"The Secret Pro" on Katusha and doping

[18-Valve. (pithy)]

Netserk posted the first blog post of "The Secret Pro" in the General News thread, but I think it deserves more attention. He talks about doping here:

"Katusha

On the topic of the UCI points structure, Katusha is obviously pretty upset that they didn’t get their World Tour license approved. I don’t know any more than anyone else, but honestly, how the hell did they ever expect get a license? A lot of their riders are under investigation and the peloton talk is that they’re not exactly the most trustworthy team. They’re not the only team that has the finger pointed at them either. In cycling, where there’s smoke there’s fire.

Doping

You might think I sound like a fool, but it just does not happen on my team.

It’s only been about six years since Lance won his last Tour and doping was clearly rife then, but I truly believe it’s cleaned up a lot. If you look at the last few Grand Tour winners you’ll see that there’s a definite shift in the way the sport is going. When you look at the big teams now who are the better performing ones like BMC, GreenEDGE, SKY, Garmin. But seriously, who the hell is this one DS in particular to be pointing fingers? But at the same time, I trust the guy. He’s a ***, but you gotta like what he’s doing.

Plus it seems like these old-school do-gooder journalists, some weren’t very good riders when they rode anyway. They don’t see all the training we do now and all the support we have, and can’t seem to get their heads around the fact that things have changed, and maybe don’t want to believe things have changed. Maybe it’s not possible in their own heads that change is possible, so they choose not to see or believe it. They’re not in the inner sanctum and don’t know the insides of a team, or how it really works. They might have stayed on a team camp or something, but they seem to come across quite bitter." <snip>


http://www.cyclingtips.com.au/2012/12/the-secret-pro-the-off-season/

It's obviously an Australian rider with a strong Anglo bias, but who is he?

Clues:

I use to room with a high profile rider and we were messing around one day by Googling his name. The first thing that came up with “*name of rider* doping”. That’s absolutely horrible for him because he’s never ever had anything against him, and he’s a top guy, but that’s just how it is.

and

http://www.cyclingtips.com.au/2012/12/the-secret-pro/

A new concept that will be a regular feature for the 2013 season on CyclingTips is "The Secret Pro". A monthly column where a high profile World Tour rider has agreed to speak his mind, while remaining completely anonymous. His diaries will be written by a ghost-writer as a safeguard for total anonymity.

His identity is known to only three people: the Pro, the ghost writer, and myself. The writer and myself carry cyanide tablets in case there is a leak, and the pro will ride off into the sunset and will never be heard from again.

What we will hear about is the inside scoop of what the pros are talking about. The things that matter to them, but cannot say publicly. The things that they cannot tell journalists for fear of repercussion. This is where you’ll hear these ramblings.

I can tell you a few things, but I won’t divulge any more. He is a Pro within the ranks of the top teams in world cycling. He has raced multiple Grand Tours, Classics and World Championships, and finished highly in some. We can also tell you that he will be frank and up-front with his opinions and views. He will tell it like it is, without fear or favour, because nobody will know who he is…

https://www.facebook.com/TheSecretPro
https://twitter.com/IamTheSecretPro

 

[Netserk]

re: first clue

(top) Riders with a doping suggestion when googled (as the first):
JVDB
Gilbert
Evans
Wiggins
Froome
Andy

(top) Riders without a doping suggestion when googled (as the first):
Greipel
Cav
Hushovd
Goss
Hesjedal (was 2nd)
Contador (truly surprising)
Gerrans
Farrar (Perhaps stretching top rider a bit...)
Canc

 

[Netserk]

(top) Riders with a doping suggestion when googled (as the first):
JVDB
Gilbert
Evans
Wiggins
Froome
Andy

So does anyone know who is room mate with these riders?

 

[auscyclefan94]

So does anyone know who is room mate with these riders?

Could be Matt Lloyd. He is someone enigmatic enough to be the Secret Pro and roomed with Evans. Also is known to have associated with Wade Wallace.

 

[SundayRider]

O'Grady or am I way off the mark?

 

[Dear Wiggo]

Could be Matt Lloyd. He is someone enigmatic enough to be the Secret Pro and roomed with Evans. Also is known to have associated with Wade Wallace.

Not sure if you've ever read Matt Lloyd's blog or what not, but unless they edited the living snot out of it, Matt Lloyd did not write that blog post.

Just sayin'.

 

[Dear Wiggo]

I think it's hilarious Wade blocked comments to prevent people from commenting under the post about who it is, to prevent potentially hurting any rider linked to the post by a comment.

Almost as if that website is the only one where comments will be made.

Uh huh.

 

[auscyclefan94]

Not sure if you've ever read Matt Lloyd's blog or what not, but unless they edited the living snot out of it, Matt Lloyd did not write that blog post.

Just sayin'.

I have. I know his blog is kind of weird but for the aforementioned reasons, it could be lloyd.

 

[Netserk]

The blog is written by a ghost writer, so I don't think we can conclude on the background of writing style.

 

[virandociclista]

You guys want to f**k the great idea about "The Secret Pro"? The secret pro has a lot of great things to talk... can you focus on what he is writing not who is him?!

 

[Ferminal]

What was great in that blog?

The bit which says Motorola/Phonak are clean?

 

[The Hitch]

You guys want to f**k the great idea about "The Secret Pro"? The secret pro has a lot of great things to talk... can you focus on what he is writing not who is him?!

Just another guy who.claims all the English speakers are clean. I had enough of that with lance.

re: first clue

(top) Riders with a doping suggestion when googled (as the first):
JVDB
Gilbert
Evans
Wiggins
Froome
Andy

(top) Riders without a doping suggestion when googled (as the first):
Greipel
Cav
Hushovd
Goss
Hesjedal (was 2nd)
Contador (truly surprising)
Gerrans
Farrar (Perhaps stretching top rider a bit...)
Canc

I swear here in Britain doping is the first thing that comes up for contador

 

[Knudsen]

Search result rankings are different from computer to computer. So you googling a rider's name will not create exactly the same result as The Pro's.

 

[Ferminal]

Maybe that says something in itself

I doubt it's someone from GreenEdge, they take the TDU too seriously.

Funny if it is Rogers, he doesn't mind a troll.

 

[martinvickers]

Maybe that says something in itself

I doubt it's someone from GreenEdge, they take the TDU too seriously.

Funny if it is Rogers, he doesn't mind a troll.

Porte?

Aussie. Brit friendly - would have links to both Sky, GE, BMC and, through Dave Millar, Garmin?

 

[jyhjyh]

Why do people in here think it's an Aussie rider.

Maybe he/she who writes the blog is Aussie, nobody knows what the nationality of the source/rider is.

The source/rider can mail the text to the writer from anywhere in the world.

And why is this thread in the Clinic-forum?

 

[taiwan]

The secrecy is heavily touted, so I'm inclined to take any clues with a pinch of salt, but:

Bad weather now so in Northern Europe?
Rides MTB offseason.
Anglophile. Probably rode/rides for UK/USA/Aus team.
Not targetting TDU, possibly not a sprinter or classics rider?
Rode GTs last year, again more likely to be climbing/general domestique?
Didn't ride late season.
Previously roomed with big name with doping speculation.
Advertising Linus Gerdemann.
Sounds pretty experienced.

 

[Race Radio]

What was great in that blog?

The bit which says Motorola/Phonak are clean?

I felt the same way until I had a detailed talk with some friends on the team. They all swear they have not seen any dope on the team nor is there any pressure to dope. Och is an expert in plausible deniability.

His comments on the sport are accurate, it is much cleaner then many think....but calling out journalists as bitter is a joke. They have been around the sport for decades, they have been burned over, and over, and over.

Wade's site is one of the best on the internet. He is a great guy and really gets the sport.

My guess......Adam Hansen

 

[virandociclista]

We need to understand that who is writing is a cyclist. So, it is how they see the things. It do not means that it is right, but is good to know how they see the things inside/outside.

I liked it, of course, I did not agreed with everything like the part about the journalists or that they did not need a guru.


ps.: excuse for the english, I do not know how to speak "polite" in english.

 

[sniper]

let's not forget, if that blogger is anywhere near truthful, it would mean that cycling has become one of the cleanest sports on earth under the rulership of McQuaid. How on earth would that have happened without any pressure? It's only after the USADA file that pressure is mounting, and suddenly we're hearing about how clean cycling has been after 2006/8.
It also begs the question why some who support this theory (JV/Millar) want McQuaid to be removed from office. Again, if true, UCI's anti-doping policies have paid off like no other anti-doping policy in topsports.

 

[Alphabet]

The Guardian run a similar column called The Secret Footballer. It's all rubbish. I'm certain that both the Secret Footballer and the Secret Pro are both journalists.

 

[Ferminal]

I felt the same way until I had a detailed talk with some friends on the team. They all swear they have not seen any dope on the team nor is there any pressure to dope. Och is an expert in plausible deniability.

Yeh I actually agree that this time around they are doing things differently. Certainly not the Andy Rihs blank cheque. That they represent a clean team and some hope for the future I believe is misguided. That's not even getting started on GreenEdge who just lost White, Sky who have lost several and Garmin who are full of names plastered over the reasoned decision. If you are going to talk about how things are improving maybe it's best not to look at those with a well documented past. Would make more sense to talk about individual riders than teams (can anyone really vouch for the activities of 50+ employees).

 

[Parrulo]

imo if the owner of the blog wants "the secret pro" to remain secret then he better have more then one pro writing otherwise it will probably be easy to find out who the pro is after about 3 posts just by connecting the dots.

also i have been doing some digging on that blog and the amount of biased writing is fantastic.

back in 09 during the the tour the owner of the blog was already pretty much posting certainties that contador was doping while in same sentence saying wiggins performance was credible. also after this year tour he compares sky's domination to USP and that their performance was very believable because of that.

other examples can be easily found without much effort.

 

[Parrulo]

also about the "secret pro" i am going with him being australian and he has obviously been told the tale of the dirty south europeans and russians stealing the clean anglophone riders deserved wins by his mother while he was growing up.

 

[JimmyFingers]

also about the "secret pro" i am going with him being australian and he has obviously been told the tale of the dirty south europeans and russians stealing the clean anglophone riders deserved wins by his mother while he was growing up.

I'm not even sure what this means, but I find it interesting you accuse him of bias while demonstrating bias yourself.