... men fakta kvarstår - kosten är en vital del i hur body och mind intigrerar och fungerar. Och han har kanske en sund strategi i detta vår Hamrén som nu tar bort sötsaker och söta drycker ur den meny som presenteras och erbjuds vårt forbollsspelande landslag vid läger och samlingar. Även om vi och norrmännen kan tycka att det låter en aning konstigt att vuxna män och fotbollsproffs måste bli tillsagda vad de ska äta så har ju faktiskt Aftonbladet en poäng i sin fråga: "Nämnde vi att Norge inte har spelat ett mästerskap sedan EM 2000?"
En som verkligen fann balansen häromdagen var Procyklisten Thor Hushovd som med sitt Cervelo Team tog en fin etappseger i Spanien Runt. Spurtstark och som ett levande bevis att "Food is fuel" rammade han mållinjen med sitt karakterisktiska Hushovd leende. Formen på topp alltså inför stundande cykel-VM. Annars har ju cyklingen brottas med just frågan om vad man ska och inte ska stoppa i munnen. UCI har det senaste åren arbetat starkt på sitt antidopingprogram och de antal tester som utförs på de aktiva är massiva. Resultateten låter inte vänta på sig och det är precis detta som faktiskt fått cykling att framstå som en oerhört smutsig sport med många dopingfall och fusk. Men, det är ju helt tvärtom vi ska titta på detta. Att vända på steken - ägget eller den friterade bananen och faktiskt applådera UCI för det rigorösa program som börja ta form och se de positiva testerna som just... något positivt. Att våga ta steget för en dopingfri sport kräver mod. Det kommer även att kräva positiva svar och en rensning av atleter. Vad UCI gör är en förebild för andra förbund och vi önksar att även dessa "vågade" satsa.
Friidrottens stjärnor fortsätter att verbalt uttala sig negativt och utmanade om sina konkurrenter och där har man inga problem med att "ta skeden ur mun". Bolt hävdar fortfarande att han är oerhört oimponerad av Tyson Gay. Även om Bolt förlorat mot Gay båda gånger dessa mötes på DN Galan (2008/10)så ser han ingen direkt konkurrens mellan de två. "Ingen fara, säger Bolt. Detta är inget mästerskapsår, det här är mitt lediga år, så det är inga problem..."
En som vi dock imponeras av är danska tennisspelaren Caroline Wozniacki som visar sin styrka på årets US Open. Vacker, glad och balanserad slår hon hårt och påpekar också mycket riktigt "Jag ger inte bort några gratispoäng. Det är en av mina styrkor"... Snacka om att fått i sig sin havregrynsgröt till frukost.
fredag 3 september 2010
måndag 23 augusti 2010
Johan Esk skriver i sin krönika "Vilka piller är okey?" - DN Mera Sport Söndag
- "Jag har så otroligt svårt för den skarpa gräns elitidrottaren själv håller vid liv. Allt är svart eller vitt. Allt på dopningslistan är fel. Alla piller, sprutor och salvor utanför är rätt. Gråzoner finns inte" ...Johan Esk bör påminnas om att det faktiskt är precis tvärtom. Gråzoner finns och det är det som är ett av det stora problemen vi måste tackla. Att reglera det idag enorma inflödet av kosttilskott och otillåtna preparat som formligen öses in i vårt land samt komma bort från den tes som Esk beskriver... -"Det är fortfarande helt okey att knapra en massa andra piller - och kalla det ren idrott". De receptbelagda och kontrollerade preparat som idag finns på den svenska marknaden skall tas med försiktighet - det vet alla elitidrottare. Är man pga skador eller sjukdom tvungen att ta sin medicin skall detta klart deklareras och man skall ha en dispens för att kunna ta detta. Regler är helt klara. Den oreglerade marknaden och dess preparat är däremot inte klart. Införsel och användande av dessa preparat har drastiskt ökat de senaste åren och vi vet också att användandet av dessa preparat inte enbart handlar om att ta dessa för snabba resultat på den sportsliga arenan - det handlar lika mycket om snabba resultat för att uppnå kroppsideal och stärka självkänslan, speciellt hos unga. Vi är också oerhört medveten om att dessa preparat till stor omfattning är förorenade tillskott där risken för "misstags" doping är stor. Vi hör ofta berättelser om vitamin/mineral tillskott som visat sig innehålla förbjudna substanser. Att idrottstjärnor "väljer" att knapra piller måste vi ifrågasätta då många elitidrottare är oerhört medveten om konsekvenserna. Som Esk beskriver detta "Fallet Rahm är lika upprörande som när en b-kändis snortat knark någonstans på Stureplan"... fast egenligen har Esk missat en stor del av den tradegi som faktiskt följer en aktiv hockeyspelare som Rahm. Han blir avstängd och han blir dömd som fuskare och han kommer att känna av sitt svek mot det svenska folket. Så nej Johan Esk, det är inte okey att "knapra en massa piller - och kalla det en ren idrott" och vi har ett stort arbete i att minska den stora gråzon som faktiskt finns.
måndag 19 juli 2010
"Kaxig Supertalang" - Representerar ny generation med Attityd! ...
Äntligen! Läste häromdagen om en av sveriges unga friidrottare på gång. "Supertalang och kaxig citatmaskin" - en sextonåring, med attityd och med målet att sätta nytt världsrekord! Me like! Friidrotten i Sverige behöver dessa talanger - Orädda och kaxiga. Den enorma tomhet som skapades då vår senaste "generation" friidrottare med attityd och resulatat försvann har varit ekande och ihålig! Men nu kommer dom ... äntligen! En som alltid varit kaxig, men tillika en hyllad stjärna är Zlatan. Helt klart har hans attityd till sitt spel, sig själv och opåverkad av medias roll drivit honom till den han är idag. Om än ett "par kilo för tung" ser vi fram emot Zlatans one-liners och återkomst i FC Barcelona! Här råder attityd! En annan mästarinna vi hoppas återfår sin, om något, lugnare attityd är Skidskytten Helena Jonsson. Efter fjolårets supersäsong men oh så tråkiga OS-insats har Jonsson säkerligen arbetat hårt på sin mentala styrka och att återfå glädjen till sporten och i livet. Jonsson som föressten blev Ekholm häromdagen ser fram emot uppstart och säsong... "ja, smekmånad får det bli nästa gång jag är ledig!" Det kallar jag attityd! Vi slår ofta hårt på ordet attityd. Vi driver en som alltid hårt jämtelag och det är på något sätt lite fult att våga tro på sig själv, uttrycka sina mål och bli besviken över att dom inte alltid blir verklighet. Helt fel! Låt ungdomarna ha sin attityd. Låt dom tro på sig själva och uppmuntra! Min gamla farmor lär ha sagt en gång: "Man kan alltid ta bort men aldrig lägga till" syftande på barnens ibland naiva entusiasm, sprudlande glädje, pratgladhet och driv att prova och lyckas! Låt denna naiva sköna attityd växa med. Låt den ledas in en målmedveten ambition att bli bäst! Detta är attityd vi behöver i svensk idrott!
tisdag 6 juli 2010
"Lika surt som en gamal kartong mjölk..."
...lär Armstrong sagt om Landis anklagelser att han använt sig av bloddoping under bla. Tour de France 2004. Ursinning och med ett driv som bara Lance har trampade han sig sedan in som fyra under prologen av Tour de France. Gårdagens andra etapp slutade otäckt då regnet gjorde en vägsträcka riktigt brutalt hal. Många var fallen och Armstrong själv beskriver det som "ett krig". - Det låg folk överallt, säger amerikanen till AP. De många krascherna ledde till att klungan i någon form av samlad protest vägrade dra på de sista milen in till mål utan inväntade de kraschade och skadade kamraterna. Andy Schleck hade slecka däck och gjorde illa sig rejält men tackade klungan och Schleck snackar Fair play. -We say; go for it! Armstrong style!
Ikväll fortsätter VM; Uruguay- Holland. Uruguay brottas med skador och avstängningar och Holland har varit oerhört starka. Spelar Uruguay som matchen mot Ghana har dom inte en chans... frågan är om dom överhuvudtaget skulle ha gått vidare. En som däremot beslutat att tacka för sig är Maradona. "Min tid är över - jag har gett allt" säger han själv. Vad vi vet har Maradona ännu inte lämnat in sin avskedsansökan.
Ett annat uppmärksammat fall som åter tas upp i tidningarna är den sydafrikanska löperska Caster Semenyas fall. Efter 11 månaders avstängning för att utvisa om Caster är man eller kvinna! uppges nu undersökningarna vara klara och att resultatet är fastslaget: Semenyas är kvinna. Uppgifterna publiceras i Daily Telegraph i dag. Tidningen hävdar att Semenya, 19, inom de närmaste dagarna kommer att förklaras fri att tävla mot kvinnor igen. Men vi måste alla fråga oss om drivet finns kvar. Efter allt detta som hon fått utstå. Anklagelser, utredning, skriverier, misstro och rigorösa undersökningar av internationella förbundet. Hon gjorde verkligen succé under VM i Berlin men frågan är om det var värt priset.
Priset däremot var nog det rätta då det nu står klart att Ingemar Stenmark - den nu 54-årige slalomgurun tackat ja till att delta i Mästarnas Mästare! Här finns inga sura kartonger inte, inte heller kommer dessa profiler att bry sig om lite regn. Nä, vi ser fram emot Stenmarks intagande av mästarborgen och utmaningarna som kommer. "De e bar å åk"! ... Samtidigt som vi inväntar dagens tredje etapp av Touren och hoppas att våra procyklister gör detsamma!
Ikväll fortsätter VM; Uruguay- Holland. Uruguay brottas med skador och avstängningar och Holland har varit oerhört starka. Spelar Uruguay som matchen mot Ghana har dom inte en chans... frågan är om dom överhuvudtaget skulle ha gått vidare. En som däremot beslutat att tacka för sig är Maradona. "Min tid är över - jag har gett allt" säger han själv. Vad vi vet har Maradona ännu inte lämnat in sin avskedsansökan.
Ett annat uppmärksammat fall som åter tas upp i tidningarna är den sydafrikanska löperska Caster Semenyas fall. Efter 11 månaders avstängning för att utvisa om Caster är man eller kvinna! uppges nu undersökningarna vara klara och att resultatet är fastslaget: Semenyas är kvinna. Uppgifterna publiceras i Daily Telegraph i dag. Tidningen hävdar att Semenya, 19, inom de närmaste dagarna kommer att förklaras fri att tävla mot kvinnor igen. Men vi måste alla fråga oss om drivet finns kvar. Efter allt detta som hon fått utstå. Anklagelser, utredning, skriverier, misstro och rigorösa undersökningar av internationella förbundet. Hon gjorde verkligen succé under VM i Berlin men frågan är om det var värt priset.
Priset däremot var nog det rätta då det nu står klart att Ingemar Stenmark - den nu 54-årige slalomgurun tackat ja till att delta i Mästarnas Mästare! Här finns inga sura kartonger inte, inte heller kommer dessa profiler att bry sig om lite regn. Nä, vi ser fram emot Stenmarks intagande av mästarborgen och utmaningarna som kommer. "De e bar å åk"! ... Samtidigt som vi inväntar dagens tredje etapp av Touren och hoppas att våra procyklister gör detsamma!
tisdag 29 juni 2010
Varken världen, eller månen för den del", blev förvånade!
..."Mutor bakom ryskt OS-Fiasko" rubriken slår emot oss och sticker liksom ut trots att de flesta spaltmeter nu intensifieras av VMs framfart och det faktum att Brasilien formligen körde över lillebror Chile där Robinho gjorde ett av Brasiliens tre mål. Men vad är Robinho mot Rubel... 950 miljader rubel nämligen som Ryssland planerar att spendera inför OS-2014 i Sotji. Som ni vet gjorde Ryssland sitt sämsta vinter-OS i någonsin i Vancouver, trots en rekordbudget på närmare 825 milj kronor. Men nu visar en statlig undersökning på att pengarna gått till annat och mutor. Pengar att hämta således för oärliga företag och personer."Varken världen, eller månen för den del", blev förvånade. Inom ett par dagar drar Tour De France igång. Förra året fanns vi på plats i MC och kunde från första parkett njuta av första dagens prolog som tog de klättrande mästarna upp från hamnen via casinot till målet 9 k upp. Vi njöt av Lance Armstrongs fräcka comeback at 38. 2006 vann italienaren Ivan Basso Giro d'Italia, men stängdes sedan av från Tour de France av sitt stall CSC endast dagar innan starten av TDF 06. Misstänkt för inblandning i en dopningsaffär kallad Operación Puerto. Vi hade alla följt hans oansträngda klättring i Pyreneerna och andats åt honom. Vid avslöjande om hans dopingaffärer kom förklaringen...Hm! "Varken världen, eller månen för den del", blev förvånade. Nu är Basso tillbaka. "Min form är bra", säger han själv. Lance meddelar dock att detta blir hans sista Tour. Året har varit turbulent för denna otroligt målmedvetne amerikan och Floyd Landis utspel kring sitt eget erkännande har säkerligen tagit hårt på Armstrong. Men han är strong! en vinnarskalle, no doubt och skulle det förvåna oss om Lance är bland de 5 när målet i Paris närmar sig...nej vet ni - "Varken världen, eller månen för den del", skulle bli förvånade.
torsdag 24 juni 2010
Honda moves skapar Samuraj känsla...swisch!
men Maradonnas tar Argentina till kvartsfinal... skarpt och snabbt och med bollkänsla. Man drogs med i stämmningen då matchen mellan Japan och Danmark kommer att klassas som en av de bästa och mest sevärda matcherna under detta VM. Offensiv taktkänsla är uppfriskande. Lika fräscht faktiskt som att Svenska Spel, med sin traditionella helylle image slänger ut både Marknadschefen och sin VD. Det finns mycket att spela på... eller kanske rättare sagt arbeta på i det bolaget. Att finna det rätta spelarna är key.Men även om Engelska media sågar sina så är vi inte lika drastiska i Sverige vad gäller att skam-förklara de våra. Om nu inte sveket har med doping att göra. För där har vi ingen förståelse eller förlåtande inställning. - Och det är bra! Sverige och svenska sporten har under alla tider uppfattats som ren och här spelar vi under schyssta former. Alla får vara med och alla skall träna och tävla under lika vilkor. All elitsatsning granskas under lupp och skapar stora mediala rubriker. Fågan är dock när ska man satsa? I slutet på den första halvleken gjorde Frank Lampard 2–2 till England mot Tyskland.Men linjemannen missade det och bjöd därmed på VM:s största skandal. Bollen var flera decimeter över mållinjen.
"Det var mål, utan tvekan", - men stackars linjemannen från Uruguay såg ingenting och blev därmed skyldig till en enorm skandal. Men, -Det är inte lätt att spela schysst alla gånger. VM rasar vidare men mina tankar går mot den stundande Touren. Det är bara dagar kvar nu till Tour de France. Läste precis att Cancellara är på gång och att han inte påverkats av det ihärdiga ryktet om en motordriven cykel. I New York Times skriver man: "So much doping, so much cheating, so many suspicions, so many accusations. Can any fan of bicycle racing feel free to believe in the goodness of the sport today?".Naturligtvis! Sviktar vår tilltro till prestationer då dör sporten. VM rasar vidare och vi ser fram emot nya moves och säkerligen omdiskuterade domartavlor men spelet är det viktigaste och vår tilltro till dessa underbara idrottsmäns prestationer!
"Det var mål, utan tvekan", - men stackars linjemannen från Uruguay såg ingenting och blev därmed skyldig till en enorm skandal. Men, -Det är inte lätt att spela schysst alla gånger. VM rasar vidare men mina tankar går mot den stundande Touren. Det är bara dagar kvar nu till Tour de France. Läste precis att Cancellara är på gång och att han inte påverkats av det ihärdiga ryktet om en motordriven cykel. I New York Times skriver man: "So much doping, so much cheating, so many suspicions, so many accusations. Can any fan of bicycle racing feel free to believe in the goodness of the sport today?".Naturligtvis! Sviktar vår tilltro till prestationer då dör sporten. VM rasar vidare och vi ser fram emot nya moves och säkerligen omdiskuterade domartavlor men spelet är det viktigaste och vår tilltro till dessa underbara idrottsmäns prestationer!
tisdag 15 juni 2010
Fotboll, fotboll och pissiga dagar för och på Green!
... det är spaltmeter nu. -Fotboll och den åh så irriterande tutan. Sedan starten av VM har vi alla gått i ett konstant surr/humm med fokusering på boll. - Det kan inte vara lätt. Som tv tittare är det enormt irriterande - som spelare måste det vara än värre. "Honka, Honka, Brääääll"... läste en gång en otroligt roliga bok "Fru Sunesson cyklar" och där fann hon, tillsammans med hunden Hubert, att en sån tuta var "precis vad vi behöver" "Honka, Honka, Bräääll"... frågan är - behöver VM den. Men annars går det bra där borta i Sydafrika. Än så länge är vi befriade från skanaler... vad vi vet, och det har trots farhågor om oroligheter varit relativt lugnt... vad vi vet, och de inledande matcherna varit bra. Själv satt jag naturligtvis som klistrad framför England-USA och simply love den målvaktstavla Green bjöd oss på. Rubrikerna "Miss USA" med den klassiska axelbannern var enormt roliga men Green själv tyckte säkert inte så. Hade nog önskat att tutorna dränkt lite av den missen. På dopingfronten är allt lugnt. Det brukar vara det i fotboll. Det enda pissande vi läst om är Rooneys teebreak spelande golf med just Green. - VM har inletts!!
torsdag 10 juni 2010
"ANNARS KOMMER VI ATT VARA HJÄLPLÖST FÖRLORADE MOT EN HET NY MARKNAD...
...som breder ut sig", säger Folkhälsominister Maria Larsson till Ekot. Och visst breder den ut sig, marknaden av otillåtna preparat och doping på internet. Under många år har vi förfasats över hur enkelt man kan ta in, sälja vidare och använda preparat utan som helst kontroll. Preparat som letat sig ut från den sportsliga arena in samhället och ut bland "oss vanliga". I Ren Idrotts undersökningar (UM 05/07/09) har vi sett en ökad tolerans och ett ökat användande av doping. Och ökningen hadlar inte bara om att ta preparat för att bli bäst i sin sport - det handlar om att snabbt nå upp till de ansedda kroppsideal som oftas utpekas i media. Smala tjejer och muskulösa killar. Närmare 70% av tillfrågade killar 15-17år menar att killar med mycket muskler har lättare att få tjejer. Tillika svarar närmare 6% av tillfrågade tjejer att dom visst skulle kunna tänka sig vara tillsammans med någon som dopar sig.(RI undersökning "Barn och ungdomar om doping" 2009). Detta är skrämmande siffror. Konsekvenser av använande av dessa preparat kan vara förödande och tjejer tillsammans med killar som använder preparat är en otäck tanke. - Här kan vad som helst hända!
I dagens media står vidare att läsa:
-Folkhälsoministern erkänner att det finns en risk att medel som inte borde beslagtas ändå tas om hand men tycker att det är en risk man får ta.
Bra Folkhälsoministern!!
http://www.dn.se/nyheter/sverige/ratt-att-ta-lagliga-droger-i-beslag-1.1119346
I dagens media står vidare att läsa:
-Folkhälsoministern erkänner att det finns en risk att medel som inte borde beslagtas ändå tas om hand men tycker att det är en risk man får ta.
Bra Folkhälsoministern!!
http://www.dn.se/nyheter/sverige/ratt-att-ta-lagliga-droger-i-beslag-1.1119346
onsdag 9 juni 2010
REN IDROTT BLOGGAR IGEN!
... och vi har så mycket att prata om!
Läser mycket fotboll i tdningarna dessa dagar. Spalterna fylls av förväntan inför stundande VM och vi med dem. Det ska naturligtvis bli oerhört spännande att följa! Men mycket är på gång även här på hemmaplan! LOVE Stockholm drog igång denna vecka. Allt inför det stundande bröllopet mellan Kronprincessan och hennes Daniel fylls staden av kärlek och aktiviteter - Ren Idrott finns med! Fredag den 18:e ska du ta dig till Kungsträdgården. Ren Idrott, tillsammans med Skandia, slår ett slag för en dopingfrisport och på plats finns vår ambassadör Jonas Björkman! Missa inte det!
Bifogar Doping News! På återhörande!
//Ren Idrott!
Läser mycket fotboll i tdningarna dessa dagar. Spalterna fylls av förväntan inför stundande VM och vi med dem. Det ska naturligtvis bli oerhört spännande att följa! Men mycket är på gång även här på hemmaplan! LOVE Stockholm drog igång denna vecka. Allt inför det stundande bröllopet mellan Kronprincessan och hennes Daniel fylls staden av kärlek och aktiviteter - Ren Idrott finns med! Fredag den 18:e ska du ta dig till Kungsträdgården. Ren Idrott, tillsammans med Skandia, slår ett slag för en dopingfrisport och på plats finns vår ambassadör Jonas Björkman! Missa inte det!
Bifogar Doping News! På återhörande!
//Ren Idrott!
onsdag 27 januari 2010
Bjarne Riis: Making cycling better
Saxo Bank manager on blood profiling, nurturing young talent and post-ban comebacks
Saxo Bank team boss Bjarne Riis believes that the team can develop its younger riders and that the biological passport is a useful tool when it comes to signing riders. Riis, who is stepping up his search for a sponsor after it was confirmed that Saxo Bank would pull out of the sport at the end of the year, also credited his progressive methods with laying the foundation of the International Cycling Union's (UCI) biological passport. The Dane also put forward his stance on riders coming back from suspensions.
Riis was speaking at the team's recent training camp in Fuerteventura as his riders built up for their 2010 seasons.
"I'm proud of being in cycling. It's my life. I feel obligated to give back. The sport gave me so much," said Riis. "We get so much criticism but what do they do about it to make the sport better? We do things to make it better. If you want to be allowed to criticise it's because you know better. Then come up with solutions. Otherwise shut up and let us do our jobs because we try to make it a better cycling and we're doing that."
When asked about his critics and sections of the media, Riis was resolute: "A lot don't understand me or don't want to understand me. I do my job and do what I think I should do. I can't please them all but I figured that out a long time ago."
Recruiting based on blood profiles, instinct
In 2009 Riis's team ended its association with Dr. Rasmus Damsgaard. He had pioneered the squad's regime of blood profiling and Riis credited his work for creating the building the building block behind the UCI's biological passport, which opened its first doping cases in 2009. Damsgaard had always said that once the passport was in place he would step away from working closely with Riis's team.
"I think we showed the way by building our system with Rasmus and I think you can say that because of that we have the biological passport," he said. "It's a copy of what we did. Maybe ours was a little better but we did it in a way that we thought was the best but definitely the passport is a good thing. I won't say it's optimal but it's the best we have and it's definitely good."
Riis added that the passport data were used when signing riders, although it wasn't a mandatory part of his selection process. Instead, his gut instinct and his experience were crucial factors in not only determining a rider's honesty but also his potential and fit within the team. "We analyse the results when we sign riders but it depends on how far we go back. If I feel it's necessary, then we go back. It's just a tool. It doesn't absolutely make riders innocent but we still see that there are riders who cheat and who think they can come around it. It's just a tool but it's good to have.
"When you hire a rider it's a lot about gut feeling and if you use that and your common sense you're right most of the time," he added. "Sometimes you're wrong. You never know. My experience, it helps me. Not always but sometimes. I stick to my instincts. That doesn't mean they're always right."
Young talents coming up
Riis' instincts have drawn in a crop of young talent for this season, led by the likes of Richie Porte and Laurent Didier. The team manager is also expecting second-year professionals Dominic Klemme and Jacob Fuglsang to step up.
"I can't tell you where they can develop," Riis said when asked about Porte and Didier. "It's too early to say. They have talent but we have to work with them and then we can see which direction they go in. I think Didier can do okay. He finished his university studies last year so he's not really ridden that many kilometres. It's going to take him up to another level. I don't think we've seen his true potential or strength yet."
Porte signed after a stellar 2009 in which he won a time trial in the baby Giro, along with a string of other good performances, and only turned to cycling three years ago. Riis believes that the Australian houses raw talent that sets him apart.
"He's very young but I think he's an obvious talent who is good at time trialing and climbing," he said. "He has so much to learn. He's very green but give him a couple of years he might step into the scene."
Riis rode for Toshiba in his early days as a professional and at the age of 24 was dropped by the team and told he did not have a future in the sport. That harsh treatment at the hands of director sportif Yves Hezard scared Riis and it's something that he's not eager to repeat as he tries to nurture the talent he has attracted.
"We take good care of them. That's really important," said Riis. "When I was a young pro my teams didn't really take good care of me like they should. These are things we do differently here. We follow them, give them a good structure and training and that's what they need to develop. That the most important thing we can do."
Second chances
One rider that Riis won't be looking to nurture though is Riccardo Riccò, who is set to make a comeback to racing in March after a ban. Riis, who is no stranger to controversy and admitted to taking erythropoietin (EPO) and other products in 2007, believes that the Italian deserves a second chance but that he wouldn't thrive in Saxo Bank's current set up.
"I don't think that he's the first rider on my list because he has a personality that might not fit into my team, but apart from that he had his ban and I think he and everybody should have a second chance to come back and prove that he's okay. Like some of the other guys, like Ivan Basso," he said.
Asked what he thought of Riccò's apparent lack of remorse, Basso's unwillingness to criticise and David Millar, who works with World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and has an outspoken stance on doping, the Dane had strong beliefs. "Ivan made a mistake, how can he then criticise other riders? I don't see the difference," said Riis. "Everyone makes Millar out to be a god but he should pay as the rest of us. They're in the same category.
"Ivan might be a different personality. Maybe he doesn't have the same need to speak up about others. It's bullshit; just because you shout out about other people doesn't make you less wrong than another guy. It doesn't make sense," he added.
By:Daniel Benson
Saxo Bank team boss Bjarne Riis believes that the team can develop its younger riders and that the biological passport is a useful tool when it comes to signing riders. Riis, who is stepping up his search for a sponsor after it was confirmed that Saxo Bank would pull out of the sport at the end of the year, also credited his progressive methods with laying the foundation of the International Cycling Union's (UCI) biological passport. The Dane also put forward his stance on riders coming back from suspensions.
Riis was speaking at the team's recent training camp in Fuerteventura as his riders built up for their 2010 seasons.
"I'm proud of being in cycling. It's my life. I feel obligated to give back. The sport gave me so much," said Riis. "We get so much criticism but what do they do about it to make the sport better? We do things to make it better. If you want to be allowed to criticise it's because you know better. Then come up with solutions. Otherwise shut up and let us do our jobs because we try to make it a better cycling and we're doing that."
When asked about his critics and sections of the media, Riis was resolute: "A lot don't understand me or don't want to understand me. I do my job and do what I think I should do. I can't please them all but I figured that out a long time ago."
Recruiting based on blood profiles, instinct
In 2009 Riis's team ended its association with Dr. Rasmus Damsgaard. He had pioneered the squad's regime of blood profiling and Riis credited his work for creating the building the building block behind the UCI's biological passport, which opened its first doping cases in 2009. Damsgaard had always said that once the passport was in place he would step away from working closely with Riis's team.
"I think we showed the way by building our system with Rasmus and I think you can say that because of that we have the biological passport," he said. "It's a copy of what we did. Maybe ours was a little better but we did it in a way that we thought was the best but definitely the passport is a good thing. I won't say it's optimal but it's the best we have and it's definitely good."
Riis added that the passport data were used when signing riders, although it wasn't a mandatory part of his selection process. Instead, his gut instinct and his experience were crucial factors in not only determining a rider's honesty but also his potential and fit within the team. "We analyse the results when we sign riders but it depends on how far we go back. If I feel it's necessary, then we go back. It's just a tool. It doesn't absolutely make riders innocent but we still see that there are riders who cheat and who think they can come around it. It's just a tool but it's good to have.
"When you hire a rider it's a lot about gut feeling and if you use that and your common sense you're right most of the time," he added. "Sometimes you're wrong. You never know. My experience, it helps me. Not always but sometimes. I stick to my instincts. That doesn't mean they're always right."
Young talents coming up
Riis' instincts have drawn in a crop of young talent for this season, led by the likes of Richie Porte and Laurent Didier. The team manager is also expecting second-year professionals Dominic Klemme and Jacob Fuglsang to step up.
"I can't tell you where they can develop," Riis said when asked about Porte and Didier. "It's too early to say. They have talent but we have to work with them and then we can see which direction they go in. I think Didier can do okay. He finished his university studies last year so he's not really ridden that many kilometres. It's going to take him up to another level. I don't think we've seen his true potential or strength yet."
Porte signed after a stellar 2009 in which he won a time trial in the baby Giro, along with a string of other good performances, and only turned to cycling three years ago. Riis believes that the Australian houses raw talent that sets him apart.
"He's very young but I think he's an obvious talent who is good at time trialing and climbing," he said. "He has so much to learn. He's very green but give him a couple of years he might step into the scene."
Riis rode for Toshiba in his early days as a professional and at the age of 24 was dropped by the team and told he did not have a future in the sport. That harsh treatment at the hands of director sportif Yves Hezard scared Riis and it's something that he's not eager to repeat as he tries to nurture the talent he has attracted.
"We take good care of them. That's really important," said Riis. "When I was a young pro my teams didn't really take good care of me like they should. These are things we do differently here. We follow them, give them a good structure and training and that's what they need to develop. That the most important thing we can do."
Second chances
One rider that Riis won't be looking to nurture though is Riccardo Riccò, who is set to make a comeback to racing in March after a ban. Riis, who is no stranger to controversy and admitted to taking erythropoietin (EPO) and other products in 2007, believes that the Italian deserves a second chance but that he wouldn't thrive in Saxo Bank's current set up.
"I don't think that he's the first rider on my list because he has a personality that might not fit into my team, but apart from that he had his ban and I think he and everybody should have a second chance to come back and prove that he's okay. Like some of the other guys, like Ivan Basso," he said.
Asked what he thought of Riccò's apparent lack of remorse, Basso's unwillingness to criticise and David Millar, who works with World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and has an outspoken stance on doping, the Dane had strong beliefs. "Ivan made a mistake, how can he then criticise other riders? I don't see the difference," said Riis. "Everyone makes Millar out to be a god but he should pay as the rest of us. They're in the same category.
"Ivan might be a different personality. Maybe he doesn't have the same need to speak up about others. It's bullshit; just because you shout out about other people doesn't make you less wrong than another guy. It doesn't make sense," he added.
By:Daniel Benson
onsdag 13 januari 2010
Despite Steroid Admission, It's Way Too Late To Pump Up Mark McGwire's Bid For Hall Of Fame
Former St. Louis Cardinals Mark McGwire is sworn in during a House Committee session investigating steroids in Major League Baseball in 2005.
At long last, Mark McGwire has elected to talk about the past - a past that isn't very pretty for baseball - and now the Hall of Fame voters are going to have to decide whether being an admitted cheater makes him any more worthy of a plaque in Cooperstown than a suspected cheater.
It's a little unclear as to why McGwire chose now to issue his mea culpa for having used steroids as he inflated his home run numbers to record-setting proportions in the '90s, other than his desire to return to baseball as the St. Louis Cardinals' batting coach cleansed of guilt. Undoubtedly, he'll attain sympathy in some quarters as Jason Giambi did when he was the only one of the players caught up in the BALCOprobe who admitted to the grand jury in San Francisco about having used steroids. But I highly doubt if it's going to make any appreciable difference in the 23-24% he's been getting in the Hall of Fame balloting.
If anything, when the voters reflect on what an absolute sham McGwire was, publicly embracing the Maris family in 1998 as he went about annihilating Roger Maris' longstanding single-season home record with the help of performance-enhancing drugs, they should be even more dismissive of him as a person deserving of any honor in baseball. In his statement Monday, McGwire said: "I wish I had never touched steroids. It was foolish and a mistake. I truly apologize. Looking back, I wish I had never played during the steroids era."
It seems to me the most important people he needs to apologize to are Roger Maris' two sons. After all, he robbed them of their father's legacy, as did Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds, although I'm not holding my breath for either of them to admit their cheating ways. (For what it's worth, Maris still has a place in the record books as the American League one-season home run record-holder.)
And when McGwire says he wishes he never played during the steroids era, I have to laugh. After all, he was the steroids era. Is he trying to suggest that he just happened to come along and get caught up in this web of performance-enhancing drugs that had been festering in baseball for years?
And whether he wants to admit it or not, McGwire's admission yesterday, along with Jose Canseco's past lurid tales of steroids use, has taken a big chunk out of Tony La Russa's legacy, as the "Bash Brothers" 1989 world championship with the Oakland A's is forever tainted. La Russa was still saying yesterday that he believed McGwire's home run prowess for him in Oakland and St. Louis was primarily the product of hard work in the weight room. It remains a weak defense from someone who has lived by the credo "respect the game."
McGwire cited the 228 games he missed over five years due to seven trips on the disabled list as his incentive to see if steroids could help him heal faster, and I suppose that's going to be the standard excuse used by all the other cheats who either come clean or get caught. And if the residual effect of taking steroids was being healthy and strong enough to make a mockery of the record book and enhance their salaries tenfold, well, who could help that?
I do believe McGwire's primary motivation for coming clean now was his desire to get back on the major league field with the Cardinals and teach hitting - which couldn't happen until he addressed the issue - and not necessarily an attempt to improve his image with the Hall of Fame voters. He has to know that finally talking about the past can never eradicate the past. Rather, it has served to further illuminate it and remind everyone, the players and their union, the media and, yes, the commissioner of baseball, that we were all complicit in looking the other way as all these cheats tarnished the game forever.
Admission of steroid use should never be construed as some form of healing process for baseball, either. There is no healing from this. But it's a whole lot better than the lying and denying.
Are you listening, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa? Or are you content to wait for your turn on the Hall of Fame ballot to see exactly how well you really fooled everyone?
bmadden@nydailynews.com
At long last, Mark McGwire has elected to talk about the past - a past that isn't very pretty for baseball - and now the Hall of Fame voters are going to have to decide whether being an admitted cheater makes him any more worthy of a plaque in Cooperstown than a suspected cheater.
It's a little unclear as to why McGwire chose now to issue his mea culpa for having used steroids as he inflated his home run numbers to record-setting proportions in the '90s, other than his desire to return to baseball as the St. Louis Cardinals' batting coach cleansed of guilt. Undoubtedly, he'll attain sympathy in some quarters as Jason Giambi did when he was the only one of the players caught up in the BALCOprobe who admitted to the grand jury in San Francisco about having used steroids. But I highly doubt if it's going to make any appreciable difference in the 23-24% he's been getting in the Hall of Fame balloting.
If anything, when the voters reflect on what an absolute sham McGwire was, publicly embracing the Maris family in 1998 as he went about annihilating Roger Maris' longstanding single-season home record with the help of performance-enhancing drugs, they should be even more dismissive of him as a person deserving of any honor in baseball. In his statement Monday, McGwire said: "I wish I had never touched steroids. It was foolish and a mistake. I truly apologize. Looking back, I wish I had never played during the steroids era."
It seems to me the most important people he needs to apologize to are Roger Maris' two sons. After all, he robbed them of their father's legacy, as did Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds, although I'm not holding my breath for either of them to admit their cheating ways. (For what it's worth, Maris still has a place in the record books as the American League one-season home run record-holder.)
And when McGwire says he wishes he never played during the steroids era, I have to laugh. After all, he was the steroids era. Is he trying to suggest that he just happened to come along and get caught up in this web of performance-enhancing drugs that had been festering in baseball for years?
And whether he wants to admit it or not, McGwire's admission yesterday, along with Jose Canseco's past lurid tales of steroids use, has taken a big chunk out of Tony La Russa's legacy, as the "Bash Brothers" 1989 world championship with the Oakland A's is forever tainted. La Russa was still saying yesterday that he believed McGwire's home run prowess for him in Oakland and St. Louis was primarily the product of hard work in the weight room. It remains a weak defense from someone who has lived by the credo "respect the game."
McGwire cited the 228 games he missed over five years due to seven trips on the disabled list as his incentive to see if steroids could help him heal faster, and I suppose that's going to be the standard excuse used by all the other cheats who either come clean or get caught. And if the residual effect of taking steroids was being healthy and strong enough to make a mockery of the record book and enhance their salaries tenfold, well, who could help that?
I do believe McGwire's primary motivation for coming clean now was his desire to get back on the major league field with the Cardinals and teach hitting - which couldn't happen until he addressed the issue - and not necessarily an attempt to improve his image with the Hall of Fame voters. He has to know that finally talking about the past can never eradicate the past. Rather, it has served to further illuminate it and remind everyone, the players and their union, the media and, yes, the commissioner of baseball, that we were all complicit in looking the other way as all these cheats tarnished the game forever.
Admission of steroid use should never be construed as some form of healing process for baseball, either. There is no healing from this. But it's a whole lot better than the lying and denying.
Are you listening, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa? Or are you content to wait for your turn on the Hall of Fame ballot to see exactly how well you really fooled everyone?
bmadden@nydailynews.com
tisdag 5 januari 2010
The Toll of Doping - was it worth it?
Were the experiences and competitive results I obtained with the help of doping worth the physical and mental anguish I’ve suffered during the past two years? The simple answer is “no”. While this probably seems like a no-brainer to the casual fan or weekend racer, it was not a conclusion I ever foresaw during those long nights spent hooked up to an IV or smarting from an intramuscular injection.
Doping can ruin your life...
and that’s the message I have for young athletes who might face similar choices
Don’t get me wrong - save from a few brief moments of clarity when I recoiled in disgust from my participation in systematic doping - I understand that I was willing to follow “the program” if it meant I could keep racing and practicing the sport I loved in an environment that seemed intoxicating to me.
Unbeknown to most, I had two significant opportunities to escape the system - one in the aftermath of a terrible crash in 2003 that almost cost me my left leg, and later in early 2006 after it was revealed publicly that a former teammate of mine had tested positive for EPO.
And though both times I took baby steps towards the door of mental and physical freedom from cheating, I lacked sufficient willpower, confidence and hope for a future without competitive cycling to break free. Maybe things would have been different if I’d had a stronger outside influence, or a better-calibrated moral compass, but the reality is that I didn’t, and I’m reminded of this each and every day of my life.
I don’t ask for sympathy from those of you who could never understand how a good person can make a fundamentally bad decision - or even a series of major mistakes - but I was amazed by the venomous hostility that characterized so much of the anonymous email sent to me care of my website.
I never realized that so many people felt so let down or angry with me for my own failings. I do offer my sincerest apologies to those people I directly harmed - my competitors who raced without the aid of performance enhancing drugs. I know you’re out there and I took food from your plate. (Though I met more dopers than clean professional cyclists during my time with a UCI license.)
Without cataloging the entire collection of woes that have befallen me as a result of doping, there are four that bear mentioning (in addition to almost having died after my last race), and which future professionals tempted by the needle should acknowledge:
The poisoning of personal and professional relationships that were incredibly important to me; separation from my family.
My inability to secure post-cycling work in the professional field for which I’d trained,
My subsequent financial ruin;
And the dual physical and mental anguish I’ve endured since being cast out of the sport I loved, which formed such a dominant part of my identity and sense of self.
I started cycling on May 25, 1989 - my 14th birthday, one day after the death of my father. Cycling was an escape from a shattered childhood, but also a means to supercharge my existence - to travel to exotic parts of the world, immerse myself in foreign cultures, represent my country, test myself physically and mentally and generally collect experiences that I thought would form a life tapestry rivaling that of my peers. In the end though, that tapestry is shredded. It hangs in tatters, and I’m left with little more than a few dusty trophies, fading stamps in my passport and vague notions of “what could have been”.
Unlike the authors of more than a few melodramatic letters that appeared in major cycling publications, I would never dissuade a young athlete from following his sporting dreams. I would, however, strongly encourage anyone choosing to pursue sport as a career to relentlessly analyze the long-term costs of his participation against the short-term benefits. Ruin lies in wait for dopers who are caught, but even clean sport can exact a significant toll.
There are two questions I wish I’d prepared answers for prior to leaving grad school to return to racing:
1) What would I choose to do if I couldn’t race a bicycle and
2) How would I support myself doing something I loved and construct an enjoyable life if professional cycling couldn’t be a part of it?
I’ve been forced to confront the fact that my answers to both questions are still incomplete, and that I’m running out of time to respond appropriately. I am humbled and contrite, and implore you - young athletes to avoid making the same mistakes that have consigned me to my present state.
by Joe Papp
Doping can ruin your life...
and that’s the message I have for young athletes who might face similar choices
Don’t get me wrong - save from a few brief moments of clarity when I recoiled in disgust from my participation in systematic doping - I understand that I was willing to follow “the program” if it meant I could keep racing and practicing the sport I loved in an environment that seemed intoxicating to me.
Unbeknown to most, I had two significant opportunities to escape the system - one in the aftermath of a terrible crash in 2003 that almost cost me my left leg, and later in early 2006 after it was revealed publicly that a former teammate of mine had tested positive for EPO.
And though both times I took baby steps towards the door of mental and physical freedom from cheating, I lacked sufficient willpower, confidence and hope for a future without competitive cycling to break free. Maybe things would have been different if I’d had a stronger outside influence, or a better-calibrated moral compass, but the reality is that I didn’t, and I’m reminded of this each and every day of my life.
I don’t ask for sympathy from those of you who could never understand how a good person can make a fundamentally bad decision - or even a series of major mistakes - but I was amazed by the venomous hostility that characterized so much of the anonymous email sent to me care of my website.
I never realized that so many people felt so let down or angry with me for my own failings. I do offer my sincerest apologies to those people I directly harmed - my competitors who raced without the aid of performance enhancing drugs. I know you’re out there and I took food from your plate. (Though I met more dopers than clean professional cyclists during my time with a UCI license.)
Without cataloging the entire collection of woes that have befallen me as a result of doping, there are four that bear mentioning (in addition to almost having died after my last race), and which future professionals tempted by the needle should acknowledge:
The poisoning of personal and professional relationships that were incredibly important to me; separation from my family.
My inability to secure post-cycling work in the professional field for which I’d trained,
My subsequent financial ruin;
And the dual physical and mental anguish I’ve endured since being cast out of the sport I loved, which formed such a dominant part of my identity and sense of self.
I started cycling on May 25, 1989 - my 14th birthday, one day after the death of my father. Cycling was an escape from a shattered childhood, but also a means to supercharge my existence - to travel to exotic parts of the world, immerse myself in foreign cultures, represent my country, test myself physically and mentally and generally collect experiences that I thought would form a life tapestry rivaling that of my peers. In the end though, that tapestry is shredded. It hangs in tatters, and I’m left with little more than a few dusty trophies, fading stamps in my passport and vague notions of “what could have been”.
Unlike the authors of more than a few melodramatic letters that appeared in major cycling publications, I would never dissuade a young athlete from following his sporting dreams. I would, however, strongly encourage anyone choosing to pursue sport as a career to relentlessly analyze the long-term costs of his participation against the short-term benefits. Ruin lies in wait for dopers who are caught, but even clean sport can exact a significant toll.
There are two questions I wish I’d prepared answers for prior to leaving grad school to return to racing:
1) What would I choose to do if I couldn’t race a bicycle and
2) How would I support myself doing something I loved and construct an enjoyable life if professional cycling couldn’t be a part of it?
I’ve been forced to confront the fact that my answers to both questions are still incomplete, and that I’m running out of time to respond appropriately. I am humbled and contrite, and implore you - young athletes to avoid making the same mistakes that have consigned me to my present state.
by Joe Papp
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