Fifty Plus (50+) - Not Contador too...

http://www.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/09/30/cycling.alberto.contador.banned/index.html?eref=mrss_igoogle_cnn

http://www.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/09/30/cycling.alberto.contador.banned/index.html?eref=mrss_igoogle_cnn

Norwegian research suggests that this substance increases muscle size and converts slower twitch cells to fast twitch, and advantage for bursts of energetic output. It appears to work for the rats... how fitting...

If true it might bring his uppity attitude down a bit. A bit too full of himself I'd say.

The wiki on Clenbuterol is interesting. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clenbuterol)

The "insider knowledge" group have been muttering about this under their collective breaths for quite sometime. The podcasters I listen to won't be shocked, that's for sure.

I decided Contador was an a-hole a couple of years ago. Too cocky.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIX_0nMlIBU

Cheater!!!Cheater!!!

If this is true, I'm going to have to quit following cycling, and follow a 'clean' sport. Like baseb....uh no. Footb.... nope. I got it! Hocke..... not that one either. Any one for Ice Dancing?

The rumors have been going around for some time about his use of banned substances.

His theme song from my Ipod playlist: Mr. Lucky Man by The Kennedys

If this is true, I'm going to have to quit following cycling, and follow a 'clean' sport. Like baseb....uh no. Footb.... nope. I got it! Hocke..... not that one either. Any one for Ice Dancing?
Badminton seems pretty clean to me.

Bowling is good too. You can drink beer, eat a burger and some fries (and in some countries, smoke a cigarette) while you play. Hows that for a sport?

If this is true, I'm going to have to quit following cycling, and follow a 'clean' sport. Like baseb....uh no. Footb.... nope. I got it! Hocke..... not that one either. Any one for Ice Dancing?

I take it you haven't heard about the Ice Dancing judging fixes?

SP
Bend, OR

It is also a non-steroidal anabolic and metabolism accelerator, through a mechanism not well understood. Its ability to increase the muscle-to-fat body ratio makes its illegal use in livestock popular to obtain leaner meats.
That is from Wikipedia

A UCI official stated they think it is from bad food.
The level required to be a violation is 400 times that found in Contador.

Don't rush to judgement yet, unless that is what you like to do.

The rumors have been going around for some time about his use of banned substances.

Same as with anybody at the top: "Nobody can be THAT good without cheating!!" I find it interesting that the results show a level 1/400 of the "legal limit", and came out of a "superlab", not your average drug-test facility. Makes his claim of food contamination somewhat credible.

I'd love to see Andy win the Tour, but not this way - it just tarnishes the whole affair.

SP
Bend, OR

:popcorn

Bowling is good too. You can drink beer, eat a burger and some fries (and in some countries, smoke a cigarette) while you play. Hows that for a sport?

Take it outdoors, and add very fit women in bikinis (and very fit men in only board shorts for the ladies) and you just described beach volleyball. Something I am very thankful my wife plays every weekend.

It'll be interesting to see how this plays out. I don't know enough to know whether the fact that his results were fine both the day before and the day after really means anything. Ditto for the extremely low percentage. Could be residual from using it to train, and it was so low it only appeared on the one test because of other factors? Who knows, but the sport sure didn't need this!

Same as with anybody at the top: "Nobody can be THAT good without cheating!!" I find it interesting that the results show a level 1/400 of the "legal limit", and came out of a "superlab", not your average drug-test facility. Makes his claim of food contamination somewhat credible.

I'd love to see Andy win the Tour, but not this way - it just tarnishes the whole affair.

SP
Bend, OR

Not that I am a Contadour fan- but the amount is so minimal from what could be detected by the "Usual" high testing facilities- that I do wonder if it is cross contamination- or some other "Valid" excuse.


But every time I start following a Professional rider- they get caught by some drugs test. One reason why I just enjoy the sport and admire their skills.

Found the report dismaying.... He was supposed to ride with us in the Dempsey Challenge here in Maine this weekend, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt re: 1/400th amount found in the sample. But we've raised over $1,300,000.00 for a great cause, and I and over 1500 others are going to enjoy the day!

But every time I start following a Professional rider- they get caught by some drugs test.

Hey, no worries, stapfam, Millar did a great ride for the silver today (men's elite TT), and it's pretty unlikely he'll ever dope again.


1/400....hmmm, yeah....

Innocent until proven guilty or in this case banned from cycling. I despise character assassination based upon speculation. Let the guys whose job it is to figure this out, complete the investigation and come to a conclusion.

What I find annoying is that an alleged doping story in cycling eclipses in the media all other possible stories. Right now the world championships are going on and people are focused on Contador's positive. Give me a break.

What do I think? I think professional athletes push the limit on all fronts from dirty playing, cheating and drugs. It is up to the officials and the watchdogs to keep them in line and punish the offenders.

I'm not a Contador fan. However, in this case I'm inclined to believe him, not that my opinion matters. But, I've been fooled before.

I sort of believe him to be honest. I am not a big fan of him either.
Let they officials do their thing and let the cards fall as they will.
I mean 1/400th?Get real.

As I read this thread and associated information, it appears that a pro cyclist is allowed to have a certain concentration of this compound in his or her blood stream or urine without penalty as long as the concentration does not reach a certain threshold. If the concentration of this compound in the sample was indeed 1/400 (or 0.25%) of the threshold, then I'm wondering why the big fuss and why it was even reported in the news. Based on the data, it would appear that there is no violation. I must be missing something here.

Here is a good column (http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/09/news/the-explainer-say-it-aint-so-alberto_143958) from Velonews with interesting answers to some of the questions all this raises. My take is that it's accidental, but the general public sure won't see it that way and it's another huge black eye for the sport.

^^^^ Looks as if I was indeed missing something. Thanks for posting.

Well, there's more.

A German journalist who has been working on this story says:

1. The UCI has known about this for some time and has been trying to cover it up.

2. There is evidence in the tests that Contador may have received a blood transfusion during the tour -- in other words, he may have been blood doping.


http://www.velonation.com/News/ID/5846/German-journalist-claims-UCI-denied-Alberto-Contador-positive-test-says-rider-may-have-received-transfusions.aspx

There is some speculation that this is why the banned substance was found in such low quantities in Contador's blood -- he was blood doping during the tour, and received some of his own blood that was tainted with the Clenbuterol.

So, at this point, we can believe one of two stories:

A. During the Tour de France, the world's leading cyclist didn't like the meat he was being served in France, so he sent all the way to Spain for some meat, and it was contaminated *but* he was the only one who ate the meat who had a problem, or

B. He was cheating.

The level required to be a violation is 400 times that found in Contador.

Any amount is cause for suspension. The amount found was 400 times what WADA requires a lab to be able to detect in order to be a certified drug testing lab. Unfortunately for Alberto, the lab that performed the test was capable of finding smaller amounts than necessary to be a certified drug testing lab.

Innocent until proven guilty or in this case banned from cycling.

The B sample tested positive as well and Contador has been suspended from racing in UCI sanctioned events for a period of two years. The verdict is in.

It's too bad other major sport aren't as aggressive as cycling for doping. Although most major leagues would probably have to fold for lack of players. It's pretty well established that if you don't enhance your performance, you will be replace on the roster by someone who does. There is lots of money to be made backing winners no matter how they got there.

Hey, curling appears to be pretty clean. And you even get to drink beer at the end; it's the custom for the winning team to buy their opponents a drink. Typical Canadian sport.

As for Contador, if it were two years ago I would have said no doubt he was doping. Now, though, it's not so clear. He says it was a steak brought in from Spain with trace amounts of clenbuterol (probably an injected steer), REALLY trace amounts. Argument for Contador: had he been doping, larger amounts would have been detected in his previous tests during the 2 days he was in yellow prior to the test. Argument against: It could be a sign of autologous blood doping, where he injected some of his own blood that had trace amounts from previous doping. I don't know, but it's suspicious when 3 guys get busted in the same week...

Luis

The B sample tested positive as well and Contador has been suspended from racing in UCI sanctioned events for a period of two years. The verdict is in.

Not quite. He is on a "provisional suspension" pending further investigation. I have a feeling this will drag out for a while before the final verdict comes in.

To me, both stories seem equally possible. He may have eaten contaminated beef or he may have had a transfusion of his own blood that was tainted from illicit use. Only one is true. I'm not going to pretend I know which. We'll just have to see how it turns out.

There were 4 doping cases in the news in the past 2 days:

- Investigators said they found 50 pills in the house of Ricco, the Italian sprinter, during a search of his house. I think Ricco was the guy who just returned from a suspension and was involved in "Operation Puerto," but I get these scandals mixed up.
- Two competitors in the Vuelta de Espana tested positive, including the rider who finished second
- Contador

Plus, 2 former teammates of Lance Armstrong were testifying in front of the Grand Jury in Los Angeles.

It's hard for me to think "innocent until proven guilty;" I think that positive tests -- even with trace amounts -- pretty much tell the story of what's going on.

Well. Everyone knows that the meat in France sucks.

Isn't clenbuterol the active ingredient in Deep Woods Off?

If this is true, I'm going to have to quit following cycling, and follow a 'clean' sport. Like baseb....uh no. Footb.... nope. I got it! Hocke..... not that one either. Any one for Ice Dancing?

I'd go with the ice dancing. Those girls are all hot, and have legs to die for. :D Hey, in ancient times, empires and kingdoms were overthrown because of women with such legs.

Studio wrestling is my new sport to follow. At least you know the roids are evenly distributed.

I do not claim any inside info on AC other than a relative of a former team member of his. The rumors about him doping have been going on for years. The Spaniards let him skate on the Operation Porto thing.

Those that think AC is innocent more than likely still believe Landis is innocent!

Innocent until proven guilty or in this case banned from cycling. I despise character assassination based upon speculation. Let the guys whose job it is to figure this out, complete the investigation and come to a conclusion.

What I find annoying is that an alleged doping story in cycling eclipses in the media all other possible stories. Right now the world championships are going on and people are focused on Contador's positive. Give me a break.

What do I think? I think professional athletes push the limit on all fronts from dirty playing, cheating and drugs. It is up to the officials and the watchdogs to keep them in line and punish the offenders.

+1 thank for the sanity

One thing I am happy about and that is that Cycling is one of the Few sports that does test all of its "Elite" sportsmen and women to the highest degree possible. If you dope in cycling- you are going to get caught.

Cycling is trying to clear the bad name that it had. Even publicising the fact that the "Best" in the world are being caught only shows how rigorous they are at Eliminating the cheats.

I am drawing a different conclusion -- the fact that so many people have been caught this year (what, a dozen cases or so in the major tours?) means that elite riders still think they can get away with it.

It must be pretty easy to evade the testing, or else so many people wouldn't be trying.

Sorry to sound cynical, but the un-ending cases of doping have put me over the edge w/pro cycling.

Remember back a few years and whole teams were being caught and being banned from cycling. Things have improved from that degree but Drugging used to be the norm. Even Tommy Simpson killed himself by taking too many drugs so it is not a "New" phenomina

And other sports--- One of the best athletes we ever had in the UK was never tested for drugs at any event or Training session. He "Weaned" himself off for the events where he would be tested. It was only when he retired but did a Non Championship event that he was tested and found positive. His defence was that as he had retired from the sport- he had got lax in the supplements that he was taking and one of them must have contained the banned substance.

I doubt that there is one single sport that tests its athletes as rigorously as Cycling. Yes the cheats are caught and they are named and they are being caught by very sophisticated test s that were not available 1 year ago- let alone longer

But Human nature being what it is- there will always be some that want to get an advantage. There may even be some that "Inadvertantly" take drugs in a supplement that is recommended to them by some one that should know better but it does not matter how or why the performamnce enhancing drug is taken- it will be detected within cycling. It's just a pity that other sports are not taking the same rigorous testing that Cycling does.

I actually am an Alberto Contador fan . . . or was. Guess I'm the only one here who is/was. I really want to think that he's innocent, and I don't claim to know one way or the other.

Like Hermes says, we'll have to wait and see how this all pans out. Guess Andy could win last year's Tour after all.

Rick / OCRR

If it is taken from Contador, for most people it goes into a "nobody won" category. I mean, who got the win taken from Landis? What people will remember, if it happens, is that AC won, and had it taken away for doping. Schleck will still have to finish first to really be considered a tour winner, regardless of whether he ends up having deserved the title this year. Bottom line: two losers - no winners.

Where's the beef?


OK, it was weak.

Beef? Weak? Whats the link?

beef? weak? whats the link?
Doper:D

Not quite. He is on a "provisional suspension" pending further investigation. I have a feeling this will drag out for a while before the final verdict comes in.

To me, both stories seem equally possible. He may have eaten contaminated beef or he may have had a transfusion of his own blood that was tainted from illicit use. Only one is true. I'm not going to pretend I know which. We'll just have to see how it turns out.

I stand corrected, but at this point he is guilty unless proven innocent which is going to be a hard sell. Why would someone in the yellow jersey eat meat imported from a country that allows it's cows to be treated with banned substances? Would that be a good idea?

I stand corrected, but at this point he is guilty unless proven innocent which is going to be a hard sell. Why would someone in the yellow jersey eat meat imported from a country that allows it's cows to be treated with banned substances? Would that be a good idea?
I bet clen is banned in Spain, too, although I'm not for sure. The EU tends to promote uniformity is such matters.

Everywhere (http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5j-qbQMKmxnlwotmci9B2fpqG3PVg?docId=4687500). I tell you it's everywhere.

Not a fan but for me at this point he's gotten his "gimme". The amount is so small (look up a picogram) I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

"The amount found was 400 times what WADA requires a lab to be able to detect in order to be a certified drug testing lab."

I believe the actual amount was 40x, not 400. It doesn't matter, though, what the amount was, just that a measurable amount was detected.

Doesn't sound like some of the other pros are giving him the benefit of the doubt:

"Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step) has said that Alberto Contador must prove his innocence and satisfactorily explain his positive test for Clenbuterol during July’s Tour de France. The Frenchman is currently in Geelong ahead of Sunday's world championships road race.

“[Contador] is falling. The big champions are falling: it’s like that,” Chavanel told RMC.fr. “It’s always disappointing to see things like this, but it’s good that we’ve reached a point where things are being found. The levels [of Clenbuterol] might be low, but there are traces there all the same. It’s up to Contador to prove his innocence.”

Chavanel took two fine stage victories and enjoyed two spells in yellow at the Tour before going on to finish 31st overall, almost an hour behind Contador.

Sympathy for Contador's current plight was in short supply in the French camp. Chavanel's countryman Yoann Offredo (FDJ) offered his own candid assessment of the Contador case, saying that he was not surprised by the news.

“It’s a story that we’ve been expecting,” Offredo said to RMC.fr. “We’re not unduly surprised. A little [surprised] about the Clenbuterol because we’d really have expected something else. It’s like the tree that hides the forest. Right now, amongst the riders, I can tell you that we’re not that shocked.”


If that's how some of the riders are reacting, why are fans supposed to be the ones who "believe"?

I'm a Contador fan, btw.

... follow a 'clean' sport. Like baseb....uh no. Footb.... nope. I got it! Hocke..... not that one either. Any one for Ice Dancing?

Ice dancing has been off my list since Tanya Harding hired a goon to smash her oponents knee just weeks before the Olympics.