Is this the answer to doping?

Just as this week winds down , the news breaks that the UCI Management Meeting has suspended the action against Paul Kimmage ! They also announced that an External Inquiry will be conducted into UCI’s involvement in the “ Armstrong saga “!

Of course those with vested interests will “ spin  “ the story to suit their individual purposes . Whilst the “ Official news Bulletin “ will say one thing , reality will dictate another . Those with long memories will recall the aftermath of the “ Festina Affair “?

WADA was a result of the IOC meeting in 1999 , when Samaranch was “ Head Honcho “ of IOC . Aside from this the UCI had Bjarne Riis head up a dope clean up commission ! Little did UCI know , that Riis would reveal , years later , that his Tour de France win in 1996 , was fuelled by PEDs ?

In 2006 there was another “ External Report “ conducted by Vrijmen !  Anyone want to bet this “ New  External Commission “ will be like the Vrijmen report  ? “ Cover you’re A$$ “ , time will be announced in the week of 5th November , Guy Fawkes day for the Brits !

Coming out of the meeting , Tom Lund of the Danish Cycling Union stated :

   "  I expect that it will become crystal clear what the role of the UCI has been in this. And I hope and believe that the duty to run the sport of cycling has been managed in an honest way. If the UCI has not it will be discovered by the commission and then the implicated persons must take the consequence afterwards ".

Further stated that :
  “  In the week of November 5th , the UCI will decide which independent body will choose the members of the investigation committee. Tom Lund hopes and believes that the international court of sport CAS will be chosen. “

Recent days have seen many comments and articles attributed to Greg LeMond , along the lines of “ The problem for sport is not drugs but corruption “ . Prominent was this Open letter to Pat Mc Quaid :

http://nyvelocity.com/content/features/2012/open-letter-pat-mcquaid-greg-lemond#comment-107230

Many of you will know that I reported Greg’s donation to the “ Paul Kimmage Defence Fund “in earlier Blog Posts . This week not only Cash Support was offered but Greg is providing a detailed dossier of information on UCI matters . Could this have swayed the UCI Delegates to cause the “ phats of aigle “ to temporarily stay their court action ?

Whilst the “ Paul fund “ is in excess of US$70k , there are other matters continuing . The Petition that calls for the resignation of heinous & phat , has close to 600 signatories and I have added another in recent days .

The “ Change.org Petition “ that I created is to be found here and needs YOUR SUPPORT !
                       
                                                    http://t.co/oFWgsHA7


Do any of you recall a Science fiction Movie , where a minature / microscopic submarine , was inserted into the bloodstream of a patient in a hospital procedure ?

Well the following idea was floated in the Cyclingnews forum recently !

http://forum.cyclingnews.com/showthread.php?t=19165

 “  Just flying a kite here....

Things we know.
(i) Almost every attempt to manipulate blood by EPO or transfusions have transitional changes in blood readings.
(ii) The "glow" times and infrequent testing mean it is possible to hide transitional values.
(iii) It is hard to increase the rate of testing because of the difficulties in taking and process samples.

Idea
(i) Chipping is in essence a safe process - so animals are traced by insertion of a chip under the skin. There do not appear to be side effects that I know of.
(ii) Biosensors ( I was involved in the technology 15 years ago, were even then good at sniffing specific chemicals (and no doubt other biophysical properties could be measured too)

So..
If you wants to be a pro rider.

(i) You have a bionsensor chip implanted.
(ii) It measures biophysical properties (like blood cell count densities, pressures, sniffs for specific chemicals)
(ii) It is scanned remotely at intervals along a race, much like timing chips are on marathons.
(iiii)All serious training venues have a scanner.
(iv) Riders are provided with a remotely interrogated scanning box in the places they live, which they can carry with them if they travel. Downloaded when they are near a WIFI
(v) So blood passports are no longer a few readings a year, they are twice a day - inded could be every hour, stored on the chip until downloaded, the information downloaded once a day.
(vi) Riders who say "no" are subjected to more frequent blood and urine tests they pay for...they would soon get the point - this is much cheaper.
(vii) Encode the readings so riders cannot see their own test data..

Drug testing 24/7 = I am sure the technology can be done.

Question is .
Assuming it WAS possible...
(i) Is it too much of an intrusion of privacy?
(ii) Are the lifestyle constraints (seemingly few) it would impose practical?
(iii) How could it be cheated?
(iv) What then would be the process for a "positive"

My suggestion
(i) Develop it - test it in animals. It may take a couple of years, but animal testing is not a great issue because it should not harm the animal.
(ii) Trial it, and after a year of riders evaluating it.
(iii) Make it compulsory on every grand tour.
You can say "no", it is up to you...you just don't get to ride a grand tour if you do!

Discuss.
It needs a year 2012 solution, not a throwback to 1995
If it was simply monitoring haematocrit, internally optically..that would be a good start.
****ing in bottles and taking blood samples should be a thing of the past! EXCEPT to confirm other results. Ie if haemocrit has jumped..

Stupid idea? Worth thinking about?
Pro riders - if all it was was a chip under the skin - would you object to the principle, so long as you did not have to "do anything" other than pass near a scanner occasionally to upload the information? "

LETTERS to HEADS of GOVERNMENTS

YOUR EXCELLENCIES , LADIES and GENTLEMEN .


Those of you that are unaware of the IOC and WADA , would be few ! Doubtless that your minions have kept you informed of the ongoing saga of USADA investigation into Lance Armstrong , the cyclist .

Can we the Public , ask that you take time to study the " overview " of this report , and take time to visit with your Nation's observer/s , at the recent WADA Conference in Stockholm . That Conference had a theme that related to " Doping's influence in the Community "! Sporting Fraud is a criminal offence in many Nations and in recent times " Doping in Sport " has been added to the National Statutes of Criminal Activity in many Countries ?

In recent days the Australian Sports Minister , Senator Lundy has advertised an interest in receiving citizens' reports on the " Doping Quandary "! The email address , telephone nos and street  address has been made widely available to allow unlimited access for information . Example mailto:Senator.Lundy@aph.gov.au

Could ALL World Governments follow this example ? Each of you i an sure are aware of the " Famous Olympic Doping Controversies " such as Ben Johnson and Marion Jones in the past ! There have been notable names in other sports also across the WHOLE Spectrum of Olympic Sport !

WADA can only play " Catchup " in it's efforts to control " Doping in Sport "! Fact is the Drug Companies produce their products ith the intention of benefiting " Mankind " BUT the Criminal Element then take some of these products and utilise them to their advantage . GREED is the motivating factor for the criminal conspiracies that turn Athletes into CHEATS and in many cases Criminals !

Even in " shamateur sport " there are those who seek " bragging rights " and thus resort to the use of any and all those products on the " WADA Prohibited List " , updated yearly , so that ALL Athletes know the products they SHOULD NOT INGEST ! WADA sets out to stem the tide and the weak minded then seeing the product listed , set out to discover how they can utilise it for their benefit .

So many PAST and Present Athletes have used Doping to enhance their achievements that it has reached the point that ALL Athletic/Sports achievements since 1990 are suspect . Olympic Games since 1936 have been overshadowed with Political and Doping Controversies due to the fact that it has a World Wide Audience that seeks entertainment . That the Olympic Games is in the most part no longer peopled by Amateur Athletes comes as no surprise to anyone nor that it has become a GIGANTIC MONEY SPINNER for those that Sponsor the event . Little wonder that the IOC Committee try to downplay the " Doping " aspect if we are kind to them OR conceal where they can the scale of those bent on seeking unwarranted GLORY !

My letter is from a 67yo cycle rider with an interest in seeking a clear future for those entering sport , being allowed to find Coaches , that have been shown to have a " Doping Free History " ! So many of those that are Coaching these days came through the ranks of the " DOPING INFESTED ERA " ! Many of the Future Coaches will have been tainted by the Current Era !

USADA has published the testimony of people caught up in the 1990s and early 2000s Cycling Industry but it is symptomatic of ALL SPORT ! Resources to combat " Doping " are limited since NO ONE wants to understand the scale of the problem .

As Heads of Government , you have a clear responsibility to your citizens to ACT ,  NOW !

SET up the means for Citizens to report the knowledge they have on those " DOPING " , even if those reported are from other Countries ! Combine with your Neighbouring Countries and Allies in DEMANDING that IOC and WADA inaugurate a panel to control an "AMNESTY for ALL SPORTS "!

Only Athletes , past and present , will be allowed to seek the Amnesty , since those who acted in Supply and Distribution of PEDs are Criminally liable .

During the AMNESTY Period set aside the National Laws on Doping , so that the Athletes , both past and present , will not suffer " Double Jeopardy " , this is why , so many are making their past transgressions known , when the Statute of Limitations period has passed !

Make the " AMNESTY for ALL SPORT " a one time ONLY Affair by introducing International Legislation that demands Worldwide Draconian Penalties for Athletes and their associates that do not step forward . It would be good to see that " Household arrest with ankle chips " introduced for those that decide to practice " Sporting Fraud " in the future !

Personally i believe that those that represent their Country in Sport should be judged by an Independent panel of WADA rather than their National Federations and they should be subject to FOUR year sanctions on the First Offence and LIFE TIME BANS for further transgressions ! All Athletes know they are responsible for what they ingest so excuses are not acceptable . Any Athletes at risk of Sanction should be dealt with in a Timely manner , not allowed the disgraceful " Contador treatment "!

Time to ACT is NOW ! The public want truth and justice , they need to believe that they are worthy of respect . With Austerity governing their lives they deserve to be able to believe in their Sporting Stars !


Those reading this blog letter , feel free to copy it to your Governments ! It is my version SO use it to create your OWN Letter !

Many of my readers will be aware that i supported Lance in the past ! Regrettably i chose to think that his team members doped and as he had to undergo daily testing it was not an option for him . Further  i suggested that Emma O'Reilly could not differentiate between equipment needed for his Cancer treatment and that others were using for Doping purposes !

Emma O'Reilly deserves an apology from me for doubting her Fortitude and veracity .

Frank Andreu is aware of my doubting his and Betty's word on Lance , certainly in 2011 , at the Tour de France Grand Depart in Britanny , i expressed a tainted point of view ! Frank  has been generous towards  me , over the years at many " Le Tour " and other events , that he chose to be friendly considering my behaviour towards him and his wife shows great generosity of character ! No doubt there will be those who will continue to treat him with less than the respect he is due .

I am still waiting to see what Cycling Australia will do about those Cycle Racers who worked with Festina and Saiz amongst many questionable associations . Not ALL that worked with these people will have been corrupted /tainted so there will have to be extensive enquiries to sort the material facts .