Tata Kontador

[LeTurbo]

I'm with Grumpy! I think it takes a strong will and independence of spirit to go out there and race, knowing you're being judged by so many people. It's also on the principle of "innocent until proven guilty" and, in his own mind, he must be satisfied his actions were not intentional.

 

As has been pointed out by another TDF rider (was it in Bicycling magazine?) the riders don't buy their own food. They don't cook it themselves, subject it to tests, or analyse it. They simply eat it in good faith.

 

Similarly, we as ordinary people ingest vast quantities of oestrogen in our food without knowing it. We're eating genetically modified food daily. We might be consuming melamine in our milk, for all we know. The world is filled with countless reports of people being fed all sorts of things they shouldn't be.

[DaLoCo]

I have said it before and I stand by it.....the winner of the 2011 TDF will only determined in 2013...

[TNT1]

 

Similarly, we as ordinary people ingest vast quantities of oestrogen in our food without knowing it.

 

That explains a lot of the bitchiness on this thread then.

Edited July 5, 2011 by TNT1

[DaLoCo]

That explains a lot of the bitchiness on this thread then.

And my moobs

[NotSoBigBen]

And my moobs

 

No that's from too much food

[DaLoCo]

No that's from too much food

Oh

[SwissVan]

 

It's also on the principle of "innocent until proven guilty" and, in his own mind, he must be satisfied his actions were not intentional.

 

As has been pointed out by another TDF rider (was it in Bicycling magazine?) the riders don't buy their own food. They don't cook it themselves, subject it to tests, or analyse it. They simply eat it in good faith.

 

Similarly, we as ordinary people ingest vast quantities of oestrogen in our food without knowing it. We're eating genetically modified food daily. We might be consuming melamine in our milk, for all we know. The world is filled with countless reports of people being fed all sorts of things they shouldn't be.

 

1. Contador tested positive for a banned substance. The problem is the rules around being proven guilty are open to abuse by clever cheats, lawyers, docters etc....

Fact is he was found with the stuff in his system.

 

2. Ultimately someone has to be resposnible, and that’s the rider.

The meat concernd was suplied by a friend of Contadors who got it from a butcher in Spain. Subsquently no traces of Clen have been found in meat supplied from that paticular butcher or abbatoir. Furthermore no traces of Clen have been found in any meat tested from Spain post or prior to the 2010 TDF, one study done in the EU 2 years earlier tested 300 000 samples and only 1 contained traces of Clen, and it was not from Spain.

http://www.velonation.com/News/ID/6385/El-Pais-WADA-report-casts-serious-doubt-on-Contadors-claim-that-meat-cause-Clenbuterol-positive.aspx

 

3. Forget all sorts of things, show me a report (other than that of Contador ) for Clen in meat originating from Europe.

[zee]

Fake magnanimity

found this blog by Gerard Vroomen very interesting and to the point!

 

Fake magnanimity

July 4, 2011 Now, first off, there was no reason not to take advantage of the crash on Saturday. That’s part of racing, everybody knows crashes happen. Staying in the front is part of the job in the first week of the Tour if you want to win the overall.

 

Yet it is a little surprising that some of the riders who after “Chaingate” claimed they would slow down if their arch rival encountered a calamity couldn’t wait to get their teammates to the front to distance Contador. It’s a lot easier to be generous in theory than in practice.

 

It fits right into my concept from last year that anybody is willing to be magnanimous when they know it won’t affect the outcome. Win the Tour AND look like a gentleman, that’s the ultimate.But if one of the two has to be sacrificed, it’s exit Gentleman. And why not, it’s not a butlering contest. Just don’t bore us with the “I wouldn’t have done that” crap.

 

Ultimately this is good news for Contador. First off, it shows he is no worse than other riders for not waiting last year (I should specify “during Chaingate”, as he did wait for Schleck during “Slipperyroadgate” on stage 2, which was also explained through last year’s concept). And secondly, if his opponents were convinced they could beat him in a straight-up fight, they wouldn’t have needed their helpers to put time into him on Saturday. So the team leaders have voted, and they think it will take a calamity to keep Contador from winning this year

[NotSoBigBen]

Oh

 

And I know this from personal experience

[nochain]

Yip, he has to do a couple of Armstrong style attacks and get minutes over the field in the mountains. Gonna be something to behold. I've said it before, and his results bear it out, Contador only enters races to win, or die trying. This is not over by a long way.

 

This I like about the current situation. And as an Andy fan I hate the fact that Conto had to lose time this way. He should be 20 something seconds down now not 1min 40.

 

But this puts Conto in a situation that he has no choice, he has to attack and attack early on the climbs.

10 or 20 sec won’t do the trick here now he needs to go 8 to 10km from the top…like you said, much like the old Armstrong attacks or a Pantani/Rassmussen.

I don’t think he has it in him….the Conto fans say I am crazy to think he is not a “long range” climber. So let’s wait and see..

 

Up to now I have only seen him spend loads of time on Andy’s wheel and Attack within 3 km from the top( at the tour at least where the speed is so much higher it makes it a lot more difficult)…Andy however we have seen more than once go out with 10km to go and pace in front for the whole of the climb.

 

Just one thing that I think is bad for Conto…..How is it that when he crashed with 10km to go that he only had 2 teammates to help him pace back?

A team like BMC or Sky has shown what you can do within 5km of chasing if you manage to put 7 teammates on the front!!

Where was the rest of he’s team?

[TNT1]

2008 Tour de France champion Carlos Sastre has criticised the way that the rules were applied on stage one of the Tour de France, resulting in defending Tour champion Alberto Contador losing a significant amount of time compared to his main rivals. Writing in his current role during the Tour as a consultant for Spanish national TV, Sastre said he believes that some bodies are taking a stance "against Alberto at all costs". He added that his compatriot is not being shown the respect he deserves.

 

Currently riding for his Geox-TMC team at the Tour of Austria, Sastre said he had been talking there with two former teammates about the Tour's opening stage, and all agreed that Contador appeared to have been treated unfairly according to their knowledge and experience of the sport's regulations. "We agreed that Alberto Contador has not been sanctioned [for his positive test for clenbuterol], which gives him every freedom and right to compete. Contador has been and continues to be a scapegoat, and it seems that the only way of dethroning him is to take a stand against him and not support him on any decisions," said Sastre.

 

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/sastre-theres-a-lack-of-respect-for-contador

 

I agree, and I think Riis should have appealed on Saturday as was his original intention.

[nochain]

2008 Tour de France champion Carlos Sastre has criticised the way that the rules were applied on stage one of the Tour de France, resulting in defending Tour champion Alberto Contador losing a significant amount of time compared to his main rivals. Writing in his current role during the Tour as a consultant for Spanish national TV, Sastre said he believes that some bodies are taking a stance "against Alberto at all costs". He added that his compatriot is not being shown the respect he deserves.

 

Currently riding for his Geox-TMC team at the Tour of Austria, Sastre said he had been talking there with two former teammates about the Tour's opening stage, and all agreed that Contador appeared to have been treated unfairly according to their knowledge and experience of the sport's regulations. "We agreed that Alberto Contador has not been sanctioned [for his positive test for clenbuterol], which gives him every freedom and right to compete. Contador has been and continues to be a scapegoat, and it seems that the only way of dethroning him is to take a stand against him and not support him on any decisions," said Sastre.

 

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/sastre-theres-a-lack-of-respect-for-contador

 

I agree, and I think Riis should have appealed on Saturday as was his original intention.

I don't really get this?crashing 10km out and loosing time is nothing new and the 3 km rule has been with us for some time.The 3km rule has been used in the past during a fast short uphill finish so why not now?

Maybe they should clearly mark stages beforehand as 3km rule stages.

Even if they ended up giving Andy and the other contenders that crashed with 2 km to go the same time as Contador riders Like Frank and Cadel would still be 1min40 up on him.

[GrumpyOldGuy]

I don't really get this?crashing 10km out and loosing time is nothing new and the 3 km rule has been with us for some time.The 3km rule has been used in the past during a fast short uphill finish so why not now?

Maybe they should clearly mark stages beforehand as 3km rule stages.

Even if they ended up giving Andy and the other contenders that crashed with 2 km to go the same time as Contador riders Like Frank and Cadel would still be 1min40 up on him.

 

Yeah but from my understanding the confusion arises from the fact some are saying it was an uphill finish and hense there were splits, so actual time should have been recorded, almost like stage 4.

 

But, its done and dusted, the rules were applied in a certain way and I have yet to hear 'Berto complain, whatever the outcome of this tour, I think 'Berto has maintained the higher ground, and he will make friends with that attitude, not only in the peleton but also amongst fans, and the fence sitters,....thats not a bad thing either.

[TNT1]

But, its done and dusted, the rules were applied in a certain way and I have yet to hear 'Berto complain, whatever the outcome of this tour, I think 'Berto has maintained the higher ground, and he will make friends with that attitude, not only in the peleton but also amongst fans, and the fence sitters,....thats not a bad thing either.

 

 

+1

[KnobbyMech]

I just hope El Pistolero does not quit because of this time loss. I want to see him and Andy fight it out in the mountains. Andy didnt quit last year when his bikes chain came off and he was attacked. It was actually a very amateurish mistake to be so far back in the pelaton. The top riders always hang around up front to keep out of danger.

 

Did anyone see how nearnly Hushovd escaped that crash. Yellow jersey could look a lot different. What if there were a mid-pack crash yesterday 8km from the end? We would have to say bye-bye Evans. Tha'ts the fun part of the tour, anything can happen to anyone, anytime.

[Garfield2010]

mmmmmmmmm for someone who knows nothing about cycling (as the pros/cycling gods on this blog have pointed out) my predictions were pretty cloise about yesterdays stage.

 

Contador did attack. But did you guys notice how tired he looked? I now more than ever think the Giro took too much out of him. Watch Andy peak in week 3.....

 

I think this will be an Andy, Evans and Wiggins show.........