Apparently, both Contador and Mosquera (to the joy of some Italian cycling supporters) failed a doping test each over the last 2 months.
As you can imagine, this news was right what I needed to find in myself enough motivation to wake up at 4.30 am on a Sunday morning just in order to watch a cycling race.
CONTADOR'S POSITIVITY (AKA 'THE STEAK-GATE' ):
According to http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/alberto-contador-suspended-over-traces-of-clenbuterol-from-tour-de-france-test , Contador failed a doping test on July 21, during the Tour de France. He resulted positive to a substance known as clenbuterol which, according to Cyclingnews, 'is an organic compound that mimics the effects of the sympathetic nervous system' and is often used to 'treat breathing disorders like asthma; the drug (...) has short term effects similar to stimulant ephedrine, as it increases heart rate, temperature, perspiration and blood pressure'.
Contador has said that the positivity was due to a Spanish steak which he ate on the evening of the 20th of July and that was contaminated by that substance. Still according to Cyclingnews,
'Clenbuterol food contamination is rare however not without precedent, with Radioshack’s Li Fuyu claiming his positive test for the substance earlier in the season was due to contamination; there have been cases reported in both China and the United States of America where clenbuterol has passed into human’s bodies after eating meat from animals that have consumed the drug in order to produce a lean cut'.
Contador has said that the positivity was due to a Spanish steak which he ate on the evening of the 20th of July and that was contaminated by that substance. Still according to Cyclingnews,
'Clenbuterol food contamination is rare however not without precedent, with Radioshack’s Li Fuyu claiming his positive test for the substance earlier in the season was due to contamination; there have been cases reported in both China and the United States of America where clenbuterol has passed into human’s bodies after eating meat from animals that have consumed the drug in order to produce a lean cut'.
A very small amount of the substance was found in Contador's urine,so me doesn't feel like expressing any judgement about this case yet.
I remember that there were some rumours about Contador's possible connection to Operacion Puerto some years ago but, honestly, I've never considered Contador a cheater. I mean, just listen to him talking in English. Can you imagine a person with such a lovely accent cheating on me, you, them, everybody, just to win a cycling race? Sorry but I can't. Sweet accents never lie!
More seriously, I've always thought of Contador as a great phenomenon and one of the greatest riders of the last years. He's not someone who has suddenly appeared on the cycling scene and he hasn't started to win hard races all of a sudden. The boy's got a story and he's had gradual improvements in his career. That's why I don't feel like saying he's a doper. Hopefully facts will prove me right.
THE REACTIONS TO STEAK-GATE:
Obviously Contador's positivity is causing reactions all over the world. Good old German television, for example, is considering the chance of dropping next year's live coverage of Tour de France (thanks God I don't live in Germany).
Probably, btw, the most shocked reaction to the news was Bjarne Riis' one. Just put yourself in his shoes (gosh, how many times have I written this sentence over the last 3 months?!?): you've just employed a rider- the strongest GT rider of the world, to be more precise-, and that rider is immediately found positive. How dreadful.
Bjarne has obviously said he believes in Contador's innocence but, after all, he couldn't have said anything else, right?
Riis may not be the funniest person in Cycledom, but in spite of this I don't think he deserved to go through all the things that have happened to him over the last 12 months or so. If I were him, after this latest news I'd probably stop my cycling team, let the Sorensens free of creating their own squad and buy a house in the Caribbeans.And I'm not kidding.
MOSQUERA'S POSITIVITY:
As far as the other breakout news of the day is concerned, Ezequiel Mosquera and David Garcia de la Pena were both found positive during la Vuelta. Sorry to say it, but this news doesn't surprise me at all.
Last year, after the end of the Tour, me was extremely disappointed by Frank Schleck's 5th placement in the GC, 40" behind Lance Armstrong. You could see a big disappointment on my face after the Mont Ventoux stage and a familiar of mine, realising that, told me: 'Don't worry. Just wait for the anti-doping: I'm sure they'll find someone positive'. That familiar of mine has never liked Armstrong and so these words were a clear reference to the Texan rider. But those words, said from a person who is always very calm and has always followed cycling in spite of all the doping cases of the last years, surprised me a lot and in a very negative way. I had never heard such a cynical comment coming from that person, so I was still a bit shocked when I replied them: 'Well, let's hope there won't be any surprise at all then! I don't think I could be able to stand it!'.
A year and a month later, after la Bola del Mundo stage at la Vuelta, my disappointment at Frank's missed podium was pretty much the same as that of the previous year. This familiar of mine had just seen the stage with me and they were very happy for Nibali's victory. '
Mosquera raced very well,too!',they told me at a certain point. This time, it was my turn to be the cynical one in the family. 'Yeah, Mosquera raced well. But just wait for the anti-doping test. I'm sure they'll find someone positive'.
In that moment, to say the truth,the evilness of comment even surprised myself. Mosquera had been one of my favourite riders, but that day on la Bola del Mundo and, especially, the day of the ITT, I had started to smell a rat about his performance. They were just too good to be true. You don't suddenly start fly that way in ITTs at the tender age of 35, do you?
Btw don't misunderstand me:I'm very sorry to hear this news and, in spite of what I've just written, I would like to find out that there was a mistake in the doping analysis or something similar and that what I've just written about Mosquera is an amount of stupid things. But still, that's how things went some Saturdays ago, after a Vuelta stage watched from the couch of my living room together with my familiars.
Talking about that episode, however, I forgot to mention that my cynical comment that day made a little family battle explode, especially because my sister is very sensitive when you talk about doping. In fact, the poor little girl over the last years has been a supporter of Riccò and Di Luca, so she knows how it feels when your favourite rider has problems of a certain kind. And the funny thing is that, guess what, during this year Tour little girl supported Contador.So, just imagine how she feels right now.
PS: Oh and, btw, the result of the TTs at the World Championships were:
Under 23: 1. Taylor Phinney.
Women: 1. Emma Pooley 2. Judith Arndt 3. Linda Villumsen
Men: 1. Fabian Cancellara 2. David Millar 3. Toni Martin
Fede,
RispondiEliminaA sad day for cycling, first with Contador then with Mosquera. It seems the sharks are already circling Contador without all the facts being known. The amount in his urine sample was very minimal. Even the UCI and WASA say they must investigate further. I agree with you, let's wait for all the facts before we condemn him.
Brenda
PS. I can just imagine Riis shreiking in horror right now and pulling out his hair (if he had any!.
A very sad day indeed, probably one of the saddest of the last years.
RispondiEliminaI think that Contador's positivity is a very bad blow for everyone, riders, supporters, journalists and so on.
Personally I feel very confused by this story and I really do hope that Contador will be cleared of every accusation. Ok, he's defeated Andy in the last Tour, and without him around things would be much easier for los Schlecks, but seeing Contador being banned from Cycledom for 2 years would be a very bad blow for the image of our sport.
As far as Riis is concerned, I'm sure he had a reaction like the one you've described :) Personally, if I were at Bjarne's place, I would have frightened everyone to the sound of my famous hysterical laugh- and just afterwards I would have started to pull out my hair and say lots of bad words in the different languages I know.
Poor Uncle Bjarne, when it rains it pours! Somebody has jinxed him :P I think a caribbean villa is not enough, this requires a buddhist monastery lost in the Himalaya; I can envision him in orange.
RispondiEliminaI would like to share your method to discover cheating, but I don't know who hasn't a lovely accent among the peloton ;-)
But more seriusly, like yourself I'll wait to have more information to form an opinion, as for now things are pretty murky and I'll stay cautious. He's innocent until proven guilty and the amount is said to be too small to enhance performance so, right now, I don't think it is a bad blow for cycling either; he shouldn't be this stupid.
I must remember this last whole sentence of mine when it comes to the recent news of Riccò :P
But I wonder: if things stays the same, can he be banned for something he hasn't control over? It seeems pretty harsh to me.
One thing for sure: your sister is learning disappointment the fast way :P
Francesca
Ahah,I totally agree with you about Bjarne's need of going to live in a buddhist monastery in the Himalaya! Perhaps we may find out that orange really suits him! :)
RispondiEliminaI think no one should consider Contador a cheater until we don't have the results of the contranalisys and until we don't know something more about this story.
Unfortunately I think that many medias will give this news in a very scandalistic way, so that people who don't read newspapers/follow the news on tv carefully won't understand all the delicate aspects of this story (when I talk about 'delicate aspect' I'm especially referring to the very little amount of doping that was found in Contador's urine).
Unfortunately I'm afraid that, if things remain the same and judges don't believe that Conta's been poisoned by a steak, Alberto may be banned from Cycledom even for 2 years.
For example, the unlucky Marta Bastianelli was banned for 2 years in 2008 because her doctor prepared her a natural medicine in which he, by mistake, put an illegal substance. Although it wasn't her own mistake, poor Marta had to say 'farewell' to cycling for two long years.
Btw I have a feeling (or a hope) that, if things remain this way, Conta will be let off for this story.
If you haven't already, you should read this:
RispondiEliminahttp://www.velonation.com/News/ID/5846/German-journalist-claims-UCI-denied-Alberto-Contador-positive-test-says-rider-may-have-received-transfusions.aspx. As the Scouts say, always be prepared (for the worst :P). And thanks for the clarification with Bastianelli's case as example.
As much as I like the Schlecks I don't want Contador to be guilty, I want some action on the road and not in a lab.
But maybe there is another explanation we haven't thought about: maybe all this ordeal served only to stop Andy's silence on twitter :P
Francesca
Thank you for that article. It wasn't actually what I needed to cheer myself up but,as you (and the Scouts) say, it's always better to be ready for the worst- and that article probably draws one of the worst possible doping scenarios.
RispondiEliminaTo make things get even worse, the evil part of miss Fede, while reading the article, has also come up with a comment that sounded a bit like 'Kasheckin, Vino and Contador, there's no 2 without a 3!'. Sorry, but I couldn't avoid it.
I also don't think it would be nice to see Andy winning his first Tour just because the athlete who rode faster than him on the road was caught positive at the anti-doping. Personally, I probably wouldn't consider it a victory for Andy, but a defeat for cycling.