procycling @lemmy.world perishthethought @lemm.ee 2d ago

The Tour de France Explained

Welcome new fans! Check this out if your confused by all the TDF terms and so on.

Edit: fix a typo

You're viewing a single thread.

5 comments

Genuine question: Has there ever been a TDF winner who hasn't been found to have doped 10 years later?
- Yes, I think (though I have no list handy). But to your point, some sort of enhancement has been used in pro cycling for most of its history.
  
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_doping_cases_in_cycling
  
  Notice how that list shows fewer hits in the last few years? I would like to believe the sport is getting better at catching cheaters, but I have no proof of that.
  
  To add, this is my favorite story on that list:
  
  Sean Kelly of Ireland was described in Willy Voet's book 'Massacre à la Chaine': He won the Tour of Lombardy three times (1983, 1985, 1991 (also won amateur version in 1976)) and on at least one occasion he did it with the help of a corticoide injection. Kelly was controlled positive after Paris–Brussels in 1984 and that came as a surprise because he used the urine of a mechanic. But the mechanic was using a banned substance himself because he had to work long hours at night and needed the lift to stay awake."
  
  I like your optimistic view, however, I see how records are broken and races are faster than ever. Some teams improve drastically their performance from one year to the next and for others is just the opposite.
  
  There are no positive doping tests on popular sports (football,...), so it seems that cycling has taken the same approach towards that improves its public image.
  
  Anyway, this is all speculation, of course.
  
  I continue to watch it without thinking too much about it.
  
  Thanks