Lance. Are you a lover, hater or neutral?

[Panter]

As title really. I suspect the haters are just a lot more vocal than the lovers but wanted to post a poll out of interest.

 

[Bigtwin]

Greatly admire what he's achieved. In terms of the TDF, hope he does well, but it's "may the best man win" for me.

 

[dan_bo]

You don't have to have any feelings towards the man himself to love a come back story.

Yep.

 

[ChrisKH]

Neutral until he falls in the mire. I'm sure that makes me a terrible cynic but I'm rarely disappointed.

 

[johnnyh]

you have to be a pretty sad individual to hate a man you don't know I'd have thought.

I agree you have to love the comeback story, be it the fight back from cancer or the 37/8 year old returning to ride the TdF.

 

[ChrisKH]

There was an interesting story in C+ this month. Some bloke in the UK was diagnosed with cancer and told that a counsellor would call him in a couple of days. It turned out to be Lance, and he continued to call him on a monthly basis.

I know that doesn't make him any more special than those who give up their time voluntarily every week, but it's good to hear that celebrity hasn't taken him over.

I think once you have been through something like that you feel obligated to give something back as thanks for still being here. Counselling is personally fulfilling and cathartic and obviously helpful to those who get it. The strangest reaction I have received from counselling of this sort is people's incredulity that you will give up your time to help them. I once got told not counsel one chap as he thought after the first visit that I was being disingenuous and was really after his wife.......

 

[CotterPin]

I don't hate the man as I don't actually know him personally. Some of his actions have been inspiring and some of them seemed completely stupid. It will be interesting to see what his legacy to cycling will be long after he has (finally!) retired. Will he be seen as force for good within the sport who helped raise its profile and move it on to newer levels, or will he be seen as a part of an old guard that kept it from progressing/ I don't think there will be an answer to those questions for many years to come.

 

[zimzum42]

With no space for nuance in this poll it's difficult. I don't hate him, but as a cycling personality, I don't much like him....

 

[Panter]

There was an interesting story in C+ this month. Some bloke in the UK was diagnosed with cancer and told that a counsellor would call him in a couple of days. It turned out to be Lance, and he continued to call him on a monthly basis.

I know that doesn't make him any more special than those who give up their time voluntarily every week, but it's good to hear that celebrity hasn't taken him over.

I thought that was quite a remarkable story when I read it.

I don't know him and have never met him, so I can't form an opinion about him really. I don't hate him though. Why would I?

It just seems to me that there are a lot of real haters out there, I'm not sure why either.
I think there is some element of truth to the post above, only real cycling fans hate Armstrong, but from all the reading I've done I don't really understand the hatred.

Anyway, it was never the intention to turn this into another Lance thread, I just wondered what the concensus was

 

[RabbitFood]

Hard to hate or dislike LA and I think anyone that gets over cancer should be looked on as a hero famous or not.

For me personally he was the reason I got into cycling and followed the TDF.

but since getting into cycling i find it is the cycling people that dont like him, strange.

 

[ianrauk]

I don't love the man, though I do admire him and I certainly do not hate him.

 

[Paulus]

As the last post, I really like him and I didn't give him much of a chance in this years TDF, but he is going really well, you have to admire him for that. GO WGGINS.

 

[rich p]

I find it quite easy to dislike him.
Many reasons but the EPO results from 98(?), his lack of condemnation of drug use and users, his shabby treatment of Bertie (even a having another go at him last night about attacking on the Colombier), bullying of Simeoni, close friendship with Dr Ferrari ......blah, blah, blah.......


But not hate - too strong

 

[zacklaws]

The sad thing about it all is whether you like or hate the man, one day everyone on the planet may be gratefull to him and his foundation along with all other cancer research projects for beating cancer. May not be our generation, or the next but one day it will happen and our descendents will live in a better world, who will be thankful. And then they will read the history books and try to understand why he could be hated so much, but did so much for the world.

 

[rich p]

The sad thing about it all is whether you like or hate the man, one day everyone on the planet may be gratefull to him and his foundation along with all other cancer research projects for beating cancer. May not be our generation, or the next but one day it will happen and our descendents will live in a better world, who will be thankful. And then they will read the history books and try to understand why he could be hated so much, but did so much for the world.

Oh, come on! Cancer Research and many other charities do and have done a trillion times more to beat cancer.
I'm notknocking LA's work but get it in proportion!