David Millar busted.

Shane Stanley

In article <q42Ec.36089$zS.33980@fe17.usenetserver.com>,
hippy <usenet-forum@cyclingforums.com> wrote:

> How do we know, once
> positive results stop being found, that the athletes haven't simply
> discovered a non-detectable drug?

None of the current "scandals" involve positive drug tests anyway --
they're all based on admissions, phone taps, searches, etc. The
expression "I've never tested positive" is becoming one of the most
meaningless in sport.

--
Shane Stanley

flyingdutch

Tamyka Bell wrote:
> > The huge Australian heavyweight weightlifting Gold medallist
> > (tuna fisherman) who went back to being a "90lb weakling"
> > after he finished competition?
> Yeah that one is a bit sus, don't know the reference, maybe he got CFS
> or something?



That was Dean Luken (sp?)

He 'got' 7 years for Amphetmine importing/trafficking Hence his loss
of weight.



--

Roadie_scum

hippy wrote:
> How do we know, once positive results stop being found, that the
> athletes haven't simply discovered a non-detectable drug? hippy



Most drugs are non-detectable over a certain time-frame. Exogenous EPO
can't be detected by any current test after about 2 weeks. Riders go to
Spain, or Mexico, South America or Asia, shoot up and train, and come
back in a little while to race and test totally clean. Athletes don't
need to discover non-detectable drugs when they can second guess the
testers and it clears their system quickly anyway. And don't think that
because the drugs leave their system they are no longer an advantage -
drug takers increase their capacity to train, and so get fitness
benefits that last much longer than the time it takes the drugs to leave
their body.

And then there are the 'non-detectables' like insulin-like growth
factors and human (and other forms of) growth hormones. There are also
many other borderline cases like testosterone and some anabolics which
are detectable in certain dosages over certain timeframes.

I say blood and urine test every athlete once a week every week from 6
weeks out from Athens until they have competed, and see who wins then.
Maybe that's not practical, but if the testers want to get smart, pre-
competition testing for some athletes is essential in the 6-1 week prior
time period.



--

hippy

>Originally posted by Roadie_scum
<snip>
>I say blood and urine test every athlete once a week every >week from 6
>weeks out from Athens until they have competed, >and see who wins then.
>Maybe that's not practical, but if the >testers want to get smart, pre-
>competition testing for some >athletes is essential in the 6-1 week
>prior time period.

With a seemingly impossible task like this, would it be better to just
let athletes free-for-all?

If it's so easy to cheat and "test clean" - why spend all this money on
testing? Why not just let them all do whatever they want and risk their
own lives?

They are still catching people so maybe druggie prep isn't quite at 100%
yet - the athletes need more practice with quantities and timeframes?
Once they start pooling data though, they are going be totally
undetectable and then it'll take huge dollars to reveal the cheats..

It's all so frustrating (for me at least!) to see some people getting
away with it and some being caught. Either test them so often there is
no chance of cheating or don't test at all! Arr!

Maybe all future Olympics should be like Big Brother... lock all the
athletes in a building with enough food and drink for a year and don't
let anything else in. They train for 12 months with what they've got
'inside' and then they compete. It would be similar to having control
tyres and control engines as in some forms of car racing...



--

flyingdutch

hippy wrote:
> Maybe all future Olympics should be like Big Brother... lock all the
> athletes in a building with enough food and drink for a year and don't
> let anything else in. They train for 12 months with what they've got
> 'inside' and then they compete. It would be similar to having control
> tyres and control engines as in some forms of car racing...



Brilliant!

But they'd probably go tribal and eat each other for post-ride protein-
loading...



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