Repercussions of the
Lance Armstrong story are still being felt, and will continue to be
so for some time, and one of the great questions to arise from the
affair is: how did he get away with it for so long?
Some answers can be
found in an article by Selena Roberts, 'The Influence Peddler', which
lays bare the level of Armstrong's political and financial influence,
and the extent to which he was willing and able to use it to get what
he wanted. It is a fascinating read, showing how no-one was safe from
Armstrong's bullying tactics, not even US Senator and former
presidential candidate, John Kerry. Perhaps what is most striking is
that this only appears to be a small sample of episodes in
Armstrong's career, and there are more questions to be asked about
how much political influence he was able to exert, whether it
accounts for the US Attorney for California suddenly dropping a case
against him in February.
Even now, after all the
revelations, this seems like only the tip of the iceberg, and
hopefully at some point, the comprehensive story of the Armstrong
tale will be told.
There's an excellent and heartbreaking article by Jill Lieber Steeg in the San Diego Union-Tribune about Junior Seau, the former NFL star who committed suicide earlier this year (part one and part two). What makes it stand out, amongst so much that was written after Seau's death, is that it is a carefully researched, fact-based piece, rather than conjecture.
Whether or not you are interested in the NFL, Seau's story is a poignant one, because it exposes the problems that retired sportsmen face, the things they lose when they retire: the structure to their days, the support network, the thrill of competition, the sense of purpose, the ability to earn money, the self-confidence. Then there's the need to live up to their public image, which seems to have weighed particularly heavily on Seau, and prevented him from asking for help, as well as the realisation that he had sacrificed family life for his career, and had no understanding of how to make amends for that that.
In May, the BBC aired Michael Vaughan's documentary, Sporting Heroes: After the Final Whistle, which attempted to deal with the same issues from a British perspective, but it was ultimately disappointing because rather than investigation and analysis, it offered a fairly soft series of anecdotal interviews with star names.
Lieber Steeg's article is far more incisive, and also raises the issue of the long term effects of head
injuries, a pressing topic in the NFL and across American sports at
the moment. It will be interesting to see whether or not Seau was
suffering from years of undiagnosed concussions, but it would only be another in the long line of problems that faced a man who was perceived as not only one of the best players in the NFL, but one of the best people.
Back in August, the
USADA announced that Lance Armstrong had been found guilty of doping
offences, and would be stripped of his seven Tour de France titles.
The verdict had been published, but the evidence had not, and the
investigation against Armstrong had something of a chequered history,
not least the failure of the Federal Drug Administration to bring a
prosecution, the leaks that had plagued the case, and public rows
over its conduct.
Armstrong continued to
claim that he was the victim of a conspiracy of former team mates,
envious at his success and bitter at their own convictions for
doping, and vindictive administrators, jealous of his fame and
fortune. As Corinthian Spirit argued at the time, despite it seeming
probable that the verdict was correct, the authorities had not helped
their own case, muddying the waters by announcing a verdict without
the evidence. Would cycling fans ever know for certain what went on
during the Armstrong era?
This changed today,
when the USADA published a 1000 page dossier, documenting its
evidence. The bulk of it remains circumstantial, but it is
overwhelming in terms of how comprehensive it is. Eleven former team
mates have gone on the record in great detail, along with numerous
other witnesses. Many of the witnesses corroborate each other, and
the USADA's verdict that there was a highly organised doping
conspiracy surrounding the Texan is proven to be more than a flight
of fancy. One of the witnesses is Tyler Hamilton, a former team mate,
whose recent book 'The Secret Race' has been damning. Another is George Hincapie, one of Armstrong's closest colleagues and more reliable domestiques. His testimony is noteworthy because of how long he worked with Armstrong, and how loyal he was to his team leader.
The levels of
subterfuge and intrigue required to stay ahead of the testers are
remarkable, and must have been exhausting. They make for fascinating
reading, as does the testimony about Armstrong's character, he comes
across as domineering and unpleasant, a bully who was allowed to do
as he wished for years. Publicly, he is still playing the victim, but
this is now even more irrelevant than before.
The facts will take
some time to digest, and there will be repercussions for months and
years to come, particularly at the UCI, who face allegations that
they covered up a failed drugs test in 2001. However, there can be no
more questions about the man himself, and about how dirty that era of
cycling was, and this should provide the closure that allows the
sport to move on.
Articles from The Telegraph and Guardian that pick out
extracts can be found here and here.
Europe's Ryder Cup
comeback brings back memories of other great golfing moments, notably
the USA's identical feat in 1999. It also brings back memories from
other sports. Here are five
classic non-golfing comebacks:
The greatest rugby
match of all time? The All Blacks were favourites for the tournament,
whilst France had been largely unimpressive, reaching the semi-final
despite not playing any of the other big guns, but looked pumped-up
from the start, belting out the Marseillaise and scoring an early
try. However New Zealand exerted their control, and France's
inability to tackle Jonah Lomu left them 24-10 down. Then Christophe
Lamaison kicked two drop goals, and the French sparked into life,
seizing the momentum as only they can. Time and time again they flew
forward, scoring three tries and 33 unanswered points, while the
shell-shocked New Zealanders never regained their composure, only
scoring again when it was too late. Unpredictable as ever, one week
later, an emotionally spent French team was unable to conjure up the
same magic, losing the final to Australia.
For all their domestic
dominance in the nineties, Manchester United had failed in Europe.
Finally reaching the Champions League final, they looked poor without
the suspended Paul Scholes and Roy Keane, and trailed Bayern 1-0 as
the match entered injury time. The German bench was already
celebrating, when a United corner caused chaos in the Bayern penalty
area. The United players looked as panicked as Bayern's but Ryan
Giggs' scuffed shot found its way to Teddy Sheringham, who equalised.
Munich were stunned, and seemed unable to react when, moments later,
another corner was flicked on by Sheringham for Ole Gunnar Solskjær
to score the winner. With 90 minutes up, the game seemed lost, yet
United were champions, combining with the league title and FA Cup
wins to complete a treble. Alex Ferguson's post-match comments said
it all: “football, bloody hell.”
Carrying the weight of
86 years of failure, the 2004 Red Sox went 3-0 down to their bitter
rivals. No team in major league history had come from 3-0 down
in the playoffs to take it to a seventh game, let alone won the
series. Entering the final inning of game four, the Red Sox were
losing, and an 87th year of hurt seemed inevitable. Then
Dave Roberts stole a base, and scored the tying run. It took until a
twelfth inning in the early hours of the morning for David Ortiz to
hit the winner. Boston then went on a run of dramatic wins, each an epic in its own right. The highlight was Curt Schilling, pitching in
game six despite the blood oozing out of his surgically repaired
ankle and through his sock. Completing a 4-3 series victory in Yankee
Stadium seemed to exorcise 86 years of demons, and a week later the
Red Sox won the World Series, lifting the curse of the Bambino.
After a dismal start to
the series led to Ian Botham's resignation as captain, England found
themselves in trouble against their old enemies. Asked to follow on
227 runs behind, bookmakers famously offered odds of 500/1 on an
England victory, but carefree batting from Botham and inspired
bowling from Bob Willis secured a historic win, the first by a team
following on since the 1894. In 2001, India pulled off the same
feat, again versus Australia, no less remarkable, and to date, only
the third such win.
Milan had won the
tournament two years prior, and finished second in Serie A, whilst
Liverpool had struggled through a difficult season, finishing outside
the top four. Three-nil up at half time, Milan were already
celebrating in the dressing room. Rafael Benitez changed his
formation, adding an extra man in midfield, and Liverpool responded
with three goals in the first fifteen minutes of the half. The
Italian side still had chances, but were too flustered to take them,
whilst Jerzy Dudek was having the game of his life in the Liverpool
goal. Despite experience of winning a shoot-out in the 2003 final,
Milan crumbled when it went to penalties this time, scoring only two.
Dudek's save from Shevchenko secured Liverpool's fifth title and
first since 1984.
Humiliated in the first test, and losing at half time in the second, Australia's rugby minds
took control, whilst their more abrasive characters put the Lions off
their game. Many argue the series turned on Nathan Grey's cynical
elbow to Richard Hill's face, which removed the Lions' best player.
