Pro Tour Punditry
Guru
There's a complete silence from Boels-Dolmans in twitterland. Not a thing.
Doping git thread
- Thread starter rich p
- Start date
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Yup - I agree - however the funding the anti-doping agencies get from the national federations in comparison with the problem does not allow for more rigorous testing - although some would say that more than once a month - twice a month including competition testing borders on "rigorous" compared to testing carried out in other sports
If that's the case then she was extremely unlucky to have the family crisis at the exact time of the random test.
Three conclusions.
A huge unfortunate coincidence
She actually was unavailable for testing on a lot more occasions but wasn't tested
Or something more sinister
SWSteve
Guru
- Location
- Bristol...ish
is this a fair timeline for the first missed test:
Feb 15 - BC send all athletes, including LA, an email instructing to put room numbers where possible on the whereabouts form.
Aug 15 - LA misses a test because she was asleep during her allocated hour, which she chose, and decided to not tell the hotel to be informed of testers arrived, and also didn't put a room number on the whereabouts form.
Aug 16 - BC defend this missed test, stating there was nothing extra that could have been done, and the tester should have tried harder to contact her?
Feb 15 - BC send all athletes, including LA, an email instructing to put room numbers where possible on the whereabouts form.
Aug 15 - LA misses a test because she was asleep during her allocated hour, which she chose, and decided to not tell the hotel to be informed of testers arrived, and also didn't put a room number on the whereabouts form.
Aug 16 - BC defend this missed test, stating there was nothing extra that could have been done, and the tester should have tried harder to contact her?
Pro Tour Punditry
Guru
And she was tested 2 days ago, so that's another test accounted for:
"I’m one of the most tested athletes in the world*,’ she said. ‘I’ve been tested at least 16 times this year. I was tested two days ago."
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/armitstead-i-am-a-clean-athlete-and-an-honest-person/
*Did she really say this?
SWSteve
Guru
- Location
- Bristol...ish
And she was tested 2 days ago, so that's another test accounted for:
"I’m one of the most tested athletes in the world*,’ she said. ‘I’ve been tested at least 16 times this year. I was tested two days ago."
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/armitstead-i-am-a-clean-athlete-and-an-honest-person/
*Did she really say this?
I think they've quoted the wrong LA
It feels mean-spirited to say it, but I wouldn't be surprised if the family emergency (whilst not fabricated) has been used as a desperation excuse as it occurred at in and around the timing of the third test. You miss the third test, you realise what might happen, you panic, it just so happens that someone in your family has been taken ill or had an accident (or perhaps even worse) and you are then able to use it as a justification.
In my heart of hearts, I still don't think she doped, but I'm sad we're discussing it about a British cyclist.
She missed three tests - if she had only missed two we wouldn't be discussing it - in fact we wern't - I saw somewhere that that there were another 36 athletes that had missed tests - what the real number is we don't know - in view of the number of people who get tested I suspect that it is rather more than that - If we take LA's explanations at face value - the circumstance conspired against her - life is like that
smutchin
Cat 6 Racer
- Location
- The Red Enclave
A doping control officer speaks...
http://cyclingtips.com/2016/08/dopi...mitstead-was-cleared-in-her-whereabouts-case/
http://cyclingtips.com/2016/08/dopi...mitstead-was-cleared-in-her-whereabouts-case/
smutchin
Cat 6 Racer
- Location
- The Red Enclave
Different circumstances - he left the training ground knowing full well that the doping control officer was there waiting for him to give a sample.
DogTired
Über Member
- Location
- Floating on a sea of vimto.
Unfortunately he speaks anonymously and has no more insight into the facts of this case than us public speculators. The information out there to date has mostly come from LAs side of things. CAS should have that report published ASAP, a lack of clarity always looks suspect.
Yeah, right! No validity there as he wanted to remain anonymous.
oldroadman
Veteran
- Location
- Ubique
|Well despite all the opinions of people (like me) who don't know the full facts, CAS has reviewed the case and made a decision. They are not any old people, they are all legals and know the rules of evidence. So the decision stands. One thing was interesting, the tester is constantly referred to as "he". Now as anyone who has any experience of the process will know, sampling from females has to be done by a female. To put it delicately, to ensure that the sample comes from the right place and embarrassment is minimum. So was there a male tester doing the paperwork element of the job, and if so did they have a female medic along to actually oversee the sample being produced? No-one knows, which is my point above. Plenty of uninformed opinion but no substance. My guess could be that 99% of posters have little or no idea of what actually happens unless they are testers or have been tested.
But let's not that get in the way of trial by internet.
But let's not that get in the way of trial by internet.
