2010 Tour De France (Official) thread

semilog said:
The problems arise when cheating is not easily detectable, so the rules are unenforceable.
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I've often heard it proposed that the classic solution to that is much harsher sanctions.

Caught doping? Go to jail, and/or get banned from racing anywhere for a year. In all future races you have to wear a large black emblem on your jersey. Caught doping years after the fact? No grace period. Go to jail. Your victories are forfeit. You get an entry on the UCI's Cheaters' Blacklist. You pay a fine equal to several times the prize money for the race you were caught in. A competitor choosen at random gets the right to sleep with your wife. In short, you can choose to cheat, but it comes at a real and painful cost to yourself.

This would lead to an atmosphere of fear. However, at present the whole sport is already based on the premise that there is no respect for the rules, and that basically everybody is a liar and a fraud. I'm not sure which I'd prefer. (At the moment I'd prefer to watch something elseinstead.)
 
rxmd said:
I've often heard it proposed that the classic solution to that is much harsher sanctions.
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The potential problem there is that the drugs that are easiest to detect are not necessarily the drugs that do most to enhance performance. There is the potential to end up with a situation where the most accomplished cheaters end up with an even greater advantage.

It's relatively straightforward to detect steroids (Landis). It's a lot harder to detect EPO, which can be detected when it's there, but does not persist in the body for a long time.

Tough problem.

I think I'll just watch the race, enjoy the raw talent on display, and not worry too much about the GC.
 
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He won the time back in the TT.

These pro riders ride what their team buys. There are questions about the SRAM rear derailleurs but if Schleck's team contracts with SRAM next year that's what he'll be using.
 
peter_n said:
He won the time back in the TT. These pro riders ride what their team buys. There are questions about the SRAM rear derailleurs but if Schleck's team contracts with SRAM next year that's what he'll be using.
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Well, Contador finished with a 39 s lead. 39 s is precisely what he gained from Schleck's mechanical. I'd argue that a true champion would have made it a point to win by a more compelling margin under these circumstances.

And yes, I know that riders ride what sponsors provide, mostly. Though there have been a *lot* of re-painted custom frames in the peloton over the years (e.g., Andy Hampsten's Rock Lobster, many re-branded Serottas, etc.), and it is the case that in some cases the very top riders have encouraged their teams to seek sponsorship from different equipment suppliers, or replaced specific components with non-sponsored versions.
 
Yep Andy Schleck wins the White jersey for the third and last time because next year he will be too old to qualify for it. He has plenty of years on his hands to win yellow but he will be in with a great chance again next year to win it. At the moment Schleck and Contador are in a different league to the rest.
 
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