bauhaus92

Day after day of constant attacks that just blow away the field. He's not even laboring when he attacks. He crosses the line with all the poise of a dignitary, while others behind him are gasping for the last breath in their lungs. I quote Rodriguez the other day; “I thought that I could win, that was my intention. More or less I felt good but I was missing something to be able to follow Nibali. He passed me like an aeroplane,”

Hmmmm What was he missing?

Please help me, I don't want to be a skeptic.

Gallo

These questions will always be asked. It is not as if he has not dropped Rodriguez before. He is not a surprise or coming out of nowhere.

2010 third Giro first Vuelta

2011 second Giro 2012

2012 third Tour

2013 first Giro

I am not saying he is doping and I a not saying he is not because I do not know.

Rodriguez used a term common in cycling and not an indication or accusation of doping. Fulsang has been a stud working for him on the climbs leaving him with energy for finishes.

However there is a body of work there that is impressive and his style has always been cool and the man has always been able to climb. The reason he is where he is the day he and Fulsang crushed everyone on the cobbles

bauhaus92

I understand that he didn't just pop onto the scene but when he was third in 2012 he was 3 minutes down on Froome and over 6 minutes on Wiggins. Froome won last year but no where close to the dominance Nibali has shown so far. Both Froome and Wiggins would finish a mountain stage gasping from the effort but I see nothing from Nibali. Just the fact that he is with Astana can't help but make some, like me, skeptical.

DiabloScott

He looked gased on Stage 8 after barely hanging with Contador and finishing 3rd.

bauhaus92

Oh that's right, the guy who got DQ'd for doping himself on the same team. Forgot about that.

gregf83 

There is nothing anyone can say that will remove your doubt. So enjoy the race or don't but don't expect someone to prove he's clean.

bauhaus92

I do enjoy the race. Watched every minute so far. And i'm not a Nibali hater. I've pulled for him a few times. And now that the tour is already over i'll enjoy watching the fight for the rest of the podium. But every rider has at least one bad day as did Froome last year and Wiggins the year before. I will reserve complete judgment until that day comes for Nibali and he loses a minute to his rivals, then I will believe he is human and clean.

Gallo

I believe you want to believe he is doping

gpsblake

I don't think it's so much doping but more of a weak GC field with Contador and Froome gone. Nibali was almost everyone's pick to finish 3rd before the tour began and was completely prepared for the tour this year.

Let's hope the doping is all but gone, the number of riders getting caught is almost zero today. Of course, they could have adapted Armstrong tactics to get around the testing.

dahoss2002

Everyone has caught onto the Team Sky "training at altitude regimen" Nibali, Contador, and Valverde all did it this spring along with Froome. Contador and Froome aint here though

gregf83 

The notion that you can determine whether a rider has taken drugs in the past year based on how tired he looks at the end of a race or whether or not he has a bad day is naive and illogical.

Just enjoy the race...

DLBroox

Wow we made it two weeks in before someone just had to start a doping thread. Too bad.

Leinster

All of this. And not to forget that Quintana isn't in the Tour either. If Nibali was coming in 4th on all these climbs nobody would be suggesting he was juicing, just that the other 3 ahead of him were.

bauhaus92

I really meant what I said in my thread title, "I want to believe" I just wanted to hear what others had to say and from the overwhelming response in defense of Nibali I thank all of you for reassuring me there is real hope that the sport is as clean as it possibly can be at the moment. The High altitude training makes sense. I really want it to be true. I hate explaining to all my non-cycling friends why I love the sport, when there has been such a tainted history so i just needed a little reassurance from reasonable fans.

gregf83 

I'm not sure that's the take away message from this thread. No one here has any idea if the field is riding clean or not. Personally, I just assume many are taking something illegal just like they do in most other sports.

I suspect you don't really care if they're doping or not as long as you don't have to hear about someone getting caught.

It's simpler if you just assume they're all on something and enjoy the racing for what it is.

Leinster

Just tell them "hey, at least my sport does something about catching the cheats." If your friends are into baseball, American football, football-football, wrestling, whatever, they're pretty much just fooling themselves if they think their own guys are clean.

colombo357

Why be so whiny and overly emotional?

"I really want", "I hope", "I hate", "I love", "I just needed".

This thread is about you, not about Nibali. Get a grip.

koolerb

I'll assume he's clean and just having a great tour until there's some evidence to the contrary. Where the heck are we when anytime someone does something exceptional they're accused of cheating. I guess we should all just strive to be mediocre.

DLBroox

jeirvine 

I think the EPO era allowed a lot of pro cyclists to be at or near the same stratospheric performance level. Now that (IMHO) folks are riding clean, I think riders at the very top of their game will simply stand out amongst the field. Doesn't rule doping out, but I can believe Nibali is simply that much better at the moment than his (remaining) competitors.

Giacomo 1 

Thanks for bringing up doping.

I was naively enjoying what I thought was a very interesting TDF and hadn't even thought about the doping issue. How silly of me.

Rich Gibson 

And that has WHAT to do with the OP's question? The 2014 Tour de France. I also noticed a shot at that finish line with AC ahead when Nibali was wiped and now almost miraculously he flies up every hill. It's a reasonable question to ask when seemingly all the other top flight GCs are at a similar level and his performance level is so elevated. That said, it will be interesting to see how Majka performs in the Pyrenees.

Rich

Keith99

So the original accusation was he is finishing every stage looking 'fresh', but once it is pointed out that he was exhausted on one stage that serves just as well as 'evidence'

And of course he is said to be demolishing his opposition when in fact a good part of his lead is because of great teamwork over the cobbles.

If he has no bad days, that is evidence he is doping. If he has a bad day and bounces back, that is evidence he is doping.

And I'd bet if he has a bad day and does not bounce back that is evidence his doping program finally failed. But that one will at least take him off the hotseat, the focus of 'he must be doping' will shift to the new leader.

Walter

I tend to hold to this line. Anything is possible but I see a strong and prepared GC rider beat up on a depleted field. Tejay is a year away.

amit_shah25