

He used to be but Jon Snow took over in Jan 2007

Watch out, he we range out over the wall (the small roman one) to scotland and betray you all!

 

[joe_papp]

just a friendly request

Just a friendly request to try to limit the banter w/in this thread to posts relating directly to the documented comments/reactions, so as not to clutter up the thread. The more on-topic and reserved we remain in this thread, the more effective it is as a resource to document and review responses to USPS Conspiracy from stakeholders in the sport, analysts, media, other opinionmakers, etc...

Thanks