DOPING IN SPORT ! French Senate Report .

Doping Violations are not a Criminal offence in France , BUT , possession of Doping Products is ! A Doped Athlete is considered a " Victim "  , but i guess possessing the products means that you may choose to distribute rather than use ?  French Law , currently allows the Police , to launch an investigation when they uncover " Product ". Italy & Sweden , both approach this matter as Criminal activity , however no studies are currently at hand , to determine the effectiveness of this approach ?

By now , many are aware that the French Senate Enquiry has published it's Report , since many well known Cycling Athletes ( Previously thought of as Heroes ) have been pilliored by the Media . Laurent Jalabert was the first to dissappear , days before he would have taken up his customery duties as a " Cycling Pundit " at the 100th Edition of the " Le Tour "! Missing were numerous red cars , with his Face plastered on the side , as they roared around the route of the Annual Festivities . Other French Athletes were also named , Jackie Durand , amongst others , but interestingly they were able to make their excuses and then were left alone .

The French Senate originally planned to reveal their report during early July , but because of the " sensational content " , decided to wait until the Journalists had returned to Paris , at the end of " Le Tour ". Jolly decent of them , but then we couldn't have the " Le Tour " pushed out of the headlines , by Events that were already 15 years in the past ? Speculation was rife however as to the contents and thus leaks were in some cases overblown .

Case in point was Stuey O'Grady , he and his Team ,Orica GreenEdge , knew that he would be mentioned . Having started the TDF with an announcement to continue racing into 2014 , the " leaks " must have caused a rapid rethinking , since on Monday in Paris , Stuey announced his Immediate Retirement . Even the Team had put together a press announcement praising his contribution to the Team and Aussie Sport . Of course by Wednesday Evening there was a new spin on the facts and Thursday saw the " AOC " demanding he resign from the " Athletes Commission "that he had been invited to join in 2012 . Fortunately for him , he had not signed the Documents that he had been required to sign as part of the AOC Procedures .

Recent days has seen Eric Zabel step down from many of the activities that have kept him busy since his retirement from Racing . The Germans in the past have been highly critical of their Athletes who chose to dope , so it would appear that he will be treated with a Heavy Hand in their media ?

With the relevations concerning the 1998 Tour de France , Media Pundits that were fully supportive of him in his PAST Endeavours , went ballistic with their condemnations . For some reason most of these people took it personally , thinking they were entitled to be aware of matters , that i doubt he even shared with his familly , let alone his Current Team ?  I guess is that Matt White and David Millar were well aware of the situation but in conformity to the OMERTA Code , stayed Stumm ! Not sure where that word comes to the English language from , but i lived in that village in the Zillertal , some years ago .

THE FRENCH SENATE REPORT , sets out evidence about 14 Sports , having Interviewed many People over a period of Months . In September 2013 , a week has been set aside for Parliament Debate , then in November 2013 there will be Parliamentary Meetings , which will no doubt inspect some of the " Laws on Doping Matters " that may have been constructed in the interim ?

It would appear that the Senate may be in position to introduce New Laws in Early 2014 , in respect of " Regulation of Doping in Sport "? Could it be that the French Government will be framing Laws that will see them at the forefront of the " Fight against Doping in Sport "? The " Rapporteur ( Principal Instigator ) of the Inquiry is a M.Jean-Jacques Lozach and is quoted as saying :

"  Lozach said, “There is the prevention and punishment which are inseparable aspects, it is essential to fight it. This, it seems to me, the heart of the next framework law. And then there’s the wish for France to be the leader of the anti-doping fight in Europe.”

Could it be that before WADA reveals their New Code commencing in 2015 , that the French Government will have enacted Legislation that will cause a rethink of their " ANTI DOPING CHARTER "? Currently it seems to me that WADA , is a " Toothless Tiger " . They mean to do a Good Job , but their Charter prevents them doing WHAT IS NECESSARY , to deter the Criminal elements that seem to have turned ALL SPORTING ACTIVITIES into a Farce! Over the years i continually hark back to the " Donatti Report" which details activities until 2006 . WHAT has taken place since then , is an expotential escalation of the problems highlighted by that report .

So far the French Senate has told us WHAT TOOK PLACE in the past  ! Revealed in their report is information that caused a certain Forum contributor , " Dimspace " to put together this CHART :

 Sorry this came out smaller than i thought .

What the Public need to know is , WHAT DO THEY PLAN TO IMPLEMENT , so as to take the fight AGAINST DOPING into the FUTURE !

Meanwhil i would remind ALL and Sundry that my Petition  to the Governor General is worth consideration , since there are COUNTLESS Aussies out there that failed to survive the pressures placed on them whilst in competition ! They Doped , then they regretted that failing ? Time they were given a chance to clear the slate?
              http://t.co/iA5i79KUNY

Will add more Asap .




Some of the Internet reports :

http://stevetilford.com/2013/07/25/stuart-ogrady-exposed/comment-page-1/#comment-32839

http://gerard.cc/2013/07/27/2682/?blogsub=confirming#blog_subscription-5

http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/2008/04/13/cycling-drugs.html

http://www.sbs.com.au/cyclingcentral/mike-tomalaris/blog/128176/don-t-forget-stuey-s-brilliant-career

http://www.sbs.com.au/cyclingcentral/road/news/50494/french-epo-report-no-shock-to-armstrong

http://roadcycling.com/news-results/lifes-not-fair/page/0/2#.UfdVQ9L0GSo

http://velonews.competitor.com/2013/07/news/must-read-ogrady-nearly-signed-anti-doping-pledge_297059



AS A RESULT OF THE IOC Vice President declaration today i sent this comment to :

http://gerard.cc/2013/07/31/8-random-thoughts-on-doping/#comment-4774

IOC Vice President hitting the Media with " Doping will NEVER be beaten "! Bit diff. to nein fordruggen with " Lance NEVER, Never , never Doped "!

When the Top of IOC give up , what do the Drug Cheats think ? Carte Blanche ? Has anyone noticed we have had no " Positives " from the TDF as yet ? Could it be that they are waiting until all the brown paper bags have surfaced ?

Looks like there will be Peace in the Mid east before WADA gets a New Charter allowing them to SUCCEED in the Anti doping Fight ?

Wondering when @Mike Rann , @KevinRuddMP & her Excellency G.G. of Oz will get to read :http://t.co/iA5i79KUNY

This will suffice until SOME Organisation works up a sweat as they decide to do SOMETHING Constructive !

WIGGO

Brad from my own experience is a retiring sort of Guy ! Nor easy to approach in earlier years from my experience . Remember when he arrived for the Team Time trial in the Giro d’Italia , in the team Jaguar . I was looking to get him to autograph the Maillot that I had awaiting him . Seemed a bit distant , perhaps distracted / huffy , but then his mind would be on the business in hand ,rather than my concerns . Recently after the conclusion of the Dauphine Libere in Les Chablets I rode alongside him as he was going from one place to another and he was quite friendly as I wished him luck at the TDF . Same response from Cadel who was carrying his son on the bike as he was heading back to the Team Pullman .

Remember being in Pau at the Novotel one  “ Le Tour “ rest day , saw Lance going in from the Training ride which I had missed having been with another Team . Called out for him to autograph a Maillot , but he too was hurrying . Knowing where he would be having lunch in the hotel I sat in that foyer for perhaps an hour . Knew that he would arrive eventually I was content to wait but had not realised he had gone out the other door until Eki told me as he passed .

Racers have lives and they do some things like ordinary people , but they give up a lot of their free time , to give the Media and “ fans “ the attention THEY DEMAND ! Yes , demand ! Fact is , WE THE PUBLIC , are not entitled to demand their time !  That they give up their time is a bonus ! So many want a moment with a “ personality “ from whatever activity they choose to follow , guess it gives them “ bragging rights “ ?

In these Blogs  you will find numerous examples of my contact with “ personalities “ even some have asked to be introduced to me , yes me !  Happens some of their family will say “ Get his Photo or autograph “! Won’t embarrass the Aussie Cycle Racer that recently told me he needed my photo .

Seem to recall in earlier years photos of Stuey O’Grady and Robbie Mc Ewan exchanging autographs in Cycling news ! Recall the 2001 Vuelta rest day when Jimenez asked for my autograph as we rode around Barcelona , this started the others asking and it was a nightmare with me wobbling all over the road as I tried to oblige .

Reading the CNF “ Clinic “ makes you realise the depths , people will descend to in their vitriol towards those , on whom they choose to turn the spotlight . Lance of course is their No 1 target . The jealousy and hatred they exude is unbelievable , on a scale of 1 to 10 it would be 110 !  Whenever a cycle Racer wins an event , the scrutiny starts , yet to look there to see what and how much has been heaped on Dave Millar’s shoulders , after yesterday’s victory !

Millar time was the theme of his fans at Futurescope , when he won the  Time Trial on his first ride in the “ Le Tour “ , and it continues a decade later . Would not surprise me if he won another Etappe before Paris , certainly he will have raised the morale of the team , which was damaged by Christian losing 10 minutes in the first week and Ryder going home injured .  Read an article last night on Dave that  written earliy in the week , computer crashed overnight and it was lost !

Brad’s behaviour at the Press Room was greeted with many supportive Tweets from other of the TDF Racers but one wonders what Sky Management had to say on the subject . It’s a free for all in the Press Room , most ONLY get paid when their article is used so it is necessary for them to create controversy . They got it in spades that night , may even have pushed the Lance story aside for a period . Even more speculation was created when the “ WAGS “ started tweeting about the day’s events after Froomy made an attack from the rear .

Each morning  when the Team Pullman arrives in the “ Ville Depart “ the team have a meeting and discuss “ Broad Strokes “ for the day’s Etappe . Duties are assigned and “ what ifs “ are discussed in some detail . Cadel is a thorn in the side of the Sky team and they plan how to negate his plans . With Chris being by Brad’s side they have the chance to cause Cadel problems . Who is to say that Froomy dropped back as planned and then attacked , so as to cause Cadel and the others , to waste energy in a fruitless chase ?

With the TV in each team car and France 3 TV doing such a good job , Sky’s DS was able to see Cadel’s negative response . Could he then have decided that there was little point in Chris continuing the attack ? Could Brad have been left adrift in the last 4km ? If he was left alone would he have lost some time to others whilst Froomy chased hard on the possibility of taking the Etappe victory  ? Critical decisions that only a Team DS can make BUT subject to the wild speculation of outsiders , particularly the media !

Much has been made of the events surrounding Sky this week and Brad has tried to help outsiders understand his POV in his blog to the English Guardian newspaper :

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2012/jul/13/bradley-wiggins-dope-drugs

An interesting and articulate exposition of his point of view ! Doubt that he wrote all , no doubt dictated and then transcribed by the PR guy on the Team Pullman . Perhaps it has been playing on his mind all week and thus several versions were then polished until he was satisfied . When you see him oh the bike he looks pensive and now we see the result .

From my POV it was a well thought out article and covers most of the questions that anyone would wish answered .

I think all Pro Cyclists have a responsibility to be forthright on the subject of doping, the culture of “ Omertá “ is one that cannot be allowed to continue. My blogs are full of calls for the Racers to take responsibility and call for a “ Sports Moratorium “!

On the other hand, there is a right and wrong way of questioning cyclists about it, and  half an hour after a tough mountain stage probably isn't the best time to antagonise the person who gives up their Personal time to help you earn your living  .

Because of “ le Tour “ there is increased interest at this time of the year, people will still continue to point the finger because they don't appreciate that there are “ clean Racers “ and racing  can be done another way .   Things are slowly changing ,but  it's through the strict policies of teams like Sky and Garmin that doping will be driven into a smaller segment of the  minority of “ Chancers .

Was interested to read of his experiences with Team Cofidis and his decisions in Pau airport . Regrettably this was the same team that lost a Racer during this TDF . Yet so many will praise David Moncoutie for his opposition to Doping and remember also that notables such as Stuey O’Grady , Matt White , David Millar and Lance Armstrong have been members of this team over the past 15 years .

Speculation has surfaced in the last days as to who should lead the Sky Team until Paris . Bjarne Riis was replaced by Jan Ulrich some years back during the 1996 “ Le tour “ but one hopes that there is no substance to those thoughts . One thing is clear from Chris’s comments , and that is that he follows Team Orders . When the TDF is over there will be time for the Media to consider who should employ his talents ! I think that SKY will reward him for his efforts and he will lead their other teams as a Captain if he chooses that path .

During the Dauphine libere i asked you to voice support for the " PARALYMPIC GAMES " . Your PR guy , to whom i also addressed this request ,  would also have mentioned this request to you . With your Foundation you are able to help many people but the Media need to be reminded , constantly , that there are many less fortunate than you or i needing " Sponsors " to achieve their best in Sport .

Calling on John Fahey of WADA and Jacques Rogge of IOC , to put an end to " Doping " by introducing a " Sports Moratorium " is perhaps the best approach to cutting the " gordian knot " ! My articles http://bit.ly/Obuo0C & http://goo.gl/fb/q7UXl   ask them to ACT ! TIME PEOPLE got a grip on the situation and made those with " skeletons in the closet " confess and reveal their disdeeds , so that those in Sport are aware of whom they are dealing with !

As Johan Bruyneel said " It's windy at the Top "! Whilst you have the audience , you can achieve what few others would like to be able to get , a result !

Brad as I said to you , on our last meeting , “ Be the best you can be , everything else is icing on the cake “!

Best Wishes for your safe arrival in Paris !

START LINE AT GRINDEWALD

Stuey holding forth to Robbie and others as they await the signal to go to the start .

Al Ballan giving me the benefit of a close up shot , having been World Champion Road Racer it is a shame that there is a cloud hanging over him .

Thanks to shamilton'confession Eki now holds 3 Olympic Gold Medals although who knows when the third and the prize money will arrive at his doorstep ? Eki was kind enough to step out of the car for me to take the shot . Always thought of him as an inspiration to the younger racers .

Christian VDV shooting the breeze with the "Robbies" . George the cyclist is getting new "garmin gear" because of "home town Advantage" according to C VDV !

Thor preparing to race and win this stage .

Bobridge on the way to being Lanterne Rouge .

Damiano on the way to signing on for this stage .

Liquigas racers awaiting the start gun .