Riis

skylla
skylla Posts: 758
edited November 2012 in Pro race
Bjarne, the spokesman of the 1998 rider's strike. The Basso affair in 2006. Followed by a confession to disdemeanor in 2007 and took a lot of criticism. He seemed to hope this would open the floodgates to more confessions and perhaps a cleaner sport. Looks like he "blew his whistle too early". His TdF win was temporarily annulled. Current events seem to have gone past him.

Surely the UCI and ADA's would have overseen the teams he managed and their results like a hawk. Surely he wouldn't have transgressed after 2007 and allowed doping on his team. It certainly wasn't organised as USPS, but did he turn a blind eye? What to make of him? An early hero or perhaps a spineless cheat for not following up on his confession and doing a Garmin or Sky?

Comments

  • thomthom
    thomthom Posts: 3,574
    Bjarne is too smart to have allowed doping on his team after 2007.

    With that being said - before 2007 he's had his moments and still has plenty of stuff to confess. He can't though as that would mean he would get kicked out of the sport.
  • bigmat
    bigmat Posts: 5,134
    I just don't know with Riis. Pretty filthy as a rider, 'fessed up when he could no longer be stripped of Tour win, plenty of evidence that (some of) his riders aren't clean (Basso, Hamilton, Schlecks). I guess you've got to give him the benefit of the doubt but I'm a lot less confident than ThomThom that he's been running a clean team for the past 5 years.
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/41991871@N ... otostream/
  • inkyfingers
    inkyfingers Posts: 4,400
    ThomThom wrote:
    Bjarne is too smart to have allowed doping on his team after 2007.

    Really?
    "I have a lovely photo of a Camargue horse but will not post it now" (Frenchfighter - July 2013)
  • thomthom
    thomthom Posts: 3,574
    inkyfingers wrote:
    ThomThom wrote:
    Bjarne is too smart to have allowed doping on his team after 2007.

    Really?

    Really.

    Name me the doping accusations towards his team after 2008.
  • inkyfingers
    inkyfingers Posts: 4,400
    ThomThom wrote:
    inkyfingers wrote:
    ThomThom wrote:
    Bjarne is too smart to have allowed doping on his team after 2007.

    Really?

    Really.

    Name me the doping accusations towards his team after 2008.

    How about how he supported and warmly welcomed back Contador?

    It may be that he has turned a corner since 2007, in fact I hope he has. I just think that making absolute statements about somebody like Riis is probably a good way to end up looking daft.
    "I have a lovely photo of a Camargue horse but will not post it now" (Frenchfighter - July 2013)

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