The Roche files

[JPM London]

sorry, I should have made sure the sarcasm meter was on. Roche's campaign to clean up cycling via zipped jerseys and low socks looks even more trivial in light of this.

Well, I did ponder if I had my muddy glasses on
Yes, it's always funny listening to old, black kettles extolling on the virtues of their own generation and how the young generation whines about everything.
But you must admit he fits well within the ranks of UCI... Pretty much ready to slot in when Paddy decides to move upwards...

 

[Benotti69]

So this Paul Kimmage man, who is often praised for doing and saying stuff no-one dares, is guilty of doing exactly the same: keeping the omerta by not saying anything about people he actually cares about.

Wow, that is unexpected.

He never saw Roche doping nor Kelly, so how could he write about it? He wrote about what he saw.

Go read his book then come back and tell the clinic he was keeping the omerta.

 

[benlondon]

Sad that Roche can't own up

In Kimmage's book he doesn't name Roche as a doper, but does express his disappointment about how Roche reneged on an apparent earlier promise to lend Kimmage his support (or at least that's how I remember it).
I wish Roche would understand that admitting to doping now doesn't necessarily diminish he achievements because almost all the top riders of that era were at it too. He was still a top, classy rider who achieved some impressive victories, most before the EPO era which moved doping from the era of marginal gains to turning near donkey's (such as Riis) into racehorses.
However if he wants to stay silent on the subject of doping he definitely shouldn't publish an autobiography which is about as honest as Virenque's infamous 'My Truth' (ma vérité) book about his dope-free achievements.

 

[TechnicalDescent]

He never saw Roche doping nor Kelly, so how could he write about it? He wrote about what he saw.

Go read his book then come back and tell the clinic he was keeping the omerta.

I googled for info on Kelly and doping and found this forum post that alleges he and his whole team were overdosed on EPO in 1991 and had to abandon the tour.

http://www.cyclingforums.com/t/402547/remembering-sean-kellys-epo-ovedose

 

[bobbins]

Often forgotten is Roche's brother Lawrence who rode with Carrera for two Years. In 1989 and 1990. He then rode with the Tonton Tapis Team alongside Stephen in 1991 finishing 153 rd overall in his only Tour De France. Interestingly enough, if Dan Martin rides the Tour this Year, he will become the fourth member of the same family to take part in the most prestigious race in the calender. I wonder will that be some sort of a record ?

1991 was also the Year Roche was disqualified from the Tour because he missed the start of the TTT on stage two.

The Simon family have had several brothers ride the Tours.

Roche missed the time so was eliminated rather than disqualified.

EPO first came to market in 1987

Roche always had a rep for being less than clean

 

[TechnicalDescent]

So this Paul Kimmage man, who is often praised for doing and saying stuff no-one dares, is guilty of doing exactly the same: keeping the omerta by not saying anything about people he actually cares about.

Wow, that is unexpected.

I think you're always going to get that. It's like David Millar and Armstrong. Millar obviously had lots of conversations with Armstrong about doping in the peloton, where Armstrong must have advised him on stuff, but Millar is never going to reveal that. You don't have to break every confidence to be anti doping.

 

[L'arriviste]

... Files part of the investigation allegedly detail a number of aliases for Roche including Rocchi, Rossi, Rocca, Roncati, Righi and Rossini...

... Allocchio, Barsotelli, Bontempi, Bugno, Chiappucci, Chiesa, Fondriest, Ghirotto, Perini, STEPHEN ROCHE, Roscioli, Rossi, Rolf Sørensen, Vanzella, Zen, 5 skiers: Albarello, De Zolt, Di Centa, Fauner, Vanzetta, and 2 runners: DaMilano, Scaunich ...

... 66 riders (93-98): Allocchio, Artunghi, Barsotelli, Bernhard, Bertolini, Berzin, Bobrik, Bontempi, Bortolami, Bottaro, Brignoli, Bugno, Cavallini, Cenghialta, Checchin, Chiappucci, Chiesa, Chiurato, Cipollini, Cobalchini, Convalle, De las Cuevas, Della-Bianca, Dufaux, Escartin, Faresin, Fondriest, Frattini, Furlan, Ghirotto, Gotti, Kappes, Livingston, E.Mazzoleni (96-98), A.Merckx, Miceli, Minali, Molinari, Mentheour, Moser (83-85), Olano, Pantani, Perini, Pontoni, Pulnikov, Riis, S.ROCHE, Rominger, Roscioli, Rossi, Santaromita, Savoldelli, Schiavina, Siboni, F.Simeoni(97), R.Sørensen, Tonkov, Ugrumov, Vandenbroucke, Vanzella, Volpi, Zaina, Zanette, B.Zberg, Zen, Zülle...

... Roche was variously listed as Rocchi, Rocca, Roncati, Righi and Rossini...

One of Roche's alleged pseudonyms is sometimes cited as "Rossi" per Benotti's post above.

This is a journalistic error. In fact, "Rossi" was Carrera domestique Remo Rossi, as was correctly identified in the other sources quoted below.

 

[Stravoski]

EPO first came to market in 1987

I was of the opinion that EPO, first came on the market in June of 1989 after being approved by the FDA for the treatment of anemia in kidney dialysis patients.

 

[Benotti69]

I googled for info on Kelly and doping and found this forum post that alleges he and his whole team were overdosed on EPO in 1991 and had to abandon the tour.

http://www.cyclingforums.com/t/402547/remembering-sean-kellys-epo-ovedose

I think you will find it well documented in Wily Voets book.

 

[JPM London]

One of Roche's alleged pseudonyms is sometimes cited as "Rossi" per Benotti's post above.

This is a journalistic error. In fact, "Rossi" was Carrera domestique Remo Rossi, as was correctly identified in the other sources quoted below.

I think yes and no - but that's purely based on the "23 amateurs" list.

The name Roche appears as number 8 and the name Rossi appears as number 19.

However, when following Roche's line the pseudos appear in the following columns of the spreadsheet and are:
Rocchi, Rossi, Rocca, Roncati, Righi (I think - this bit is pretty illegible on my copy) and finally Rossini.

So it appears that "Rossi" both denoted the person and was an AKA for Roche.

 

[BroDeal]

I think yes and no - but that's purely based on the "23 amateurs" list.

The name Roche appears as number 8 and the name Rossi appears as number 19.

However, when following Roche's line the pseudos appear in the following columns of the spreadsheet and are:
Rocchi, Rossi, Rocca, Roncati, Righi (I think - this bit is pretty illegible on my copy) and finally Rossini.

So it appears that "Rossi" both denoted the person and was an AKA for Roche.

I think that means he was getting a double helping of EPO.

 

[JPM London]

I think that means he was getting a double helping of EPO.

Hah! He went on the list twice

There are several Rossi's in sport anyway - Antonio Rossi?

 

[2008885]

Yeah, and that bloke from Status Quo.......

 

[fmk_RoI]

It's like David Millar and Armstrong.

Millar and Armstrong ... sounds like a double act ...

 

[JPM London]

... Good luck connecting him to Conconi!

 

[JPM London]

Yeah, and that bloke from Status Quo.......

... Good luck connecting him to Conconi!

 

[Digger]

For the record Kelly did test positive for amphetamines in the late 70s early 80s on the Ski team.

 

[SirLes]

Yeah, and that bloke from Status Quo.......

Francis Rossi has already confessed to drug use. You will find extensive confessions in both "For the record" from 1991 and "Xs all areas" from 2004.

He puts many cyclists to shame, not just in terms of copious drug use but also in his willingness to tell all. No omertà in the rock and pop world.

Interestingly he claims to performing drug free now altough there has been no noticeable drop off in performance.

Not sure about Rick Parfitt though, despite a throat cancer scare and quadruple heart bypass a few years ago.

 

[Stravoski]

For the record Kelly did test positive for amphetamines in the late 70s early 80s on the Ski team.

Sean Kelly tested positive for amphetamines in 1984 after Paris-Brussels.
At the time he was riding with Skil-Sem. Kelly disputed the result, alleging irregularities with the testing procedure.

Kelly tested positive again in 1988 after the Tour of the Basque Country. This time for codeine. He was riding with KAS. Cough medicine was blamed.

 

[slowspoke]

Francis Rossi has already confessed to drug use. You will find extensive confessions in both "For the record" from 1991 and "Xs all areas" from 2004.

He puts many cyclists to shame, not just in terms of copious drug use but also in his willingness to tell all. No omertà in the rock and pop world.

Interestingly he claims to performing drug free now altough there has been no noticeable drop off in performance.

Not sure about Rick Parfitt though, despite a throat cancer scare and quadruple heart bypass a few years ago.

I worked with Francis Rossi about 10 years ago. He told me he gave up cocaine because his nose fell off in the shower. Which I think is gods way of telling you "you've had enough."

 

[fmk_RoI]

Sean Kelly tested positive for amphetamines in 1984 after Paris-Brussels.
At the time he was riding with Skil-Sem. Kelly disputed the result, alleging irregularities with the testing procedure.

Kelly tested positive again in 1988 after the Tour of the Basque Country. This time for codeine. He was riding with KAS. Cough medicine was blamed.

And there were irregularities. The testers weren't testing Kelly's urine. They were testing one of the support staff's.

For more info on this one http://www.podiumcafe.com/2010/11/10/1805511/on-doping-and-david-walsh

 

[Oldman]

I worked with Francis Rossi about 10 years ago. He told me he gave up cocaine because his nose fell off in the shower. Which I think is gods way of telling you "you've had enough."

I'd heard Coke was also God's way of telling you that you had too much money.

 

[slowspoke]

I'd heard Coke was also God's way of telling you that you had too much money.

That is from Robin Williams. I was paraphrasing

Rossi reckoned he'd snorted a swimming pools worth.....

 

[fmk_RoI]

Stephen Roche denies doping (again) http://cyclismas.com/2012/06/stephen-roche-the-interview-part-2/

 

[The Hitch]

A piece from my favourite uber cynic

http://pvcycling.wordpress.com/2013/12/03/book-review-hunger-by-sean-kelly/

So Kelly admits to doping in his book? I find it curious because during Paris Nice Harmon was saying that Wiggins and Martin were the first PN clean winners since Sean Kelly.