Truth and Recon-Cycle-ation Commission
It seems that the Tour de France no longer recongizes Dutchman Bjarne Riis as the winner of the 1996 Tour after he and six members of his Team Telekom announced that they used the banned blood-doping agent EPO from 1993-1998. I guess that means the 1996 winner is now runner-up Jan Ullrich of Germany.
Wait, but Jan Ullrich was caught up in the Operacion Puerto scandal and prohibited from competing in the 2006 Tour one day before it started. Ullrich denies any connection, but perhaps even more telling is that in 1996, Ullrich was also on Riis's Team Telekom. Hm, perhaps we should look further down the list for the 1996 winner.
Third place in 1996 was France's Richard Vireneque. However, in 1998, the heath assistant for his team Festina Wily Voet was stopped at the French-Belgian border in a Festina car full of all sorts of banned substances. He accused Vireneque of being involved, a charge that Vireneque denies.
So who finished fourth in 1996? Switzerland's Laurant Dufaux. Congratulations, Lauran--oh, wait, Dufaux raced for team Festina with Vireneque? I've not found any mention of him in the Voet scandal, but I only looked for about 5 minutes in the Wikipedia. I'd feel safer skipping him.
Up next? Fifth place finisher Peter Luttenberger of Austria. I can find no obvious reference to any illegal substances taken by Luttenberger or his Carrera team. Congratulations, Peter!
Obviously what cycling needs is a Truth and Reconciliation Commission. If you're a professional cyclist, just come forward by the end of 2007, admit what you took, when you took it, etc., and we'll respect your honesty enough to look the other way on your past successes. The people that you beat shouldn't be too upset either because they probably used something, too. Your only punishment will be an increase in the number of tests you have to take in the future.
Wait, but Jan Ullrich was caught up in the Operacion Puerto scandal and prohibited from competing in the 2006 Tour one day before it started. Ullrich denies any connection, but perhaps even more telling is that in 1996, Ullrich was also on Riis's Team Telekom. Hm, perhaps we should look further down the list for the 1996 winner.
Third place in 1996 was France's Richard Vireneque. However, in 1998, the heath assistant for his team Festina Wily Voet was stopped at the French-Belgian border in a Festina car full of all sorts of banned substances. He accused Vireneque of being involved, a charge that Vireneque denies.
So who finished fourth in 1996? Switzerland's Laurant Dufaux. Congratulations, Lauran--oh, wait, Dufaux raced for team Festina with Vireneque? I've not found any mention of him in the Voet scandal, but I only looked for about 5 minutes in the Wikipedia. I'd feel safer skipping him.
Up next? Fifth place finisher Peter Luttenberger of Austria. I can find no obvious reference to any illegal substances taken by Luttenberger or his Carrera team. Congratulations, Peter!
Obviously what cycling needs is a Truth and Reconciliation Commission. If you're a professional cyclist, just come forward by the end of 2007, admit what you took, when you took it, etc., and we'll respect your honesty enough to look the other way on your past successes. The people that you beat shouldn't be too upset either because they probably used something, too. Your only punishment will be an increase in the number of tests you have to take in the future.
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