Lance Armstrong to be stripped of Tour de France titles and banned for life

[Ger Regan]

Sorry but Kimmage is an arsehole Ger, just my opinion.

I'd be interested why you think that Jon.
Kimmage in my book always came over as very bitter and twisted but I put this down to the frustration he must have felt through years of telling everyone that Armstrong and many others were cheating bastards and continuously battering his head against a brick wall.

I wouldn't blame him for feeling very vindicated just now.

Because he now thinks Wiggins is doping, and has stated that 'Wiggins is using the Armstrong blueprint for success' he got it right about Lying Lance but he's a bore now.

I have to admit that I'm not a close enough follower of cycling to know the full ins and outs of it, but I read an article on team sky that, if certain elements of it were true, would at least put questions over how squeaky clean they are. Due to the sport's history, it's hardly surprising people are suspicious. And I bet you there were plenty calling him an arsehole over the whole Armstrong issue too.....

[Dante Lavelli]

I would love to read some of these allegations about Team Sky.  Please post some links.

[Ger Regan]

Here's the thrust of it

[taylorsworkrate]

You could never say never, especially in a sport like cycling, but I would be absolutely flabbergasted if there was any doping within team sky, or specifically Wiggins. Sky were dominant in the last tour, but they've recruited brilliantly and have the best coaching team in cycling.

Wiggins and Brailsford both come across as much more convincing than Armstrong ever did in interviews and press conferences.

[taylorsworkrate]

The Sunday Times took out a full page advert in the Chicago Herald yesterday laying out it's strategy in suing Lying Lance for every penny he has.

That would be one News International campaign I'd wholly heartedly support.

To be honest, I do feel sorry for Armstrong's children, who will have to deal with the ramifications of their fathers actions for the rest of their existence.

They don't deserve that.

[usav]

Sky were dominant in the last tour, but they've recruited brilliantly and have the best coaching team in cycling.

I don't think Wiggo is cheating, but you need the best people around you whether you are clean or not.   Let's not forget, even without the cheating, Armstrong was one hell of an athlete.

[paul_e]

Here's the thrust of it

There's a hell of a lot of Kimmage's opinion in that, which isn't backed up by facts.

I firmly believe Team Sky are clean, I also believe the main reason Wiggins didn't want a journalist recording everything was that they've made a lot of advances in the training and team tactics, why would they give that all away to a journalist before they'd even proven it as successful.  Kimmage has never accepted that and seems hell bent on hassling Wiggins because of it.

[Dante Lavelli]

Here's the thrust of it

There's a hell of a lot of Kimmage's opinion in that, which isn't backed up by facts.

I firmly believe Team Sky are clean, I also believe the main reason Wiggins didn't want a journalist recording everything was that they've made a lot of advances in the training and team tactics, why would they give that all away to a journalist before they'd even proven it as successful.  Kimmage has never accepted that and seems hell bent on hassling Wiggins because of it.

In that series on Sky where they followed the team about for a season they were so determined to come across and kept saying that they were clean.  Brailsford's motto - if you like - was all about the marginal gains involved.  For example he wanted to make sure they slept well so they'd take mattresses with them on tour and strip the hotel bedrooms.  To paraphrase he said "if Lance had channelled their effort into those things rather than a convoluted ways of supplying himself with drugs then the benefits many have been just as good".

Didn't Wiggo also quit a team when it was discovered that their lead cyclist was doping?

I just hope that the whole sport is cleaner now (everyone is that little bit slower) and Team Sky's marginal gains are the difference. 

Remember also that Brailford's tentacles transcend the Team GB cycling as well (who are doing brilliantly).  This covers everyone from the BMX girl to Sir Chris Hoy.  Surely there would be a mole in the camp that large if doping was prevalent. 

I can't see it, but would be gutted if it was true.

[Jon Crofts]

Here's the thrust of it

There's a hell of a lot of Kimmage's opinion in that, which isn't backed up by facts.

I firmly believe Team Sky are clean, I also believe the main reason Wiggins didn't want a journalist recording everything was that they've made a lot of advances in the training and team tactics, why would they give that all away to a journalist before they'd even proven it as successful.  Kimmage has never accepted that and seems hell bent on hassling Wiggins because of it.

Quite, he's a spoilt little brat who had his toys taken away from him, he can do one.

[Chris Smith]

You could never say never, especially in a sport like cycling, but I would be absolutely flabbergasted if there was any doping within team sky, or specifically Wiggins. Sky were dominant in the last tour, but they've recruited brilliantly and have the best coaching team in cycling.

Wiggins and Brailsford both come across as much more convincing than Armstrong ever did in interviews and press conferences.

That's the tragedy of it, there is always going to be that suspicion around any cyclist who achieves major success. They can't get away with the "bad apple" argument any longer. For what it's worth, I agree with you about Wiggins but the succession of scandals means that there is a shadow over the sport that will take years to escape from.

[Jon Crofts]

Sky were dominant in the last tour, but they've recruited brilliantly and have the best coaching team in cycling.

I don't think Wiggo is cheating, but you need the best people around you whether you are clean or not.   Let's not forget, even without the cheating, Armstrong was one hell of an athlete.

The 4 years 93-96 he withdrew from the tour 3 times and finished 36th one year, granted he had some success in the Spring classics & a few US events but not a hell of an athlete really.

[lovejoy]

Dear ITV

I have been an avid watcher of the Tour de France for many years now and greatly enjoy the coverage on ITV. I do now think its time to freshen up the commentary team of Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwin. These two have been on the coverage for years and I feel both have been too closely associated with the doping era and in particular the American teams of Lance Armstrong.

For many years Phil stood by Armstrong when most cyclist enthusiasts knew he was guilty and I feel this undermines the integrity and objectivity of Liggett and once a journalists loses these there is nowhere else to go.

Sherwin was once a professional cyclist during times of extensive drug taking (but before Armstrong and EPO).  For the sport to move forward we need to move away from this era and anyone tainted by the past should not be part of the future. This is an ethos extolled by team sky. Unless Sherwin is prepared to come clean about what went on and what he saw, he will remain part of the omertà, an enabler if you like. This is what cycling should move away from.

Thanks for the excellent coverage otherwise.

Regards etc

[Dave Cooper please]

For many years Phil stool by Armstrong

Ewwwww! Even if he is a drug cheat there's no need for that.

[lovejoy]

For many years Phil stool by Armstrong

Ewwwww! Even if he is a drug cheat there's no need for that.

Thanks for spotting it, now changed.

[usav]

The tour without Liggett and Sherwin is like formula 1 without Murray Walker.

They even use them on the US coverage!