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[lil smoke]

Perhaps not being American is why I dont get it. I concede that. In all honestly I think this entire event is a chance for people to lap up the schadenfreude of a former national idol being stripped bare to the bones of his existence.

Well people like to see celebrity public meltdowns, no question about that.

I actually care about the bigger picture here, I'm pretty passionate about the purity of physical competition and where the line is drawn.

But seeing clips of that interview, I've been in the situation where I've had to apologize for something wrong, it's hard, theres no way around it, he gets some respect from me. Besides any ulterior reason, I think he stepped up.

 

[StuBurns]

I think Oprah did a fine job. The only question he flat out failed to answer was if the woman he called a whore had lied, which presumably as he'd given sworn testimony about, he didn't answer for legal reasons, and was never going to. Everything else she asked that he tried to dodge, she would just keep rewording until he gave in, patiently asking, again and again. The 'hardball' interviewers just people on the defensive.

 

[Hari Seldon]

I could give two shits if athletes take roids. They are there to entertain me, and I don't really care about them other than that. If I could buy season tickets to a Roman style gladiator arena I would. But what I care about is that this guy was apparently suing people for defamation and winning. That is fucking dick.

 

[Psychotext]

But seeing clips of that interview, I've been in the situation where I've had to apologize for something wrong, it's hard, theres no way around it, he gets some respect from me. Besides any ulterior reason, I think he stepped up.

It's hard when you mean it... nothing in that interview made me think that he had even the slightest remorse about anything other than getting caught.

 

[StuBurns]

It's hard when you mean it... nothing in that interview made me think that he had even the slightest remorse about anything other than getting caught.

He didn't even hide that, he specifically said he regretted coming back three years after retiring, because if he hadn't, he wouldn't have been busted.

He's an honestly despicable individual.

And admitting it means nothing when everyone in the world already believes you did it. He could become a recluse people mock forever, or he could do this, and probably still have to shy away from public life, but it has a chance of helping, nothing to lose, something to gain, he didn't do anything selfless.

 

[ElectricBlanketFire]

But seeing clips of that interview, I've been in the situation where I've had to apologize for something wrong, it's hard, theres no way around it, he gets some respect from me. Besides any ulterior reason, I think he stepped up.

Do you seriously think he did this interview for any reason but to rehab his public image in an effort to regain some glory (and money)?

 

[BruiserBear]

Do you seriously think he did this interview for any reason but to rehab his public image in an effort to regain some glory (and money)?

Well, every legal expert I've seen discuss this topic has suggested he will likely lose millions and millions of dollars as a result of doing this interview, and that any good lawyer would have advised against it.


So I don't really think you can rationally include money as a motive for doing this interview.

 

[agrajag]

They should make a cycling video game. Call it Lance Armstrong Extreme Doping Challenge or something. You could pick up steroids as power ups along the way and have a steroid meter that you can run out of. Or it could be more like a sim, where you have to buy roids from shady doctors, bully your teammates and pay off officials in the career mode. Who wouldn't want to play that?

 

[numble]

Well, every legal expert I've seen discuss this topic has suggested he will likely lose millions and millions of dollars as a result of doing this interview, and that any good lawyer would have advised against it.


So I don't really think you can rationally include money as a motive for doing this interview.

UCI and IOC stripping him of his titles and declaring that he doped already meant he would lose millions of dollars from lawsuits. The interview doesn't change things on that end. I am a legal expert.

 

[Ducarmel]

Well, every legal expert I've seen discuss this topic has suggested he will likely lose millions and millions of dollars as a result of doing this interview, and that any good lawyer would have advised against it.


So I don't really think you can rationally include money as a motive for doing this interview.

Some pointed out maybe he is going to out corruption at UCI, if that is the case perhaps he might hope to get whistle blower protection (might save him some money) and maybe hope that his ban is reversed.

 

[BruiserBear]

UCI and IOC stripping him of his titles and declaring that he doped already meant he would lose millions of dollars from lawsuits. The interview doesn't change things on that end. I am a legal expert.

One organization's findings do not mean a lawsuit from 5 years ago will be overturned. The guy getting on national television and admitting it with his own mouth, almost certainly means it will.

 

[numble]

One organization's findings do not mean a lawsuit from 5 years ago will be overturned. The guy getting on national television and admitting it with his own mouth, almost certainly means it will.

He lost the lawsuits the moment he was stripped of the wins, by multiple organizations-USADA, UCI, WADA, and the IOC. The interview helps him more than it hurts him, particularly if he tries to implicate UCI.

Especially since their legal case is not centering on the fact that Armstrong doped, but that he received the payments for winning the TDF. Now that he was stripped of the wins, by organizations with power to manage results, he did not deserve payment for the wins that he did not actually get. Is Armstrong even contending that he did not win those Tour de France wins in the interview?

 

[kottila]

I think Oprah did a fine job. The only question he flat out failed to answer was if the woman he called a whore had lied, which presumably as he'd given sworn testimony about, he didn't answer for legal reasons, and was never going to. Everything else she asked that he tried to dodge, she would just keep rewording until he gave in, patiently asking, again and again. The 'hardball' interviewers just people on the defensive.

He only admitted to stuff that was already well known and there was plenty he didn't admit to. He refused to say anything about the men behind the scenes who are still involved in the sport. His one saving grace would be to expose all those involved letting the sport be allowed to start healing itself.

edit: If he's really sorry, he will go under oath and come clean like all his teammates have.

 

[lil smoke]

Do you seriously think he did this interview for any reason but to rehab his public image in an effort to regain some glory (and money)?

Coming clean like this still is hard to do regardless. I respect him saying he probably would not have won if he hadn't doped. Forgetting about him for a second, what he's saying opens up some good discussion on the impact of "enhancers". It's a lot better than "me no speaka englesh"

 

[bjaelke]

the Inner Ring ‏@inrng
Episode 2 of Oprah this evening will cover Armstrong's charity work, personal feelings and what the future might bring

 

[Dark Octave]

He only admitted to stuff that was already well known and there was plenty he didn't admit to. He refused to say anything about the men behind the scenes who are still involved in the sport. His one saving grace would be to expose all those involved letting the sport be allowed to start healing itself.

edit: If he's really sorry, he will go under oath and come clean like all his teammates have.

That's being a rat though. If those guys want to come clean, they need to do it on their own. Someone can always put a fire under their ass to make it easier for them to do it if they are suspect just like they did with Lance, but you don't just flat out rat on people for something like this.

the Inner Ring ‏@inrng
Episode 2 of Oprah this evening will cover Armstrong's charity work, personal feelings and what the future might bring

Day one they give him his lashings, day two they rub the ointment.

 

[outunderthestars]

He only admitted to stuff that was already well known and there was plenty he didn't admit to. He refused to say anything about the men behind the scenes who are still involved in the sport. His one saving grace would be to expose all those involved letting the sport be allowed to start healing itself.

edit: If he's really sorry, he will go under oath and come clean like all his teammates have.

That is going to be the leverage he uses to reduce his ban so he can go compete in triathlons.

That's being a rat though. If those guys want to come clean, they need to do it on their own. Someone can always put a fire under their ass to make it easier for them to do it if they are suspect just like they did with Lance, but you don't just flat out rat on people for something like this.

Real life isn't a bad crime movie or rap album.

 

[kottila]

That's being a rat though. If those guys want to come clean, they need to do it on their own. Someone can always put a fire under their ass to make it easier for them to do it if they are suspect just like they did with Lance, but you don't just flat out rat on people for something like this.

Yes you do. They are destroying an entire sport, earning money on the way from criminal activities. You can't live your live after schoolyard rules. They have absolutely no benefit in coming clean, neither did Lance which is why he stuck by his lies, suing those who told the truth,

 

[Psychotext]

Day one they give him his lashings, day two they rub the ointment.

Yup... the feelgood bullshit just like I said earlier. Sickening.

 

[RoadHazard]

Anywhere the interview can be watched? The videos on oprah.com are blocked outside the US.

 

[phisheep]

Well, every legal expert I've seen discuss this topic has suggested he will likely lose millions and millions of dollars as a result of doing this interview, and that any good lawyer would have advised against it.


So I don't really think you can rationally include money as a motive for doing this interview.

Chances are he would have lost millions and millions anyway. Doing it this way he's at least saving an additional bunch in legal defence fees.

 

[BertramCooper]

Well, every legal expert I've seen discuss this topic has suggested he will likely lose millions and millions of dollars as a result of doing this interview, and that any good lawyer would have advised against it.


So I don't really think you can rationally include money as a motive for doing this interview.

My guess is that Armstrong is thinking that this might be his last shot at possibly getting reinstated into competition.

So yeah, he's going to get the shit sued out of him, but unless he at least tries to be contrite, he'll have a really tough time ever getting back into sports, and therefore, a very difficult time trying to create new sources of revenue.

 

[Hanmik]

can´t he risc jailtime with these confessions.?

Marion Jones did the same back in 2007 (basketball), he ended up in jail for a half year..

 

[kottila]

My guess is that Armstrong is thinking that this might be his last shot at possibly getting reinstated into competition.

So yeah, he's going to get the shit sued out of him, but unless he at least tries to be contrite, he'll have a really tough time ever getting back into sports, and therefore, a very difficult time trying to create new sources of revenue.

If he gets a reduced sentence from admitting doping, he could, by not admitting to doing any PEDs since 2005, be allowed to compete again relatively soon.

 

[Leona Lewis]

can´t he risc jailtime with these confessions.?

Marion Jones did the same back in 2007 (basketball), he ended up in jail for a half year..

Wrong sport and gender?

 

[kottila]

Wrong sport and gender?

and she commited perjury to federal agents under oath, which is never a good idea.

 

[Hanmik]

Wrong sport and gender?

lol... I´m sorry typed that sentence in a Hurry... but SHE played pro basketball before she entered Track & Field. (if I´m not mistaken she playes again today)

 

[Alebrije]

This guy does not have remorses about what he did, he is just lying on the interview. You can see his non verbal communication and there is no way he feels remorses for true, its just a show even the tears and crying moments.

He is acting like a kid asking for his mom pardon

 

[Klocker]

little known scientific fact...


some of the top echelon in every profession are psychopaths with little to no compassion for how their actions affect others.

 

[Hank Scorpio]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01358t4

NewsHour Podcast from BBC World Service - interview with David Walsh from 26mins or so onwards. The journo who was at the forefront of exposing doping in cycling. He gets pretty emotional, which is unlike him, about a particular incident when Armstrong vilified him using his young son's death in a bicycle accident (40mins).

Worth listening to, imo.

 

[lil smoke]

This guy does not have remorses about what he did, he is just lying on the interview. You can see his non verbal communication and there is no way he feels remorses for true, its just a show even the tears and crying moments.

He is acting like a kid asking for his mom pardon

I think it's just hard to say. Some people just have weird mannerisms, it is possible that he really is just a "jerk" and that is what a jerk looks like when he wants to be honest for a few minutes.

I dunno, you could be right, I personally am not getting the impression that he is lying, I think after all the lies, his "way to the truth" is a bit padded to save himself, maybe an about face is not what he's capable of.

 

[vidcons]

They pretty much got every other major contender from that era already. Not to mention that it's unquestionably the most thoroughly checked sport right now. Most sports will be far, far dirtier than cycling is now.

The fact that Frank Schleck got hit with a masking agent (although it doesn't seem like that went anywhere) should be a sign that cycling isn't taking the bullshit, where they can catch it, anymore.

Still don't know how Froome got away at the Tour, though.

The mob mentality is getting a little cwazy.

 

[The_Hitcher89]

Do the anti-drugs organisation ever randomly search the teams' trailers pre or post-race?

 

[Psychotext]

No.

 

[The_Hitcher89]

No.

Why not?

 

[Psychotext]

I guess the teams would make up some arguments about invasion of privacy or seating secrets... who knows. One way or another, there aren't any searches or anything like that. Just regular tests.

 

[The_Hitcher89]

I guess the teams would make up some arguments about invasion of privacy or seating secrets... who knows. One way or another, there aren't any searches or anything like that. Just regular tests.

Ah yeah, never thought of the tactical aspect

 

[Psychotext]

I have no idea why I typed "seating secrets". I think I might have been going for "leaking secrets".

 

[The_Hitcher89]

I have no idea why I typed "seating secrets". I think I might have been going for "leaking secrets".

I thought it might have something to do with seating arrangements on the grid or something

As anyone could tell from that sentence, I know fuck all about cycling

 

[someday]

How anyone could watch cycling again is beyond me. The sports is filled with cheaters and the only skill required for cycling is endurance, so when you take that out of the picture by cheating there's absolutely no reason to watch it anymore. People could say football has steroids too but at least you need to have more skills than something everyone learns to do when they 5 years old or whatever.

My two favorite sports are cycling and the NFL. I'm crazy about both equally, regardless of the BS.

 

[Jobiensis]

My two favorite sports are cycling and the NFL. I'm crazy about both equally, regardless of the BS.

Don't worry about him. Anyone that thinks there is no skill involved in cycling and only endurance matters doesn't know anything about the sport.

 

[vidcons]

Vehicles are searched by customs officers at country borders, re: Festina Affair

 

[Psychotext]

Sure, but that's obviously not the testers. (In a lot of cases customs wouldn't have a clue what they were looking for anyway)

That said, I wonder how you'd even get a lot of this stuff across boarders. I guess they'd use the same tricks as drug smugglers. I wonder if some of the frames had secret access panels.

 

[kottila]

Sure, but that's obviously not the testers. (In a lot of cases customs wouldn't have a clue what they were looking for anyway)

That said, I wonder how you'd even get a lot of this stuff across boarders. I guess they'd use the same tricks as drug smugglers. I wonder if some of the frames had secret access panels.

You get your wife to smuggle them and if she's caught with a trunk full of pharmaceuticals she can say it's fornher mother [/rumsas]

Edit: they have people that smuggle for them. Lance had a motorbiker "the motoman". Read hamiltons book for full info. It's an amazing story

 

[someday]

Great quote for the "everyone doped, he was still the best" crowd.

"Reaction was strong among riders here on the ground. Stuart O’Grady (Orica-GreenEdge), another veteran who raced during the Armstrong era, said the confession was long overdue.

“Lance deceived everyone in the planet, us included. We all suffered up the mountains and wanted to believe that he was working harder than everyone else,” O’Grady said. “How do I feel? Deceived, annoyed, frustrated.”

When asked him if we would have a beer with him (a pressing question in Australia): “No way.” Forgive him? “Probably not.”

“I think he said it, he was an arrogant prick,” O’Grady said. “The problem with people like Lance is that they say everyone else is doing it, when in fact, not everyone is doing it … I am very glad that he has finally come out and confessed. As much as it’s been shocking to the cycling world, hopefully something good can come out of this.”

http://velonews.competitor.com/2013...g-in-australia-to-armstrong-confession_271830

 

[Ollie Pooch]

Do you seriously think he did this interview for any reason but to rehab his public image in an effort to regain some glory (and money)?

Pretty much. Guy deserves no respect. Most people don't get a public position like that to allow them to try fix their image, and even when he had one he was struggling to admit he was even sorry for how poorly he treated people. He's a piece of shit.

 

[linsivvi]

No, you can't. There are "Tour-de-France" teams who's entire existence is based on not cheating.

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Europe/2008/0723/p03s07-woeu.html

Telling people to "wake up" who don't agree with an opinion you've presented without a single thing to back it up is borderline insulting, by the way.

I'm going to take a step further and say that it's not even borderline. It's simply insulting and basically a roundabout way to defend Armstrong.

The people who keep trying to downplay Lance Armstrong's crime is digesting.

Well, every legal expert I've seen discuss this topic has suggested he will likely lose millions and millions of dollars as a result of doing this interview, and that any good lawyer would have advised against it.

Source?

 

[Dreams-Visions]

so part 2 airs tonight?

 

[perfectchaos007]

so part 2 airs tonight?

yep, at 8pm Central. Part 2 is only a 1 hour special

 

[UrokeJoe]

so part 2 airs tonight?

Yes. I'm in and feeling sheepish. I'll wear uggs.