Speech by Greg Lemond

[Anonymous]

http://www.playthegame.org/conferen...e-time-tour-de-france-winner-greg-lemond.html

 

[ElChingon]

Is that Vassure with a ping pong ball in his eye? Looks like him.

(psst fix the title, its Lemond not Lemind or are you poking fun?)

 

[Anonymous]

Is that Vassure with a ping pong ball in his eye? Looks like him.

(psst fix the title, its Lemond not Lemind or are you poking fun?)

Just a typo and you cant change thread titles once done......

 

[Kennf1]

Did you catch his statement at around 8:30 where he said that he recently, through focused training, got his power output close to the levels he had in his last year as a pro? At age 47?

Also, sounds like the Trek v. Lemond is still going full speed ahead.

 

[BroDeal]

Did you catch his statement at around 8:30 where he said that he recently, through focused training, got his power output close to the levels he had in his last year as a pro? At age 47?

Also, sounds like the Trek v. Lemond is still going full speed ahead.

Unfortunately that power is still about 70 watts too low to be competitive today.

Lemond has a good track record when it comes to lawsuits. A Montana development ended up settling with him for $39.5M. The case should be interesting.

 

[Kennf1]

Unfortunately that power is still about 70 watts too low to be competitive today.

But good enough to shock the hell out of some masters racers at a local crit! How funny would that be? Lemond shows up, hairy legs, weighing about 205, and laps the field.

 

[BroDeal]

But good enough to shock the hell out of some masters racers at a local crit! How funny would that be? Lemond shows up, hairy legs, weighing about 205, and laps the field.

He should travel the country doing masters races while wearing a disguise and put the beat down on everyone.

 

[Kennf1]

He should travel the country doing masters races while wearing a disguise and put the beat down on everyone.

Just the guys on Treks.

 

[hfer07]

http://www.playthegame.org/conferen...e-time-tour-de-france-winner-greg-lemond.html

Thanks for posting it. I guess Greg is going to have another lawsuit after that though..
But taking his message for what is good, the guy is really passionate about cleaning the sport & I hope he gets truthful allies in this war..

 

[clydesdale]

Q: do you think Lance Armstrong will ever come clean?
GL: Him? no way, he has no conscience.

Ouch!

Also, I find that unbelievable depressing.

 

[stephens]

quite a good presentation though i wish he could skip the comments about specific individuals and just stick to the overall problem. it was very good of him to stress that he doesn't blame the riders and feels that it is the doctors and managers that should be punished strongly for what they are doing to these riders.

 

[BroDeal]

Q: do you think Lance Armstrong will ever come clean?
GL: Him? no way, he has no conscience.

Ouch!

Also, I find that unbelievable depressing.

The best part was the way he pronounced "him" and "no way."

Lemond is not a very good speaker. Some of his speech was defensive and self-serving, but I can imagine him wanting to sieze the opportunity to defend himself. He did have a lot of interesting things to say. For those that did not listen to the fifty minute presentation, I will summarize a few things that I had not heard before.

Lemond talked about meeting Dr. Ferrari in, I believe, 1994. Lemond had a power meter on his bike and Ferrari did not know what it was. After Lemond told him, Ferrari then asked why he needed it. Lemond had to explain that he used it for training. Basically the point of the anecdote was that despite hearing how good of a trainer Ferrari was, Lemond realized that he did not really know anything about actually training. His expertise was strictly about blood.

Lemond was talking to Pat McQuaid's brother after the 2006 TdF and when he made an off hand comment that a TdF winner would eventually test positive and damage the sport, McQuaid's brother told him that Landis had tested positive. This was before anyone knew, probably before even Landis knew. I just found that interesting and a little disturbing.

He either reads cycling forums or people have told him what is being said about him.

He claims his performance did not really change between the age of eighteen and when he was shot.

He tried to get UCI to do blood testing in the 80s but the riders complained it would violate their human rights.

He met Pantani in 2003 and saw that he was in serious trouble.

 

[BigBoat]

The best part was the way he pronounced "him" and "no way."

Lemond is not a very good speaker. Some of his speech was defensive and self-serving, but I can imagine him wanting to sieze the opportunity to defend himself. He did have a lot of interesting things to say. For those that did not listen to the fifty minute presentation, I will summarize a few things that I had not heard before.

Lemond talked about meeting Dr. Ferrari in, I believe, 1994. Lemond had a power meter on his bike and Ferrari did not know what it was. After Lemond told him, Ferrari then asked why he needed it. Lemond had to explain that he used it for training. Basically the point of the anecdote was that despite hearing how good of a trainer Ferrari was, Lemond realized that he did not really know anything about actually training. His expertise was strictly about blood.

Lemond was talking to Pat McQuaid's brother after the 2006 TdF and when he made an off hand comment that a TdF winner would eventually test positive and damage the sport, McQuaid's brother told him that Landis had tested positive. This was before anyone knew, probably before even Landis knew. I just found that interesting and a little disturbing.

He either reads cycling forums or people have told him what is being said about him.

He claims his performance did not really change between the age of eighteen and when he was shot.

He tried to get UCI to do blood testing in the 80s but the riders complained it would violate their human rights.

He met Pantani in 2003 and saw that he was in serious trouble.

That was better than the conference lemond did in California by far. Shorter and more to the point, I couldnt have said it 75% as well as he did. Very funny too. LOL

Very smart guy, he knows damn well everything that goes on and he even mentioned what is said about him on online doping forums (cuttingedge muscle.) So we know he reads these threads too.

 

[BigBoat]

The best part was the way he pronounced "him" and "no way."



That is more than enough to really Pi$$ lance off. LOL, these are not nice people Lemond is dealing with.
I'd be scared out of my mind to say something like that to 100 journalists. That takes some balls! lemond is a good speaker, who says he isnt brodeal? Why does he keep getting invited to speak? LOL

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

Thanks for sharing this. Great to hear. Greg isn't a polished speaker, and gets sidetracked, but there is something genuine about him that can't be faked. He said on there that he knows that on a lot of internet forums people ridicule him and call him a whiner, etc. Well, he should visit this place. I think he'd be very welcomed, and the majority of the people on here pretty much agree with the core of what he says.

Props to our friend BikePure for being there and getting involved. Good question too Andy.

And huge props to PlayTheGame for having this forum. It seemed like those in the audience were of a very open mindset, and not naive.

 

[issoisso]

I have a dream. Call it silly, but I can dream.
That LeMond will one day be at the head of the UCI.

With the "good old boys" there, he has no chance, but......again....I can dream.

 

[whiteboytrash]

Legend. Truth will win in the end..... and whilst we wait for that lets go after Kik ! Nice one Greg... I can see Kirstin breaking down in the witness box... she always wanted her 15 minutes of fame... wait for the teary testimony of how she was the one who injected Lance with EPO as she didn't like Ferrari's hands all over her husband....
_____

The lawsuit's pre-trial discovery phase has widened recently, pulling in people closely related to Mr. Armstrong. Just last week Mr. LeMond's attorney subpoenaed Mr. Armstrong's ex-wife, Kristin Armstrong, to testify about a dinner at which, the suit alleges, Mr. Armstrong said he would get Trek to go after Mr. LeMond.

 

[rolfrae]

I used to hate Lemond, but that was back in 1989 when I was cheering on Fignon to the win - more fool me! I really admire the guy now, for what I have since learned about his palmares, and his recent outspoken actions. Cycling, and life in general, need more men like him.

 

[Anonymous]

I was actually depressed by the speech. Today I am pondering whether or not to watch the Tour in all honesty. I boycott all products related to Mr Armstrong, and considering the Tour's 180 in regards to Mr Armstrong, have to consider it to now be one of his marketing ploys and they an accomplice to both that and the continuation of doping in cycling.

 

[Tapeworm]

Why are we all so certain that Lemond was clean as well. Are we to believe you are a doper to win 7 tours but not 3?

I think this is more spin, just a different way. Armstrong has built his "legend" is this just Lemond's version?

 

[TRDean]

This just makes me...

like and admire LeMond more. I was a fan of his in the 80's. His comments about talking on the stupid phone to the gigolo make complete sense. I wish him the best and keep up the good fight!!

 

[Bala Verde]

Can we set up a fund for this guy? All these law suits are crippling the one person in cycling that shows some integrity...

Oh, and the other thing I got from the speech, DO NOT buy trek bikes.

 

[LugHugger]

I was actually depressed by the speech. Today I am pondering whether or not to watch the Tour in all honesty. I boycott all products related to Mr Armstrong, and considering the Tour's 180 in regards to Mr Armstrong, have to consider it to now be one of his marketing ploys and they an accomplice to both that and the continuation of doping in cycling.

I think that it would be wrong to lay the blame for doping in cycling squarely at the feet of Lance. My perception is that the majority of the top 20-30 riders are doping at whatever level. I do believe that the ASO have become complicit in this especially in light of what Greg Lemond has said this week. With both the UCI and the ASO doing little to actively and aggressively try to clean up the sport, I find it difficult to justify celebrating the performances of most of the riders.

I will be watching the Tour this year and likely every year as I have done for over 20 years. Recently, I just can't bring myself to celebrate the drama that inevitably unfolds.

 

[UtahGrimpeur]

I'm no big fan of Armstrong, but nor am I any fan of Lemond. He has become increasingly bitter and fatter since Armstrong eclipsed his Tour record for wins by an American. Yes, Greg, there are people out there who still admire you, even if you "only" won the Tour 3 times. Please shut up now and enjoy your retirement.

 

[elapid]

I'm no big fan of Armstrong, but nor am I any fan of Lemond. He has become increasingly bitter and fatter since Armstrong eclipsed his Tour record for wins by an American. Yes, Greg, there are people out there who still admire you, even if you "only" won the Tour 3 times. Please shut up now and enjoy your retirement.

Disagree. We need someone like Lemond who can speak from a position of authority. The pot needs stirring. The UCI are useless. Doping has continued relatively unabated. Lemond has solutions and is not afraid to express his opinion. Being a TdF winner allows him to be heard and listened to, compared to most others who would just be ignored. His views and opinions are in accordance with many on this forum, the fans of professional cycling who care about the image of the sport they love: power testing, sack the UCI, etc, etc.