Better to get a flat than to get shot

Last column of the Tour...

2009-07-27T21:31:00.002+02:00

Greg LeMond's last column for the Tour 2009 is entitled "Pure talent, or simulated?"

I managed to save now all the columns of last week. If you didn't manage to get them, just let me know, I'll post them here!

Le Monde (the newspaper) mentions that all the money that Greg earned with writing those columns will be donated to 1in6.org.

Friday's column

2009-07-18T10:41:00.001+02:00

"Bouche Bée", par Greg LeMond

I will be away for the full next week and won't be able to post links to Greg's columns. Check them out on Le Monde website!

Who is the greatest champion?

2009-07-16T13:23:00.003+02:00

Very nice column by Greg LeMond today in the Le Monde!

Greg starts by reporting what Lance Armstrong said about last year Tour, qualifying it of a sort of 'joke' and questioning how someone like Christian Van de Velde could finish 5th of the Tour. Armstrong recently (and only very recently...) apologized for his words.

Greg also reminds us that Armstrong also criticized ASO chief Patrice Clerc for how he handled the Tour since he, Armstrong, retired: more positive doping tests.... which is a sign, for Armstrong, that things were going better before he retired. It's actually just a sign that controls have become more efficient.

Greg then asks: Did Armstrong see the link between Van de Velde finishing 5th and this anti-doping stronger policy led by Clerc? Did he wonder whether it could be that this 5th position is the logical result of removing strongly doped riders from the field? Maybe Van de Velde finished 5th because that's where his natural talent can put him, and he could never express this talent in the middle of totally doped riders...

The last sentence of the column is simple: "Wouldn't the audience and people loving cycling like to know who is the greatest champion, even if his name is so far less known?"

The Greatest Tour of All

2009-07-16T11:46:00.003+02:00

For once today, the first post is not Greg's column in the newspaper Le Monde, but an article in Procycling, where Greg talks about the spring of 1989 and how the last TT in the Giro changed all for him that year.

Here it is: The greatest Tour of all.

A business where the unacceptable is accepted

2009-07-15T15:40:00.004+02:00

Greg LeMond in his column shows his disgust about the possibility of legalizing PEDs, and his anger towards team directors who disregard riders' health as long as they can make money.

Throw away the radios!

2009-07-14T18:11:00.002+02:00

Greg's opinion about radios...

"Drugs and radios make riders become robots"

Let the riders' talent and intelligence speak for themselves.

Advice to Contador

2009-07-14T12:43:00.003+02:00

In his column in Le Monde today, Greg LeMond explains how complicated the situation is for Alberto Contador, and that Armstrong is probably in a better place to win the Tour.

In either case, that would be a very dubious winner in my mind...

Break the omerta

2009-07-10T15:35:00.004+02:00

"Briser l'omerta". The title says it all. In his column, Greg LeMond recalls that cycling won't get clean if nobody listens to the riders who either denounce what they witness as far as doping goes or admits to doping and explain how they got PEDs.

Mabuse, Conconi, Ferrari... in jail!

2009-07-09T12:23:00.003+02:00

Greg LeMond's column today points out that riders are lab rats for unethical doctors such as Ferrari and Conconi, who don't care about riders' health... and those guys should be the ones going to jail.

The year the EPO changed cycling

2009-07-08T11:38:00.005+02:00

Today's column written by Greg LeMond in Le Monde is entitled "L'année où l'EPO a changé le vélo".

1991... the beginning of the end, not only for Greg, but also for other great riders of that time, and for us, spectators. Instead of watching humans riding back, with their good days and bad days, with surprises and drama, we had then, and still have, to deal with robots, who kill competition quickly. They are not writing the history of the Tour de France, they are just adding victories to a list.

Life in yellow

2009-07-07T16:20:00.003+02:00

Greg's piece in Le Monde today is about the yellow jersey, how his first race bike and jersey as a kid were yellow, and how the infamous "maillot jaune" can make you fly... or break you.

Laurent, my friend

2009-07-06T16:43:00.004+02:00

Greg's Monday article in the newspaper Le Monde is about Laurent Fignon, and is entitled "Laurent, mon ami".

I found it a very moving piece, because Greg clearly shows that he considers Laurent Fignon as a real friend, even though Fignon wasn't exactly nice towards him in his autobiography, which was just published, and also shows he is affected by Fignon's illness.

I love how Greg doesn't try to answer Fignon's attacks but only shows his positive feelings towards him. High road always...

LeMond as a journalist for Le Monde

2009-07-06T10:05:00.003+02:00

I'm really sorry that it's been so so long since my last post. The summer time finally gives me a bit more free time, and with the Tour de France starting now, it's good timing!

For a starter, Greg was invited as a speaker at the conference "Play the Game" and you can see the video here.

There was also a very extensive and nice interview in the Irish Times on June 27th.

And... last but not least, and for people reading French, Greg is now a journalist for the french newspaper "Le Monde".

I'm really happy that this newspaper gives him this important spot to express his ideas!

FredCast interviews Greg LeMond

2008-09-29T14:40:00.003+02:00

David Bernstein (FredCast) posted a long interview with Greg LeMond about why he sat front row at LA's press conference at Interbike and explaining more what he asked there, and his ideas to be able to detect autologuous blood transfusion for instance, his views on pro cycling right now...

Really nice complete interview, highly recommended ;-)!

FredCast has the audio of the press conference

2008-09-26T10:08:00.005+02:00

Wow... two posts on the same day. That's a first for me.

You can listen to the press conference there: http://www.thefredcast.com/

Big thanks to David ‘Fredcast‘ Bernstein for putting that online!

Interbike

2008-09-26T09:14:00.005+02:00

Cyclingnews has a quite complete report about the press conference made by Lance Armstrong and in which Greg LeMond questioned the anti-doping program that will be led by Don Catlin, a UCLA specialist about doping tests and who helped uncover the BALCO scandal, to ensure that Armstrong is clean.

Don Catlin will be paid by team Astana, to perform "independent" (add sarcastic laugh here...) testing on Armstrong. As was pointed out by LeMond in this press conference, Catlin will conduct tests concerning steroids and EPO use, but no measurements of Armstrong VO2max, power outputs... or anything else that might help uncover blood doping. Talk about transparency...

Photos of the press conference are here.

And this is the article from VeloNews about this conference:

Armstrong press conference turns tense
By Neal Rogers
Posted Sep. 25, 2008

A scheduled Lance Armstrong press conference at the Interbike cycling trade show in Las Vegas turned tense Thursday morning when three-time Tour de France champion Greg LeMond questioned his plan to disclose his blood and urine values during Armstrong’s 2009 comeback season.

Armstrong announced Wednesday in New York City that he is working closely with Don Catlin, who formerly ran UCLA’s World Anti-Doping Agency accredited laboratory. In an attempt at full transparency, Catlin will post Armstrong’s biomarkers online for the sports community to see.

LeMond, who has been at odds with Armstrong for years going back to the Texan’s relationship with controversial Italian doctor Michele Ferrari, sat in the front row and was granted the first question by Armstrong.

LeMond immediately brought Catlin’s methods into question, claiming that VO2 max, oxygen intake and power output can be used as indicators of whether a rider has used illicit performance-enhancing methods.

Catlin, whose background is in laboratory testing for banned substances, answered LeMond by saying, “that’s not my area of expertise.”

LeMond told Catlin and Armstrong that it might not be Catlin’s area of expertise, but it is an area that Australian researcher Michael Ashenden has studied.

Armstrong, who was joined on the podium by Catlin and American teenage cycling phenom Taylor Phinney, then interjected, telling LeMond, “We are here to talk about a few things — the global cancer campaign, my comeback to cycling… I appreciate your being here, but it’s time for everyone here to move on.”

Lemond replied, “So the whole history has just been passed over?”

Armstrong then moved on to the next question.

LeMond drew a similar line of questioning later in the press conference, and after several minutes Armstrong quipped, “Greg, I almost feel like we should have a fourth chair up here” before cutting LeMond off and again taking other questions.

Little update...

2008-09-25T20:07:00.003+02:00

Bikeradar.com has a nice little article about Greg here, with a few pictures.

It finishes with this:

Whatever the outcome of the legal wrangling with Trek, it's apparent Greg LeMond loves the same thing we do: endless ribbons of pavement on which to ride, a clear 75-degree day, and the company of fellow cyclists to remind us why cycling will always matter.

With Armstrong coming back next year (makes me nauseous to just write it... ), it's nice to get little reminders on the positive aspects of cycling.

And about LA coming back, it's reported here and there that there has been a little tense moment this morning at the Interbike 2008 in Las Vegas, to which Greg LeMond participates with LeMond Fitness, when Greg asked a question about doping to Lance Armstrong during a conference the latter was holding. There's no report yet about what was actually said, but I'll try to keep us informed ;-).

25 years ago today...

2008-09-04T10:37:00.003+02:00

September 4th, 1983: Greg LeMond won his first World Championships in Altenrhein, Switzerland (Elite men's road race... We know he got a gold medal and more at the Junior ones in 1979).

The Bobke Strut blog has a great post about his win, with a lot of material, links and pictures, that I had never seen before. I highly recommend a visit there!

A few video interviews

2008-07-22T23:42:00.002+02:00

I put up some videos of an interview that Greg LeMond did when he was visiting the Tour de France 2008 on my youtube account:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

The videos are from this site and can be seen there too. My purpose for copying them on youtube is just to make the interview easier to find and have the three parts close together.

Well, actually, the main reason is so that we are able to watch the interview without having to endure the horrendous Trek commercial that precedes each part of it ;-) ...

LeMond and Fignon riding today's TT together

2008-07-08T18:02:00.009+02:00

Greg LeMond and Laurent Fignon rode the time-trial Cholet-Cholet (stage 4) of the Tour de France this morning. It's great to see them getting along so well, after also having seen them being interviewed side by side last year on the Tour (video is here ;-)). It was said on French television that they did the TT in about 45 min (so 'just' 10 min more than the stage winner today, and only 2 min more than the last... not bad at all!)

I hope there'll be videos or pictures available somewhere.

As other news, several articles (for instance that one) mention that Greg's favorite for the Tour is Cadel Evans.

And I'm editing this post to add that I just found this video interview of Greg on Versus. Several things to comment on in what he said. I hope to have more time later to come back on it ;-).

And edited again, to add this other video on Versus. Nice one ;-)

Greg on the Tour in Brittanny

2008-07-06T22:43:00.006+02:00

As I said before, there are right now quite some news about Greg and I have a hard time to catch up here. Right now I have time just to indicate the latest news. Sorry about that...

And the latest news is the following: Greg LeMond was on the Tour de France today, for the 2nd stage (Auray - St Brieuc) and shared his will to participate in the anti-doping fight and in the changes that are needed to clean cycling. He gave interviews that are reported in many media sources. Here's a link to the most complete interview, as far as I can tell... One of the main points he made is that cycling does not need UCI anymore. Here's the quote:

"The UCI is just there to stamp licenses and make the regulations. The solution for cycling is very simple: organizers and riders should create their own federation and take over the sport"

I couldn't agree more ;-).

He was invited by his former teammate Eric Boyer to follow the stage, and Greg could be seen briefly on French television, beside Bernard Hinault in an interview conducted after the stage.

Here is also a video of one of the interviews Greg did this morning in Auray.
It is also indicated in the media that Greg drew big crowds around him and was asked for many autographs. His presence on the Tour didn't go unnoticed, and that's good news...

What a bike!

2008-06-19T08:59:00.017+02:00

First I have to apologize for the very long delay for a new update... Life's been a bit hectic recently (traditional excuse...). But I'm now back in business with this blog!

There have been quite a few news about Greg LeMond recently, and I'll catch up with putting them as updates in the next few days, promise!

And for a start, Nicolas, one of the blog readers, has had this really nice idea as a tribute to Greg: he recreated a 1983 Gitane bike, looking strikingly exactly like what Greg was riding in 1983!

Here is the story of this very special bike, by Nicolas:

Hi everyone & thank you Claire for your kind words.

This is my "new" bike. In fact it is a Trek-US Postal 2003 bike that was given to me by my brother. I've never been an Armstrong fan so I wasn't too excited about the painting & stickers so...

I tried to make this bike as close to Greg's 1983 Gitane bike, the one he had when he won his first rainbow jersey. I was 9 at the time and this is when it all started for me as a Greg LeMond fan. You see, we had this habit with my father & older brother to race on our bikes, pretending we were champions. 1 week before the actual race in Switzerland, we made our own world championship. My father was Fignon, my brother was Hinault and I was Greg. Needless to say...I won. Then the real Greg won too ! That was a sign.

This is my tribute to Greg and the great many years I spent since then enjoying his victories and inspiration over & over again.

This bike has been painted in the same electric blue, I added yellow tape on the handlebars and switched from shimano to campagnolo group to get as close as the 1983 modolo brakes as possible. I finally found good reproductions of Gitane decals on e-bay Australia.

What's really funny is that I took the bike to get this done only 2 weeks prior to Trek dropping LeMond bikes.

I appreciate the kind of irony this bike gives to that story.

And here is Greg riding this bike ;-) :D !!

Mark Whitehead

2008-04-24T14:55:00.003+02:00

If you want to hear really nice things about Greg LeMond, listen to Mark Whitehead on the latest episode of the Competitor Radio. Mark Whitehead rode with Greg as a Junior and simply found him "phenomenal".

Among other quotes:

"He is American cycling"

"THE best of all time was Greg LeMond"

and after LeMond won the Junior Worldchampionships in 1979, at age 18:

He told me "I'm gonna win the Tour de France", and I told him "You're crazy Greg!"

Open your mind

2008-04-13T23:07:00.005+02:00

I have been going through all the documents available online about the complaint filed by LeMond against Trek, and the countersuing by Trek, as well as through the presentation that Trek's CEO, John Burke, did to his employees and that's available on YouTube, and it becomes quite clear to me that Trek does not have much of a case.

They claim that Greg LeMond's comments against doping and Armstrong hurt the sales of the LeMond brand. If it was so true, why don't they show actual figures of sales? All they seem to be able to come up with are a few angry mails by potential buyers and retailers. In the presentation on YouTube, they show the sales numbers until 1999, showing the increase in sales, but nothing after Greg LeMond's supposedly hurting comments in 2001. Unless they can come up with some graphs showing a clear correlation between his comments and a drop in the sales, their arguments are unconvincing. Unconvincing, and thus seeming as unethical as it looks at first sight: they want to ignore doping and assert that speaking out against it is hurting cycling (and not sure about Trek that they care about cycling, just about selling bikes probably...).

As Greg LeMond really well put it himself:
"It's not me by speaking out against drugs that's causing this bad publicity for cycling, it's those who choose to cheat and take drugs."

As for LeMond bashers -but I doubt that they come here- they really need to get informed, read what LeMond actually said, and not repeat again and again the same argumentations already made by other people, and simplistic interpretations of what Greg LeMond said, without knowing the real quotes.

I highly recommend this post on the Boulder report, which invite people to "open their mind" about Greg and his stance against doping. It's a really nice post, and it says a lot of what I think myself, but that I wouldn't be able to express as well in my approximative english. There's even one comment by someone who admits to have changed his opinion about Greg after reading it. I'm quoting here the end of this really nice post:

But before you damn Greg, before you write him off as an embittered ex-pro and accept the meme that he says what he says only because he wanted to be the only American ever to win the Tour de France, look at the man's life, in full. Look at what he really said. Look what's happened since. Look at the state of the sport today and ask yourself if he said what he did because he hates the sport, or because he loves it. If you were in his position, that's what you'd want, too.

Also from several comments I read on some blogs and forums, I know that this interview on the competitor radio made a lot of people "open their mind" and admit after listening to it that they didn't see Greg anymore as "bitter", but rather as well-spoken and having a coherent and well-informed opinion against doping. I guess people coming here already know about this interview. If not, don't miss it! It's really worth every minute of it.

If you want LeMond to win, try to kill him

2008-04-10T14:04:00.006+02:00

The title of this post could be addressed to Trek's people...
It's actually the title of an article by Bill Lyon, published at the end of the Tour de France 1990, explaining that LeMond was never better than after having had to face strong adversity.

I must admit that I may have been over-optimistic in my last post with thinking that times were changing regarding internet posts about Greg LeMond. Though it's true he does get a lot more support than two or three years ago, you can still easily find here and there "LeMond is bitter" when reading about Trek vs. LeMond. I must also admit that it annoys the hell out of me, especially when a large number of these posts are starting with "The truth is, LeMond is just jealous..." But well, it comes from the same people who keep on reharshing: "Truth is, Armstrong never tested positive". Yep, if that's their kind of truth, LeMond's supposed bitterness is easy to disregard.

In his interview on Fora.tv to which I put a link a few weeks ago, Greg expressed that he was well aware of what was written about him on the internet. And I can't help but thinking that he must be incredibly strong mentally. I couldn't bare to read about myself half of whats' written about him... But this man seems so confident in his opinions, so sure that he is doing what is right, that he doesn't seem to really care what some people can think or say. For that, I truly admire him.

And since I find it a nice read, and a really good memory about Greg's career, I'll put the article here:

IF YOU WANT LEMOND TO WIN, TRY TO KILL HIM
Author: Bill Lyon Knight-Ridder News Service Edition: FINAL

With apologies to that incomparable aerialist Michael Jordan, to that geriatric bringer of heat Nolan Ryan, to that ubiquitous merchandiser of jockdom Bo Jackson, to that lord of the rinks Wayne Gretzky, but the best athlete in the world right now is . . . A skinny, scrawny shrimp with a cherubic face and a crooked smile who doesn't look as if he could be a threat at even, say, a brisk game of checkers.Ah, but hunched over the handlebars in that aerodynamic tuck position, legs as tireless and relentless as a metronome, he becomes something of a human bullet and brings a whole new dimension to, and appreciation of, the notion of human locomotion through pedal power.

In short, Gregory James LeMond is hell on wheels.

He won the Tour de France yesterday. It is the longest, biggest, richest, most important bicycle race in the world, and before LeMond came along, hardly anyone in the American sporting public was aware of it. But now he has won it three times, twice in a row, last year by all of eight seconds, thereby giving a whole new meaning to winning by a nose, this year with a glorious and gutsy and irresistible rush on the next-to-last day, on the very day that he called it, called his shot, and now it has reached the point that if he doesn't win it every year you are going to hear people who don't know spokes from sprockets bleating: "So what's wrong with LeMond and that Tour thing, anyhow?"

LeMond has done, imagine a youth from, say, Brazil, going to Canada and learning how to play hockey and then winning the Stanley Cup. Frequently. Only one other American had ever even entered a Tour de France before LeMond, who was a stranger in a strange land involved in a strange sport.

Now the French embrace him. He has won them over with his grit. They adore his boldness, how he metamorphoses from this inoffensive wisp into this single- minded fang-bared killer in the sport that so enflames their passion. And they love that he has taught himself their language, and it probably does not hurt that his name sounds French, although his ancestry is mostly Scotch- Irish, and that basically what he is, is a kid from Nevada who was nuts for skiing until one winter there came a drought and he was stuck biking and got hooked on that. He won the Tour this year breezing, laughing, on cruise control. Yet, as recently as 10 days before, he had floundered along in 35th place, an alarming 10 minutes in arrears of the leaders, there were ominous headlines. But then he has been grievously underestimated before.

It is not necessary to know anything about cycling to understand that Greg LeMond is long on gumption and perseverance. His whole life is a miracle of will. Soon after he became the first Yank to win the Tour, in 1986, he lay bleeding to death, gutted by a shotgun blast in a hunting accident. He lived, but then you knew that. Before winning his second Tour, he had to overcome an emergency appendectomy, tendinitis, a broken wrist and a serious leg infection. Before this year's Tour, he spent five weeks fighting a virus, and then had food poisoning for dessert.

It has become abundantly clear that the surest way to make Greg LeMond win is to try to kill him. He still carries an estimated 30 small lead pellets, No. 2 buckshot, inside his barbed-wire body. "The doctors said there's really no danger leaving them in," he once explained to a horrified interviewer. "Your body forms scar tissue." By now, his body has had a lot of practice. The race itself is a manufacturer of scar tissue, on both the psyche and the physique.

The Tour de France is a crusher of will, a destroyer of spirit and an agony of the body. This year's route covered 2,112 miles and yet the
average speed was more than 24 miles per hour. That's with a couple of fairly serious mountain ranges, the Alps and the Pyrenees. There were attacks and counterattacks, breakaways and switchbacks, impossibly steep climbs when a biker stands straight up and barely can keep up with a pedestrian, followed by terrifying descents at 70 miles per hour where the merest brushing of one wheel against another can trigger a crash that swallows 30 riders. As a matter of fact, LeMond Which, of course, meant he was a mortal lock.

Again. Of course you have to be a bit mad to climb onto the saddle to begin with, submitting yourself to more than 2,000 miles and three weeks of soul-searing excruciation. But to appreciate what Greg Winning on cruise control crashed this year. Got up bleeding, with the middle finger of his braking hand swollen and useless. That's the end of him, they said.

Which, of course, meant he was a mortal lock.

The times, they are a-changin'

2008-04-09T10:55:00.004+02:00

About LeMond vs. Trek again, I recommend this article in Cyclingnews: it is very complete and presents clearly both sides of the affair.

You can also get the full complaint filed by LeMond against Trek there:
http://www.trekbikes.com/pdf/media/en/03202008_Lemond.pdf

It's a lot about Armstrong and comments Greg made about him. I know I'm far from being objective about this, but I really don't see where Trek is trying to go by saying that Greg hurt Trek sales with being outspoken against doping. That's as close to being doping apologists as it gets...

Also from the complaint filed by LeMond, this little quote is quite interesting:

On November 27, 2007 (...) an attorney for Mr. Armstrong contacted Mr. LeMond's attorney. Mr. Armstrong's attorney indicated that he would like to broker a "truce" between Mr. Armstrong and Mr. LeMond because Trek would no longer be in a position to temper things between Mr. Armstrong and Mr. LeMond (...). The suggestion of a truce was interesting since Mr. Armstrong had only recently inserted himself and sought to damage Mr. LeMond's position in a property dispute that Mr.LeMond had in Montana.

Looks like someone is afraid of Greg. One can wonder why?

This affair puts into light how much the vision of the present state of procycling is a two-speeds thing, just as the peloton was/is still since the mid 90's.
A growing portion of cycling fans and journalists no longer have their heads in the sand and cannot accept anymore the statement that being outspoken against doping is damaging for cycling. Another part, which was the majority still a few years ago, thinks it's still possible to keep going with procycling in a status quo, and that people like Greg are damaging the sport.

I can imagine that, a few years ago, the same news that Trek wanted to drop LeMond bikes would have triggered on the internet a lot of comments in the spirit of "good riddance!". Now you can read here and there that people decided they won't buy Treks anymore... Reading posts on boards and blogs from a few years ago, compared to now, is really interesting. The contrast is striking.

Clearly, since about the beginning of 2007, the wind has turned. The Landis affair, the total fiasco that has been the Tour 2007, confessions by Riis, Zabel and others... how can you not want cycling to change?

As for cycling innovations, in the fight against doping, Greg has been ahead of his time. It's a sweet-sour feeling now, seeing people start to see that he was right, and at the same time wishing he's been heard before...

Trek to stop selling LeMond bikes

2008-04-08T18:37:00.004+02:00

From several sources: VeloNews, Bizjournal ... : Trek wants to end the deal with Greg LeMond.

From the VeloNews article, it's quite clear it's because of Greg's comments regarding Armstrong:

"Greg's public comments hurt the LeMond brand and the Trek brand," Burke said.

I'm not sure yet what to think about it... Maybe it has to do with Richard Burke's recent death. Greg had nice words about him:

Greg LeMond, who sold his bike brand to Trek in the early 1990s, called Burke a visionary.
"My heart goes out to the Burke family and the entire extended Trek family," LeMond told VeloNews.

"He was a visionary in the world of cycling and together with his son, John, built an incredible family business. I will always remember him as a man of integrity and he will be dearly missed."

Maybe his relationships with John Burke, son of Richard, is not so good.

As Greg said himself, it's no fun having a muzzle, and his deal with Trek has been a big one for long.
Let's wait and see what will come out of it...

Sharepoint Seattle Conference - Bis...

2008-03-06T08:36:00.002+01:00

Someone who attended the keynote presentation by Greg LeMond talks about it on this blog (including a picture...).

Sharepoint Seattle Conference 2008

2008-03-04T09:01:00.003+01:00

Greg LeMond will be a keynote speaker at the Microsoft Sharepoint Conference 2008 in Seattle, tomorrow Wednesday March 4th, at 9am Pacific time. The website of the conference seems to indicate that the keynote presentations can be watched online... I'll check more tomorrow if it's possible to see anything on WebCast.

Greg cross-country skiing

2008-02-27T18:58:00.007+01:00

Greg LeMond participated in the Yellowstone Rendezvous on February, 23rd, 2008. He finished the 25k in 2:04.

A few pictures (as on a bike, quite impressing thighs!):

Ethics, doping and the future of cycling video

2008-02-20T10:17:00.002+01:00

The panel discussion at Santa Clara University to which Greg LeMond participated on February 17th can be watched on Fora.tv.

It's about 1 hour long, and nothing really new is discussed, but it's still really worth the hour. Greg looks in great shape, and as usual, sounds passionate about cycling and eager to see it becoming clean. It also appears that Greg gets online and is well aware of what's being said about him on the internet. I'll put transcripts of some of his quotes in future posts.

I'm also embedding the video here. Enjoy!

A little piece by Matt Seamon

2008-01-31T10:33:00.001+01:00

You can find a little piece about Greg LeMond written by Matt Seamon here.

Matt Seamon started working with Greg to write his autobiography, but the project was aborted, and Matt Seamon says a possible reason was that Greg felt his career was eclipsed by Armstrong's. I imagine there's more to it than that... maybe Greg wasn't ready yet to tell his full story. I just hope that one day we will be able to read his own point of view on his life and career.

As Matt Seamon says:

"I hope he does complete the book some day. He was the original pioneer."

Greg to speak at Santa Clara University

2008-01-22T17:43:00.000+01:00

Greg LeMond will speak on Sunday, February 17th, at 6pm at Santa Clara University, about "Ethics, Doping, and the Future of Cycling". The event is free and open to public. More informations here.

I'm quite a bit frustrated... I'll be in Northern California just a bit before, leaving on the 15th :(, missing the event by not much.

Happy New Year to all Greg LeMond fans!

2008-01-10T11:40:00.000+01:00

and to everybody else too ;-)... (I know, I know... a bit late, but better late than ever)

And to start the year, two little news about Greg:

There's a short extract of the Procycling issue dedicated to him here:
Procycling talks to Greg LeMond.

And the panel about "Legal Issues in Drug Testing Athletes", held by the Chicago Bar Association last November and to which Greg participated, was aired on CSPAN, and they now have a PodCast of it.

Go to this CSPAN site and subscribe to the Outside the Beltway podcast, or use directly the following xml:
http://download.rbn.com/cspan/cspan/download/beltway_feed.xml,

and get the January, 2nd 2008 episode... Greg is introduced at about 1'16''05, then makes a little presentation about his career, talks about his retirement with 'a bad taste in his mouth', talks about doping... And in the end, with the rest of the panel, answers a few Q&A.

If you want it and have trouble getting it, contact me: lemondAB@gmail.com, changing AB by the 2 last digits of Greg's birth year ... (sorry 'bout that, just my loose attempt at trying to avoid spams).

Special Greg LeMond issue of Procycling

2007-12-19T20:28:00.000+01:00

The January 2008 issue of the magazine Procycling will be a special issue about Greg LeMond, with him as a guest editor: "70 pages of sensational stories direct from his Minnesota home".

"Three-time Tour de France winner Greg LeMond has taken a step in a new direction by stepping into the editor's chair at Procycling.

In the January 2008 issue, which goes on sale in the UK on December 20 and across the rest of the world in the new year, LeMond focuses on some of the incidents and issues that are close to his heart, including his radical thoughts on training and how cycling has helped his family through some difficult times.

During a frantic few days at home in Minneapolis, LeMond sets out his vision for the sport, analyzing conventional training methods and explaining why he believes less can be more - in short, why training in a very specific way can make any cyclist faster. He also explains what he would do if he was running the sport, and has some particularly strong views on what should be done to tackle the issue of doping.

On the personal side, LeMond gives his insight into some of the great sporting moments he enjoyed on the bike, including his thoughts on that 1986 Tour feud with team-mate Bernard Hinault and why he thinks he got the edge of Laurent Fignon in the incredible 1989 Tour. He also talks frankly and candidly about some of the personal problems he and his family have faced, and reveals how therapy and cycling has helped them get back on the right track."

Interview on Minnesota Public Radio in 2002

2007-12-18T16:18:00.000+01:00

I recently re-listened to an audio interview I had for quite a time, and I re-discovered this was a very very interesting and pleasant one. If you don't know it yet, it's really worth the hour it lasts!

Diana Nyad interviewed Greg LeMond on Minnesota Public Radio at Macalester College in St Paul in 2002, and this interview (almost one hour long) can be listened to through that link. You need RealPlayer to listen to it.

The swimmer Diana Nyad was on the World T.E.A.M. Sports project with Vietnam War veterans that Greg participated to in 1997, and they became friends while riding in Vietnam.

They talked about many many things: doping, Greg's popularity in France, simple pleasures while riding, like spotting rivers for fly-fishing while on races and getting emotional about the smell of eucalyptus reminding him of Northern California, the kindness of Minnesota people, his love for French landscapes... and much more.

A few priceless quotes during this interview:

"Athletes are really idiots most of the time."

"I love sports, but I do recognize in sports there is a mentality that's almost -I don't want to say mental illness-, but there's a point where they take it so far beyond what it should, and that's the only thing I find wrong with sports today, it's gone so far to one extreme."

"I want to know that everybody is clean [...] but it's a total naive notion."

It's pure Greg: he is straightforward, well-spoken, passionate, outspoken and with a tendency to wander on topics... I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did!

El Tour de Tucson: LeMond and Rideclean

2007-11-26T11:51:00.000+01:00

Greg LeMond was at El Tour de Tucson last November 16th and 17th, with his son Geoffrey. They rode the 109-miles event. I didn't find out whether they finished... I just saw on cyclingnews.com that Greg got a flat.

He also spoke about doping before the event in an interview to Tucson Citizen:

While Greg LeMond rides the 109-mile El Tour de Tucson on Saturday, his mind will play on different themes.

One, the prestige he knows he brings to the 25th anniversary, which could have a record 10,000 participants.

Two, one of the most important things in life, health - his own, his family's and even that of the American public in general.

And three, the issue that is rocking his sport to its heels - doping.

"I've known for many years it was a time bomb that would eventually go off," said LeMond, who travels the country to speak about clean riding and health. "And I'm quite happy it has gone off. Now the sport can start over again, go free."

LeMond was the first American to win the World Series of cycling - the Tour de France. He won the event three times - 1986, 1989 and 1990 - the last two being sheer-guts attempts after he recovered from a serious hunting accident that prevented him from reaching the form he had in '86.

Saturday is LeMond's third Tour de Tucson. The first was the 33-miler in 2000, and the second was the full 111 miles, which defied his glory days.

"I blew up when I hit the (Sabino Creek) crossing," he said. "I knew where my hotel was, and I went straight back and had lunch."

He wants to go the full 109 Saturday but knows he'll be far off the pace.

"I'm 50 pounds heavier than at my riding weight," the 205-pound LeMond said.

Greg also wore a Rideclean jersey, and Rideclean.net is indicating that they would like to work with him as a spokesperson.

1in6.org

2007-11-19T12:46:00.000+01:00

1 in 6, it's the horrible statistics of men having suffered forms of sexual abuse in their childhood.

I just found out that Greg LeMond got involved with the nonprofit 1in6.org.

Go visit their website for more information.
This organization has for mission to help men start recovery from sexual abuse in young adulthood, and not in the more observed late 30's or 40's.

Greg became a board member in September. The newsletter from 1in6 indicates:

Most recently Greg's courage and personal fortitude was made obvious when he spoke publicly for the first time about his own abusive sexual experiences in childhood. His recovery and desire to reach out and help others has brought him to a place of wanting to be involved with 1in6 as we launch our outreach and program efforts. We applaud Greg's candor and forthrightness in speaking about the issue and welcome him with great excitement to the 1in6 founding board.

Anti-Doping panel

2007-11-09T15:42:00.000+01:00

Greg LeMond was participating in a panel discussion about doping last Tuesday in Chicago, hosted by the Chicago Bar Association.

A report on that panel can be found in Cyclingnews, along with a few pictures.

Here are a few quotes from Greg:

Greg Lemond began his speech by talking about how he entered the sport and then the basics of cycling's history of doping, paying particular attention to the final years of his career. "One of our team-mates left our team to an Italian team, saying 'This [doping] is what they are doing - you either provide the same thing or I am leaving.' The coach we had at the time refused and I still respect him to this day," explained Lemond. "That rider saw us before the Tour that year and just laughed at us, saying we had no chance. He said he had ridden the Tour of Spain and didn't feel his legs, not because he was in great shape, but because he had been doping."

"I lasted six days in that Tour de France that year, and that guy died of a heart attack seven months later," added Lemond. "That is when I retired from cycling."

"Most Americans think I am outspoken about this because of Lance Armstrong's success, or Floyd Landis," continued Lemond. "Unfortunately the only time most people have read what I have said about anti-doping in the sport has only been during those years."
Lemond said he is beginning to see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel for cycling, in regards to the doping scandals. "Finally we have a sport that wants to change, now that there has been an economic impact. So I am more optimistic than I have been in many years. I spoke with the Tour de France director this year and I think for they first time the organizers want this to change - they need this to change, because it is crumbling underneath their feet. But it is going to be a slow process."

In regards to what Thompson said about the lack of fairness inherent in the current system, Lemond disagreed. "I want fairness - I don't want a an athlete to be falsely accused," he outlined. "But within the sport of cycling I don't know of one false positive that was not, years later, that it was positive. Unlike the defense attorneys, I think the process is skewed [in favor of] the athletes. The governing bodies have to live to a higher standard than even our criminal justice system. The criminal lab's standards are so low relative to scientific labs. And circumstantial evidence still does matter."

In short, Lemond reiterated his stance on anti-doping to an audience not made-up of cycling enthusiasts, putting it this way. "I see these athletes like Floyd Landis and Tyler Hamilton - they're not bad people, but they get in a situation where the tests aren't reliable or not testing and they feel that they have to keep up and compete."

It's not the first time that Greg LeMond is mentioning Philippe Casado dying a few months after leaving Gan. This experience seems to be quite at the heart of his anti-doping fight. I hope that Roger Legeay, the coach he is mentioning, has stayed 'incorruptible' all along.

I'm kinda glad to see Greg pointing out himself that it's a pity that so many people think he started speaking up against doping only since Armstrong won more than 3 Tours. I wrote a letter to Cyclingnews a bit ago about that, and I was mentioning in that letter an interview he did to "Le cyclisme international" in 1993 or 1994. He was already talking about Ferrari there. I tried to get back my hands on that issue, but didn't find it yet (too many movings in my life... ). It had Greg on the cover, in a Gan team jersey crossing his arms. If anyone has a scan of that, don't hesitate to share it somewhere!

I'm quite fed up with reading so often that he should have spoken out before, that it shows he is just jealous, while he did speak up! I'd like that there exists somewhere on the internet a real physical proof to refer to, showing that he did...

A must-see youtube video

2007-10-30T14:55:00.000+01:00

A young Greg LeMond interviewed in 1983, one month after his victory in the World Championship, in a still slightly hesitating French.

This interview is conducted just after le Grand Prix des Nations, in which Greg LeMond finished 2nd and put himself in the first position of the Super Prestige Pernod.

He talks about being totally unknown in US even as a world champion, and about how he sees the future of his career: making a comfortable living thanks to cycling, and not having a career "à la Merckx" with wanting to win all, but focus on the big races and enjoy other things in life, and finish his career healthy...
A must-see!

Mr Clean

2007-10-24T09:25:00.000+02:00

For any fan of Greg LeMond, I highly recommend reading this piece by Benjamin Strong: Mr CLEAN: Greg LeMond and Pro Cycling's doping problems.
(And for non-fans, maybe a few things to learn... )

It relates in very well put words the atypical position of Greg against doping throughout his career and recently.

It includes some quite rare pictures, including this one, of Greg at age 16, winning one of his first European races in Belgium. That's one wonderful picture in my opinion, so vintage, looking like it could come directly from the 40's... so contrasting with later pictures in Greg's career.

The piece finishes with:

In more ways than one, Greg LeMond has courageously defied the social convention of keeping quiet about anything shameful. Although the record books tell a different story, the Tour de France has had no worthier champion than him.

Great blog ! and a german interview

2007-10-08T09:19:00.001+02:00

Greg LeMond was interviewed by the german Tour Magazin. If anyone got a hand on this interview, don't hesitate to share ! I'm trying to find that magazine, not so easy in France... But I keep hope ;-).

On another note, Thierry has a great blog about Greg's victories and defeats, with some very rare pictures ! Go visit: The Best of Greg LeMond.

LeMonds, father and son...

2007-10-05T16:19:00.000+02:00

Recently, when talking about father and son in the LeMond family, one refers to Greg and Geoffrey... But this time I just found a recent picture of Greg with his dad. Though I didn't see any picture of Greg's father since the beginning of the 1990's, I'm pretty sure it's him. They were in Las Vegas at the end of September for Interbike. I'll post more pictures of Greg at the Interbike, where he was for LeMond Fitness and signing autographs, in a couple of days. If you were at the event, took pictures yourself, have anything you'd like to share, let me know ;-)...

The blog wasn't started yet when Mrs Bertha LeMond passed away at the beginning of last June, so I'll use the opportunity here to send all my thoughts to the LeMond family after their loss.

Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival

2007-09-25T12:56:00.000+02:00

Greg LeMond was with his son Geoffrey at the Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival on September 15th. He finished the Chequamegon 40 at the 291st position (time 2:41, with a flat...) and Geoffrey finished at an impressing 58th position (2:23).

I found a few pictures (seems like they were both riding Trek):

Greg on the starting line. He had bib #1.

A bit muddy after the race... but obviously happy

And bib #159: Geoffrey

Who does actually blast the image of sport?

2007-08-28T15:38:00.000+02:00

In the last post I made a link to the article in the Denver Post untitled: LeMond blasts image of sport.

I know journalists are just looking for sensational titles sometimes, but that one is really quite annoying. Greg speaks out against doping, and fact is, doping exists in cycling, big time... Up to a nauseating level. Should it be denounced? Sure it should.

On the Competitors Radio Show, Greg said:

"For some reasons in today's world, they love to shoot the messenger instead of listening to the messenger, and I'm just saying "okay, how do we solve this problem?" and a lot of the messengers that are saying this are immediately getting punched upon, and the problem is not going away. It's not me by speaking out against drugs that's causing this bad publicity for cycling, it's those who choose to cheat and take drugs. That's what's causing the damage."

Who is blasting the image of sport now? Greg LeMond... or Vinokourov, Kasheshkin, Rasmussen, Landis and oh so many others?

I picked up my side long ago.

Another interview: more anti-UCI comments

2007-08-27T14:59:00.000+02:00

The Denver Post has another interview with Greg LeMond, where he is even more straightforward about his opinion on the UCI

What more can be done? LeMond said start at the top.
"You've got to get rid of the UCI (international governing body)," he said. "There's corruption in the UCI. It goes back. You have certain athletes donating money for doping machines. Ethically it crosses a barrier. It sends a message that: Are all the riders really being tested? That's what's going on in the minds of the peloton."

He also expresses his doubts about inside-team testing, with this memorable quote ;-):

"Pro teams for 15 years have been doing their own testing. They've been testing how to get away with it."

LeMond optimistic

2007-08-27T00:33:00.000+02:00

Greg LeMond was interviewed by Zak Brown for Daily Camera, while he was in Boulder, CO, for the Tour de Cure.

He is talking about his view on the UCI. I highlighted a few things that seemed the most important for me:

LeMond upbeat about cycling's future
A Tour de France filled with negative news isn't even a month removed, and one of America's greatest cyclists, and one of its most outspoken, says he is "the most optimistic I have been in years" about the sport.
Greg LeMond, the first American to win the Tour de France, was back Friday near the scene of the Boulder-based Coors Classic, which he called his "favorite race," even over the Tour. LeMond is in Longmont for the Tour de Cure, a charity ride for the American Diabetes Association that will happen today.

His has been a highly sought-after voice in the wake of this year's Tour, which ended in a victory for Spain's Alberto Contador only after whole teams dropped out and the race leader was booted in the middle of the race. LeMond has never been shy to speak about controversy in the sport, and he talked at length Friday about what can be done to help the sport he said he has always loved.

"I think we're fleshing out a lot of people who are leaving," he said. "I think a lot of people are leaving not because they can't get sponsors, but because (investigators are) getting serious. The guys that have been getting away with it don't want to be caught."
LeMond spoke Friday night about changes in the international doping system, including criminalizing offenses and taking testing away from governing bodies, and also about the bright future of Boulder's Taylor Phinney. LeMond has routinely spoken about doping, and even questioned the doping innocence of seven-time Tour winner Lance Armstrong in the past.
When he returned to France this year and spoke with Tour director Christian Prudhomme, he suggested drastic changes in the way the sport is policed, and sticks by those suggestions.

"I was asked what I thought could be done, and the first thing I said was to divorce yourself from the (International Cycling Union)," LeMond said. "They're in a war in a fight over TV rights. The UCI has been negligent in the sense that they've known what's been going on in cycling. But they have done a much better job under (UCI head) Pat McQuaid, no doubt."

Other changes he suggested were to sequester riders two hours before race so there is no unsupervised access to the riders, randomly testing 20 riders every day and lowering allowable hematocrit levels from 50 percent to 46 percent, which would eliminate the ability to use EPO undetected. LeMond acknowledged the difficulty of testing for blood transfusions, which are undetectable. But he did suggest to eliminate all injections - even vitamin injections - unless they are administered by a race doctor.

They may seem like drastic changes, but the sport has reached a point where drastic measures are likely needed after the cheating improved testing has revealed.

"How is it that one team can perform and never have a positive, and then all these riders go to different teams, and they're all busted?" said LeMond, who won three yellow jerseys. "So within the athletes, there's kind of this, 'What's going on,' and it forces them to kind of try to keep up."

The biggest change would be to criminalize doping in cycling, which has proven difficult. But, he says, by increasing the penalty for cheating, those trying to root out cheaters would have much more leverage.

"There would be the ability to plea-bargain prison sentences, so when riders get busted they can rat out the system and come back to racing in much heavier testing," he said. "It needs to be criminalized because they are trafficking in illegal drugs. They are prescription drugs, but they are being illegally distributed throughout the peloton. You make sure it's very transparent, and then that increases the credibility of the sport."

Because of his status as one of America's best, LeMond will likely always be asked to evaluate this country's cycling. With high-profile doping cases involving Boulder's Tyler Hamilton, disputed Tour de France winner Floyd Landis and the cloud of suspicion over Armstrong, some have questioned whether the sport can recover in the U.S. It doesn't help, LeMond said, that cyclists like Greg Strock said in 2000 that the U.S. cycling federation injected him with illegal doping substances when he was a junior racer in 1990.

"Our federation is not the greatest example. So basically I don't trust our cycling federation," he said. "And even if we do have education, no matter what, athletes are competitive, and they need to know that if it's really being caught, they don't have to (dope)."

LeMond does see hope in Boulder's Taylor Phinney, the son of one of LeMond's greatest contemporaries, Davis Phinney, and gold medal cyclist Connie Carpenter. The younger Phinney recently won the junior men's world time trial and appears to be poised for a stellar career.

"He could be one of our most talented riders coming up. At first I thought, 'Oh, I'm so happy for him,'" said LeMond, who won the Coors Classic in 1981 and 1985 . "And then I thought, 'Oh, I'm so sad for him.' Because I don't know if I was the parent, and my son would have won the worlds, that I would allow him to pursue it on the professional level. I am optimistic that there is a change and it's shifting, and that maybe Taylor Phinney can have a chance like I did where you don't have to decide to either sell your soul to be part of a sport or having your dignity and be proud of doing it on your own."

LeMond will ride today in the Tour de Cure, and was hoping to do the century ride to Estes Park. The rides begin at 6 a.m. at the Boulder County Fairgrounds, and riders can register today. There will also be a festival at the fairgrounds during the rides.

So... Greg's very low consideration of the UCI is once again made clear here. Another point that I find interesting, and I've been wondering about that possibility when the cases of blood doping were talked about during last Tour -and particularly the fact that autologuous transfusions were undetectable- : wouldn't it be possible to check for needle marks on riders? Of course the exam can seem borderline too invasive, and there's the possibility of simple vitamin injections... Greg suggests to have a control on those injections too. Why not?

Videos of "La Légende du Tour"

2007-08-02T18:34:00.000+02:00

I uploaded on Youtube videos of "La Légende du Tour" dedicated to Greg LeMond, that was shown on French TV during the Tour 2007. Here it is:
part 1 (some rare footage of a young Greg on the Circuit de la Sarthe in 1980, and on the Dauphiné Libéré in 1983)
part 2
part 3
part 4
part 5

De Mondenard: "only one person"

2007-07-31T14:06:00.000+02:00

Greg LeMond has been interviewed about the last Tour de France, and here is what he said:

Red flag' on Evans' rival
From correspondents in New York
July 27, 2007 THREE-time Tour de France champion Greg LeMond said today that it was unfair to brand Michael Rasmussen a cheat without looking at those around him.

And he warned there was a "red flag" on the new man in the yellow jersey, Discovery Channel rider Alberto Contador from Spain, who stands between Cadel Evans and an historic Australian victory in Paris on Monday (AEST).

Indeed, LeMond believes there should be no champion this year.

In a dramatic few days on the crisis-hit race, long-time leader Rasmussen was sensationally turfed out by his Rabobank team.

France's No.1 team, Cofidis, pulled out after it was revealed that Italian rider Cristian Moreni had tested positive for testosterone, while Astana also quit following favourite Alexandre Vinokourov's dope test failure.

"If Rasmussen got caught, and if you want to be equal, you have to implicate other riders, too," LeMond said.

"You have a lot of riders against whom there's a lot of evidence and relations to certain doctors. Those riders are getting away with it.

"Alberto Contador and Rasmussen are at 60kgs each and both are climbing as fast as (Marco) Pantani did. That's a red flag right there," he said in a reference to the late Italian, a superb climber who won both the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia in 1998.

"Contador has been involved in Operation Puerto'" he added, citing the doping scandal that rocked Spain.

"I'm not pointing fingers at Contador. I'm just saying that if you point fingers at Rasmussen, you have to look at the riders next to him."

LeMond said he thought the Tour de France would be better served if it didn't name a champion this year.

"I would prefer to see a non-Tour de France winner," he said.

"It's more symbolic."

However, he said the opinions sprouting around Europe, that the latest scandals will spell the end of the Tour, are wrong, although he does believe the reputation of cycling as a competitive sport is in jeopardy.

"The Tour will survive," LeMond said.

"The Tour is an event. It has a glorious past. It has a history. The Tour will never go away. During three weeks, riders become actors. Actors with a story to tell. If you remove those actors, and replace them, you'll still have the drama and the flavor the Tour brings.

"What I'm pessimistic about is the credibility of cycling as a whole.

"Each time we thought things are looking better, then we take a dive."

LeMond said the positive tests revealed only the tip of the iceberg, that drug cheats still abounded in the peloton, and riders were under pressure to keep quiet about it.

"There's a strong omerta," he said. "But it's changing."

The doping control system needs to improve to hasten progress, he said.

"There's too many loopholes," said LeMond.

"For instance, none of the riders are tested before the start of the race. The only tests occur early in the morning, which means they can pretty much do anything they want before the start.

He called for a body independent of Tour officials and the International Cycling Union to take over, with funding by the government and more punitive measures for those caught cheating.

Agence France-Presse

Almost the same thing, in French:

27 juillet 2007
Greg LeMond: "Pas surpris"

Triple vainqueur du Tour de France, Greg LeMond n'est pas étonné de voir la Grande Boucle à nouveau touchée par des scandales de dopage. L'Américain fait part de ses doutes quant au nouveau porteur du maillot jaune, Alberto Contador.

-> Etes-vous surpris par les affaires qui ont éclaté sur le Tour de France ?

- Pas vraiment. Quand vous regardez la vitesse à laquelle certains coureurs grimpent les cols, ils vont aussi vite qu'à l'époque de Pantani. Ce qui me choque, c'est la relation que peuvent encore entretenir certains avec le Docteur Ferrari. Ils pensent qu'ils ne peuvent y arriver sans lui.

-> L'équipe Rabobank a-t-elle bien fait de renvoyer Michael Rasmussen du Tour alors qu'il n'a pas été contrôlé positif ?

- Si on a puni Rasmussen, alors il faut impliquer d'autres coureurs contre lesquels les preuves sont bien plus grandes. Ce n'est pas normal que ces coureurs puissent s'en sortir. Quand je pense que Floyd Landis (contrôlé positif lors de sa victoire en 2006) s'est défendu en clamant que les échantillons testés par le laboratoire français étaient manipulés, que les Français étaient contre lui et qu'il n'y avait pas de culture de dopage en cyclisme... Soit Floyd est un grand naïf, soit il est vraiment de mauvaise foi.

-> Pour vous, il y a donc encore des coureurs dopés dans le peloton?

- C'est évident. Les coureurs savent bien qui est dopé et qui ne l'est pas. Prenez Contador par exemple (ndlr: Alberto Contador, le nouveau leader). Rasmussen et lui ont le même gabarit. Ils pèsent aux alentours de 60 kilos et tous les deux grimpent aussi vite que Pantani en son temps. C'est déjà suffisant pour lever le drapeau rouge. En plus, son nom a été associé à l'affaire Puerto. Je ne pointe pas Contador du doigt. Mais je dis juste que si on a attrapé Rasmussen, alors il faut regarder de plus près ce que font ses concurrents.

-> Pourquoi les coureurs continuent-ils à se doper s'ils savent que tôt ou tard ils vont se "faire coffrer"?

- Si vous regardez de plus près, très peu de coureurs se font attraper. Il y a trop de mailles dans le filet. Et il en sera ainsi tant que nous ne modifions pas les méthodes de contrôle. Par exemple, aucun des coureurs n'est contrôlé avant le départ de la course. Les seuls contrôles se déroulent tôt le matin. Ce qui veut dire qu'ils peuvent faire à peu près ce qu'ils veulent avant le départ. L'UCI et les organisateurs du Tour font du bon boulot. Mais pour obtenir des résultats durables et éradiquer le dopage, il faudrait créer une structure indépendante, dans le même genre que l'AMA mais que pour le cyclisme. Cette entité serait financée par les gouvernements et aurait un pouvoir punitif. Je ne vois que cette solution pour aboutir à davantage de transparence.

-> Devrait-il avoir un vainqueur dimanche sur les Champs-Elysées?

- Non. J'aurais préféré que les organisateurs n'octroient pas de maillot jaune. Cela aurait été un geste symbolique.

-> Le Tour de France a-t-il sérieusement perdu de sa crédibilité selon vous?

- Je ne m'en fais pas pour le Tour. Il survivra. Le Tour, c'est d'abord un événement avec une histoire, un passé glorieux. Durant trois semaines, les coureurs deviennent des acteurs. Si vous retirez ces acteurs et vous les remplacez par d'autres, le Tour gardera toujours de sa saveur. Là, où je suis assez pessimiste, c'est pour l'image du cyclisme qui a pris un sérieux coup. Chaque fois qu'on se dit : ça va aller un peu mieux, on replonge."

Of course you can read reactions about that on the net, many people, as usual, just wishing Greg didn't speak out, and wondering why he should be listened to.

One of the reasons he should be listened to is that he was one of the first to speak out against doping, and has been right so far in all his 'allegations'... Had he been listened to earlier, maybe cycling wouldn't be in the situation it is now. Like it or not, he has been a messenger all along. Many people would like to be able to prove he doped, in order to make him a non-legitimate messenger. Fact is, Greg is one of the least suspicious riders of the Tour de France history. I'm not saying that just as a blinded fan. I'm not the only one saying that.

Dr. De Mondenard, a physician who's been very outspoken against doping, so outspoken that he often comes off as vindictive, said on July 26th on the german channel ARD:

'I have set up more than 4000 dossiers about professional participating in The Tour De France since 1947. All of them connected in some way to doping. There is only one person I have found nothing. It's Greg LeMond'.

This interview can be watched here.

Believing that Greg LeMond was clean can be seen as only a belief. I guess it will never be proven for sure. But the absence of any suspicions about him is a fact. With speaking out, he's been ready to put himself in a position where his past as a clean rider has be questioned, and precisely and exhaustively checked. What came out of it? Zero suspicion.That's a fact.

Vélo Club again... and Greg on Le Tour

2007-07-24T08:41:00.000+02:00

I put a little video of Greg appearing on Le Vélo Club here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuA_3cQ31r4

Also in the 'news', but a bit late: Greg talked about the end of the Tour 2007 with PezCycling:
Greg LeMond on le Tour: The Finale Begins.

Photos de l'Etape du Tour

2007-07-20T11:17:00.000+02:00

The site Velovelo has a few pictures of Greg LeMond and Geoffrey at L'Etape du Tour. I'm putting them here (click to enlarge)

Geoffrey managed to find cycling socks Ac/Dc! And he's wearing the jersey Chicago Northwestern University (wildcats). I wonder what Greg's jersey belongs to. Any idea?

Again, I'm sorry to have to report some more Landis' bashing. It's basically just the same as the NPR interview I talked about before , now reported in Times Online. Don't hesitate to express yourself about that, there, here and elsewhere. It seems that a few Landis' supporters already have jumped on the "LeMond is a pathological liar" bandwagon. Funny how some people have to wait for their idol stating something against Greg to immediately have the same opinion. That reminds me of Armstrong's "LeMond is bitter"... I'm afraid we will now have to deal with the "liar" characterization for a bit... Same old same old.

Last, but not least, thank you to the people who suggested to share things about Greg and/or help with the blog. You can email me at (Sorry.. I have to make a little riddle here, I don't want spams... ;-) )
"lemondXX at gmail dot com" where XX are the two last numbers of Greg's birth year. Should be easy...

Au Vélo Club

2007-07-18T12:19:00.000+02:00

First, before talking about Greg LeMond's appearance on the "Vélo Club" after the Tour stage finishing in Briançon yesterday, a little point about Floyd Landis... I wasn't sure I wanted to mention that at all. But well, his attacks on Greg are becoming sickening. And I think with the last interview he did on NPR, he crossed a new line. I mentioned here that Landis already qualified the call that his manager made to Greg as a "bad joke". He now insists, and goes farther... characterizing Greg as "clearly insane" and borderline insinuating that Greg could have made up the childhood abuse and/or that he should be over it now. Highlight of this trash:

Landis: "Look, if that happened to Greg Lemond, that's a terrible thing. But he's 50 years old now, and he has a problem with lying, and he never should have been there."

"Trust but Verify" (a blog dedicated to Landis doping allegations) reports this interview and recaps the part about Greg. Go read it there for the full thing.

Hard to make a transition... Anyway, Greg was on the set of the talk show Le Vélo Club that takes place after each stage of the Tour de France, along with his two sons Geoffrey and Scott (who just sat in the back...).

He looked smiling and tanned and in very good shape. I should be able to put a little clip on my youtube account soon. Greg seems to have lost quite a bit of his French. He mentioned briefly that it was nice to see that cycling was so popular in France still while in US it turns a lot about doping recently, and that he believes that the Tour de France is a very special event whose popularity will never fade.

He was sitting close to Laurent Fignon, and they were shown footage of Greg's victory on the Tour 1989. Greg looked a bit embarrassed and then he mentioned that in his mind Fignon also won that Tour, and that he could have won it if he had also used the Triathlon bar. To which Fignon answered that it was nice of Greg to say so, but that they fought fairly, and that the result was good as it was, otherwise they wouldn't be there still talking about it.

Greg talked about 'L'étape du Tour' that he rode last Monday, and a bit of it was shown, showing Greg and his son posing on the starting line. He said that his son was in the 30 first, but didn't manage to get a proper "ravitaillement". He also said that he had made a bet of 10 euros with a friend for who would finish first, and really pushed himself to arrive before that friend and finished more tired than on any stage of the Tour during his career.

Here are some screencaps of this show. Geoffrey (black shirt V neck) and Scott (green shirt) are sitting behind Greg. The last cap shows Greg and Geoffrey posing with Bruno Cornillet (one of Greg's former teammates on Z and GAN).

Click on it enlarge...

Interview in Vélo 101 - part 2

2007-07-16T21:11:00.000+02:00

First of all, Greg finished l'Etape du Tour, in 8'44'' (701st out of about 7000). Congratulations!

The second part of the interview Greg and Geoffrey LeMond gave to Velo 101 is out.

They both have some quite harsh words about Armstrong.
(once again, this is my translation...far from perfect, my apologies...)

Geoffrey asked about what he thinks of Lance Armstrong:
[G. thinks for a long time] I'm not sure what to say. For 8 or 9 years, or even in 1993, I was close to Armstrong. He had had hard words against my father. I was a kid, he was criticizing my dad. I saw him again in 2000 in New York. And after that, my dad talked about his (Armstrong) relationship with Ferrari, and all went for the worst. He did a lot of things to discredit my dad. It was actions of a guilty guy, trying to justify himself. He made the life in my family a lot harder than it should have been. Therefore I'm mad at him. He is simply a liar and a cheat.

For you Greg?
I'm glad that Lance is out of cycling. As an American, I was sincerely happy to see him win the Tour, eventhough we didn't have the best of relationships. I went through a hard period during my career, when I had to fight for two years to come back, so when he won in 1999, I found that great. After that I heard about his relationship with Dr.Ferrari, and I had the dream that after the affair Festina, things were going to change, the peloton was going to ride slower, people were going to start speaking out. In 1999 I heard from a mecanician from the Festina Team what was still going on. For me, it's really hard to appreciate cycling when you don't know anymore who is the best. That's the problem of those past 15 years: who was the best? For me it was Jan Ulrich, who had more talent than the others. In 2000 I heard from mecanicians from the US Postal what was going on. After that it became hard to watch the Tour.

Geoffrey:
No suffering... There was no suffering. I climbed the Ventoux yesterday, which the pros are doing too...

Greg:
When in 2000 you see Armstrong talking in his earphone when he drops Pantani while climbing the Ventoux, it's not normal, it's nuts! I didn't want to criticize an american cyclist, I found that bad, but I couldn't accept that after Festina, Armstrong was seeing someone like Ferrari, for the image of the sport. It's the wrong message. If you want to carry the right message, to show you're against doping, you don't see Ferrari. I only stated that I was disappointed that he was seeing Ferrari. Five or six days later, he called me and instead of asking why I said that, he only told me that I couldn't have won the Tour de France without EPO. I said it wasn't true, but he insisted on 1989. I told him "in 1989, I didn't even know EPO, and if I had been the first to use it, I wouldn't have won by 8 seconds, but by 8 minutes." Because we know now that at the end of the Tour, the difference in power can be 20 to 30% more with EPO. I told him that for my first Tour, I finished 3rd, at 23, then second and then first. My results were regular, aside from the hunting accident.

After that for six years he did all he could to break my relation with Trek. He is a guy who abuses of the system, even with his cancer, for his image, for his money. In my opinion, he's been protected by Verbruggen. In 2000 I heard that he gave $500,000 to UCI. In 1999 his urine is tested positive 6 times. In 2000 it's clear as the one of a baby. I don't think Armstrong is a mean guy, neither that he is a bad or a good person. But his way of saying "I train better than the others, I'm more motivated". The other riders are training as hard, but they don't have the same possibilities.

If you consider cycling for the past 30 or 40 years, since Merckx's years and before. People were training for 30,000 km, a hundred days a year. In 1990 I win the Tour after having suffered mononucleosis all winter long. I couldn't end a race. In april I was in bed and rode hardly one hour a day. And I came back in May, and was going up and down during the Giro d'Italia, then I was a lot better at the Tour of Switzerland and around the Tour, I was competitive. I won because I had a good team, good tactics. The secret of good training is to know how to work and rest, finding how you can stay fresh to reach your maximum at certain times. If you overtrain, you can also lose your strength and your sensations.

The body has some genetic capacities that training cannot change. You can't climb the Alpe d'Huez 20 times and then pretend that you can win the Tour because you did that. If your VO2max is 80, watts are there or not. In 1991 you see an increase in power outputs of 10-15% and then it just climbed more after. I was a pro for 14 years. The first year I was 3rd on the Dauphine Libere. I don't think I was any stronger 10 years later. I just had more experience to know how to reach my highest level with good timing.

That's why I'm mad at doping. I saw my team Z win the team classification in the Tour 1990, and in 1991 we couldn't follow anymore. In the Giro we were all dead after two weeks and I quit. Even on the Tour de France my teammates lost 10 minutes in the first mountain stage. We know now that your hematocrit naturally decreases of around 10% on the Tour, while with EPO it can climb by 20%. In the end of the Tour it makes a difference. We couldn't fight against that.

I saw a lot of cyclists quit like me around 32 years old, thinking "I quit, I'm too old." We were trying to find out why the peloton was riding so fast. My way has always been to try to stay in front of the peloton, but then, I couldn't do that, and I thought it was my age.

What is your hope for cycling? Are you watching the Tour 2007?

Greg: Since 2006 and the scandals I hope that things are going to change. Even with all this, cycling remains exciting. I think the Tour will survive, but it needs a true solution against doping, with a way of testing or putting down the hematocrits back to 44-45%, or you can't start the stage. Between the moment where the doctors are testing for hematocrits in the morning and the beginning of the stage, transfusions are possible, so cyclists should be isolated over that time, no contact with the team or team doctors. They get coffee, drinks. Then you test them for their hematocrit, bovine hemoglobin and testosterone. Then we will know, there won't be the bias that the hematocrit drops over the stage. It's one solution. For the public, and for the riders, all will be more comfortable, they won't think anymore that you need to take something to be at the top. If they trust in that, well trained riders will be more competitive.

Geoffrey: Yes, I'm watching, because I love cycling. But the fact that some people can go win the Tour thanks to doping, it's absurd, it's ruining it and its image for a lot of people. With more scandals coming out, people are getting fed up, but it's a necessary step. Landis is getting through this okay, there's no verdict yet, and that's not logical. Riis admitted he doped in 1996. In 1997 scandals are about Ulrich. 1998, it's Pantani, who died because of doping and from 1999 till now, people want us to believe that Armstrong lived with no doping. Beat everyone without PED's then, it's impossible. In 2006 the Tour champion is convicted of doping, he denies it. Landis was positive to testosterone, there's a mistake, he took other things, not only testosterones but maybe also things that can't be detected.

What's your feeling about the Landis affair?

Greg: For Armstrong I say that I am disappointed that he is seeing Ferrari, he calls me and with telling me I couldn't win in 1989 without EPO, he admits himself that he took some. Honestly, I'm disappointed, with all I knew from the mecanicians from US Postal, I couldn't support Armstrong. He threatened me, I spent a lot of money for lawyers to be able to keep my bike company, he almost made my life a nightmare. He is a guy who has power and abuses it.

For Landis, I don't understand a thing. I sponsorized his team in 2001, I spent four hours with him in the bus after the Fleche Wallonne, I met him at the team presentation. When it was learnt that he tested positive, I was doing a charity ride and I told the press that I was wondering, that I was hoping. I met his family at the Tour of Georgia. Nice people, I couldn't see a link between those people and doping. But he left his family when he was 15. Then he called me and asked why I said so. I said "you're not only a cyclist, you're the winner of the Tour de France, tested twice positive to testosterone. After the Puerto affair, cycling is down on its knee, so if you did it, for your own good and for the sake of cycling, you're the one who should speak out, say you cheated. That's the method."

Cycling needs that people speak out. I am in favor of reducing punishements for those who speak out, who give the names of doctors and managers, who will have to go away. Even a 6 months suspension only, with accepting that each day his blood is checked. It will be sure he's riding clean.

Even Bjarn Riis, or Jérôme Chiotti, who was badly treated after admitting he doped, those guys have to be recognized, put fowards, because they have to be helped, kept in the sport, to be examples for young riders. Everybody makes mistakes. At 25 years old you are easy to influence and impresse so it's easy to make mistakes. The system has to change, not the riders. Pantani was controlled with a hematocrit of 53% and was treated as a criminal, got depressed, took cocain and destroyed his health.

Last question: the Tour had a great success in London. Do you think it would be possible to see a start in United States?

Geoffrey: I don't think so. The history of the Tour de France comes from stages like L'Alpe d'Huez, Le Tourmalet. Europe is better for cycling. Definitely...

Greg: Why not? it'd be fantastic. Felix Levitan thought about it. But you need two or three days of rest to get over the jet lag. All the riders should arrive from Europe to not be advantaged. But it's possible and it'd be fantastic

L'Etape du Tour: Greg LeMond dossard numéro 1

2007-07-15T21:26:00.000+02:00

Greg and his son Geoffrey will ride l'Etape du Tour tomorrow July 16th, and Greg has been given the bib #1!
He said in the interview to Vélo 101 that he was just hoping to finish it... I have the feeling that he can do a bit better than that.

They also rode the "Maratona dles Dolomites" last July 1st, and finished the 138km and arrived together in 5h44. Greg finished 43rd over 1200 in his age category, and Geoffrey 40th over 348.

Here's a little pic of Geoffrey during that event.

And for people having access to french TV and le Vélo Club: Greg is planned to appear there on Tuesday, July 17th!

Greg sera invité du Vélo Club de Gérard Holtz le mardi 17 juillet.

"L'Express" interview from July, 12th, 2007

2007-07-14T15:46:00.000+02:00

The French magazin L'Express of July 12th, 2007, has a quite long interview, with a few funny pictures, of Greg LeMond about doping. Nothing really new there: he's coming back on his relationship with Armstrong and the Landis affair... Here and there he is exposing a few things I didn't hear before, for instance about the atmosphere in the peloton and in his team around 1991-1993.

I translated the full thing, as best as I could (and I'm far from being a professional translator), trying to make it really close to the french version but still readable. I have my doubts about how the interview was actually conducted. It must have been done in english, so already one translation altered the original thing. Some parts sound a bit "artificial" in the french version.

People who already dislike Greg will for sure be shocked by his words. He has some quite harsh words about both Armstrong and Landis, but also about Vinokurov. And of course about Dr. Ferrari. I think his tone is even more straightforward than I ever heard before.

The article in french can be read here.
L'article en français peut être trouvé ici.

Greg LeMond

"Doped riders are like drug-addicts"

This man is a pioneer: the first American to win the Tour de France at a time (1986) when cycling was ignoring globalization. That year, Greg LeMond wins over his teammate Bernard Hinault, and the picture of the two champions crossing together, hand in hand, the finish line at l'Alpe d'Huez, was shown worldwide. LeMond won again the Tour in 1989 and 1990, before leaving a peloton where EPO was beginning its carnage. Today this wealthy 46-year-old businessman does not recognize anymore the sport that made him a king. The victories of his compatriots, Lance Armstrong and Floyd Landis, tarnished with allegations of doping, leave him with a bitter taste in his mouth. As far as the anti-doping war goes, "the revolution is still to accomplish" for him.

E: The Tour de France just started in an atmosphere of suspicion. What do you think about it?
GL: When you see that Alexander Vinokurov, one of the favorites, announce that he works with Dr Ferrari (italian doctor with a very suspicious reputation, allegedly at the origin of EPO in the peloton), it is unbelievable! Vinokurov talks about him as the best physical preparator in the world. But there is no secret. As far as training or diet go, revolutionary methods do not exist. This doctor is known only for one thing: doping. The UCI should say: "if you work with that man, you cannot compete in the Tour de France."

E: You won your third and last Tour in 1990. The following year, you finish 7th, far behind the spanish Miguel Indurain. Was EPO already spread in the peloton?

GL: Looking back to it, I think that everything changed that year. I was riding with the Z-Team, and maybe in all my career I never had such a level of fitness. A few days before the start, I did the same test as I always did before my preceeding victories: two and a half hours of riding behind a derny (motocycle shielding the cyclist from the wind while training) along a canal in Belgium. I was never over 80km/h before, and then, I rode at 85km/h, with a heart rate of 180 beats/minute! The first day, I finished 2nd of the prologue, I called my wife and said: "Get the Champagne ready! There's no competitors..." And it was true. The only dangerous guy, theoretically, was Chiappuci, a "domestique". During the first stage I broke away and took the yellow jersey. It got bad on the fifth day, around Reims. To avoid falls, I usually try to be in the first ten of the peloton. But here, I had a really hard time to stay in front. The guys were riding like motocycles! I called my wife: "Actually, maybe I'm not in so good shape."

E: You didn't understand what was going on?

No, I didn't. I did only later. Years later. When the first admissions came, the first deaths... During the Tour 1991, in the time-trial in Alencon, I thought I was winning by 5 minutes. I was flying! But Indurain beat me by 8 seconds. I thought then that it was my old problem of allergy that was impeding me. Later, in the stage Quimperle-Saint Herblain, the peloton rode at a record average speed close to 50km/h. I was close to Charly Mottet, an experimented cyclist, and we looked at each other about 30km from the finish and said: "Waw... what is going on?". Over all those years, we searched for explanations to our debacles in over-training and revolutionary methods. It was turning us crazy. I remember that during the Giro d'Italia, the coach of the Z-Team, Roger Legeay, decided that we needed to be put on a diet: no fat, no olive oil, no dessert. After two weeks, the whole team abandoned. We only had skin on our bones.

E: You never doped?

GL: No. And I didn't always understand what I was told. I am American, not french or belgian. For long I didn't get the subtilities of the language. When I was asked if I was "medically taken care of properly", I was answering that I wasn't sick. When asked if I was well "prepared", I was showing my training schedules books. It's probably in 1988, after my hunting accident, that I was the closest in touch to doping. I signed with the dutch team PDM and they had decided to try "things" on their riders. Their doctor was asserting that I needed to be physiologically "re-equilibrated" because I had lost a lot of blood the preceeding year. Luckily that year I hardly raced. On the other hand, Gert Jan Theunisse, one of the leaders of the team, was banned from the Tour de France after being tested positive to testosterone.

E: What was your state of mind when you left the peloton in 1994?

GL: It wasn't my world anymore. Roger Legeay, who was my coach for all those years, is telling that I had only one expression in my mouth at that time: "I am tired". One of my teammates had a discussion in 1993 with a spanish rider from the team Once. He came back like crazy and yelled at Legeay: "Here is what the others are taking, testosterone, EPO, growth hormones... So if you want us to get results, stop threatening us of cutting off our pay by two and hire a doctor!" The following year, Casado left for an italian team, Jolly Componibili. I met him on the roads of the Tour of Switzerland. He was laughing. He explained to me that two laboratory buses were following his team all the time and that he finished the Tour of Spain without any pain. He kindly teased me and went away. Three weeks later I decided to quit cycling. The next year, Philippe Casado died of a heart attack. He was 30.

E: Ten years after the end of your career, you took firm positions against doping, and put yourself in a position against your compatriot Lance Armstrong (seven times winner of the Tour de France). How was your relationship with him until then?

GL: In 1998 he called me and invited me for dinner. I think that at a point he must have thought that our stories were similar. I came back to the top after my hunting accident. He wanted to come back after cancer. That evening Lance told me that he wanted to win the Tour de France. I thought: "It's impossible. He never finished in the top 30 before..." He looked like he wanted to be my friend, but he also looked annoyed to be compared to me. He didn't look comfortable. He's someone who lives with a rage inside of him. I don't think he is a happy man. But in 1999 and his first success in the Tour, I believed in his great comeback. After the Festina affair (Richard Virenque team was banned from the Tour 1998 for doping), I thought that the peloton had been cleaned. I didn't have contact with Armstrong anymore, but I was happy to see an American at the top of cycling. And I had my bike business: an American winning the Tour, it was all good for business!

E: In 2004, in the book "L.A. Confidentiel", you ended up putting in question the honesty of his victories.

GL: All I said about Lance at that point is that I was disappointed that he was working with Dr. Ferrari. Being seen with that guy, that was insane! After the book was published, Lance called me. He threatened to find ten people who would assert I took EPO to win in 1989. I answered that I did win the Tour before EPO appeared, and that my victories were not a miracle, but obtained after two years of suffering and work. There's no mystery: I know my respiratory capacity and his. He has the one of a Fiat, I had the one of a Testarossa! From then on I started receiving threats from people around him. I was told to take back what I said, to apologize... Armstrong's agent and lawyer, Bill Stapleton, even made false apologies published in USA Today under my name. In October 2005, I was called to testify at the trial between Armstrong and an insurance company, which was refusing to pay him because of doping allegations. There I only said again what I said about Dr. Ferrari.

E: Now you are in a conflict with another compatriot, Floyd Landis, winner of the Tour 2006...
GL: It felt like the story with Armstrong was happening all over again. I was really surprised because I thought that Floyd, by opposition to Lance, was a "good guy". When I learnt that he had been tested positive on the Tour 2006, I declared: "If he cheated, it's terrible. But in that case, he should say the truth and save this sport". A few days later, on August 6th, Floyd called me. We had a long conversation, very human, almost friendly. I told him that he could free himself from a so heavy secret and try to start back on new basis. To encourage him to break the wall of silence, I told him a very personal story: I was the victim of sexual abuse. I wanted to make him see that at certain points you need the courage to talk. We agreed that this conversation should stay between us. But after that, to defend himself against doping accusations, Floyd Landis made a lot of comments on a website. He wrote about me: "I'd rather ask Satan for advice than calling Greg LeMond". He also wrote really low things about me, things like: "If I told you what Greg confided to me...". He was insinuating that I was a bad person, that I admitted to him that I did something terrible... I was flabbergasted when I read that.

E: Since then, your relationship kept on deteriorating...
GL: Last May, I was called as a witness at the trial between the USA Anti-doping Agency and Landis. I wasn't sure that I wanted to go, but thinking back of how he tried to damage my reputation, I told myself: "I'm going". The day before the hearing, I got an anonymous call (LeMond found out the same evening that it was a call by Will Geoghan, Landis' manager and friend, and that Landis was with him when the call took place). The man was trying to intimidate me. He was refering to the sexual abuse I suffered. But Geoghan was making up a new story, talking about an uncle that would have molested me. Actually it was a friend of the family... (his voice is breaking). I instantlly thought that this affair was going to be thrown on the public place. It was sickening. I hung up. I called back the number that was written on my cellphone screen five minutes later. Landis' manager first pretended to not understand, to not know who Floyd was... It was crazy. The next day I explained in court what happened. I had the proof that Landis and people surrounding him were able to do anything. I got convinced he was guilty. He is a liar: I don't think he can be consider as a Tour de France winner.

E: How does the american audience see the affairs concerning Armstrong and Landis?

GL: American people don't want to believe that they doped. People don't want to know, especially about Lance. His cancer makes him untouchable. Today several sportsmen are in the middle of a network of evidence. They are not caught shooting a gun, but with the smoking gun still in their hand. It's not enough. People put too much admiration and hope in their heroes. They can't admit the slightest doubts. Telling them that their champion cheated is like attacking them directly.

E: Which means do you suggest against doping?

GL: Most importantly tests should be conducted by laboratories that are totally independent of sport federations. Some simple measures could also be taken: first, develop a reliable test to detect growth hormones, one of the main products used. Then, lower the allowed blood cells count, which is 50% today. This pushes those who have a count below that to take EPO to reach just that limit... Finally, why not conduct retroactive controls, going 10 years back (the idea is to use recent methods to analyze old samples from preceeding years)? In case of doping, the victory or the title would be taken back.

E: It goes with the risk to have to cross the names of the ten last winners of the main races!
GL: If it's what it takes, then let's do it! Either the race remains without a winner, or you go down in the classification to find the first clean rider... If those tests existed, some sportsmen would think on longer terms. Today if you're not caught right away, it's okay. Doped riders have the mentality of drug addicts. They don't think anymore about the consequences of their acts. If you knew, right from the beginning of your career, that you could be caught ten years later, you'd have another view on competition.

Interview on Vélo 101

2007-07-13T17:49:00.000+02:00

Greg and Geoffrey LeMond are interviewed by the french Vélo 101. They are spending a month in Europe now, riding in the Alps, and doing l'Etape du Tour next Monday (July 16).

Nice reading... I may translate a bit more when I have time (or if there are requests...). Greg indicates that he only wants to finish l'Etape du Tour, and that he didn't lose enough weight yet to do more (10 kg so far... ). He's training seriously since last January. His son Geoffrey is riding since March 2006, but not decided to get pro... with worries about doping: "Now is not the right era to become pro", to which Greg adds: "Even if he could become pro, I wouldn't want it".

To the question: "Did you ever dream that your children become pro?",
Greg answers: "No, the life as a pro is difficult. Mainly since the 1990's.. those years have destroyed for me the possibility for my kids to do pro racing. There is so much difference between over-programmed riders and natural ones."

Geoffrey is asked about his memories about his father racing:
"I remember a lot. In 1989 (he was 5), I was walking along the Champs-Elysees with my grandfather. I think that even if my parents were trying to just distract me during the Tour, I was following well what was going on in the race. On the Champs-Elysees, I remember giant champagne bottles with Laurent Fignon's face on them. During the final TT, I was watching my dad. He won, and some people took me, policemen, they carried me towards journalists, then to my mom, and then only I got with dad. It's something really memorable. It was a bit risky, I was a bit afraid with all the fuss."

I can't help but put the pictures here:

A next part of the interview will be published on Monday, where LeMond will talk about Armstrong and Landis.

A bad joke?

2007-07-12T09:10:00.001+02:00

Landis' tour to promote his book "Positively False" made him appear on NPR, and in this Q&A, he is asked whether or not he knew about his manager's plan to "blackmail" Greg LeMond. Landis answers that he wouldn't characterize Geoghegan's call as blackmail... and that all it was was a bad joke, and that LeMond shouldn't have come to the hearing and had nothing to do there, and that the whole situation should have been avoided, but that there was nothing he (Floyd) could have done about it.

The moderator insists that if it was indeed a bad joke, it was one of horrible taste. Couldn't agree more on that...

And nothing he could have done about it? How about that post on the Daily Peloton Forum? Landis didn't have only a passive attitude in this... He started it, he called Greg, he wrote that post... How about apologizing publicly on that forum for the threatening post, taking it back, explaining LeMond's secret wasn't something damaging for his character at all and was something of private order that he shouldn't have mention?

Nope... really nothing he could have done. Just wear a black suit...

In another Q&A session, when asked about Greg, Landis answers:

"Greg LeMond needs help," Landis said. "That's really all there is to say about that. He had no reason to be at that hearing. He added nothing to the case from either side. All he did was distract from the facts of the case."

How nice of him to be concerned about Greg! Just a bad joke... and Greg is messed up so all he says is worthless...

How can you say publicly about someone you hardly know that he "needs help"? How depreciating and condescendent is that? Belittle those who oppose to you is the attitude of a coward.

On a totally different note, and in french: Greg's going to be the "legend of the Tour" portrayed today on the french channel France 2, in the pre-show before the live broadcasting of the stage.

Greg sera la légende du Tour évoquée aujourd'hui sur France 2 par Jean-Paul Ollivier. Diffusion entre 13h50 et 14h30.

Légendes du Tour sur Eurosport

2007-07-09T15:55:00.000+02:00

Greg LeMond est la légende du Tour du jour sur le site de TF1/Eurosport.
Un portrait sans surprise... qui rappelle l'originalité de Greg, et choisit cette photo, l'une de mes favorites :

The Tour started...

2007-07-09T10:28:00.000+02:00

PezCycling has Greg's views on the first week of the Tour de France. After all the agitation with the Landis arbitration, I like to hear Greg talking about plain cycling... to see he is still passionate about the Tour.

It was planned that he would go with his son Geoffrey at l'Etape du Tour on July 16th, I'm waiting for news about it...

Otherwise in the news, many articles talking about the Tour and doping mention Greg and the Landis affair, as well as reminding Greg's accusations about Lance. Paul Kimmage has a new article about the start of the Tour de France in London, and the history of doping since the 1990's:

zero tolerance is the only way forward. There is just one question. Why didn’t this happen when riders were dying from conditions brought on by their drug abuse in the 1990s? Why has it taken until the sport is on its knees?

Kimmage also recalls Greg's quote from last week "Big Interview":

“This sport needs to bleed to death before it can rebuild”

Why has it gone so far?

Where I stand

2007-07-06T09:14:00.000+02:00

LeMond bashers are all really loud out here on the internet, and I doubt big time that they are really more numerous than LeMond admirers... just... louder and more eager to babble the same arguments against him over and over again.

First I got really annoyed with this bashing, but now it just makes me roll my eyes, and recent developments in the cycling world are making me really proud to be a LeMond fan.

I'm french and discovered cycling thanks to Greg. I got dragged by my mom when I was 13 to go see the arrival of the time trial of the Tour de France in 1989 in my hometown of Rennes. It was raining heavily, I got squeezed painfully against barriers, and yet I got hooked. The sound of the wheels on the cobblestones, the incredible pace of each rider arriving, it all just felt fascinating. And then in the far, there was this guy standing on the podium with a yellow jersey and a flashy pink cap. I loved the colours...

After more smashing in the crowd and fighting to get out of the fuss, my mom and I got stuck close to a stage where the post-race show "A chacun son tour" was filmed. And on that stage, a few meters away from me, the guy with the yellow jersey and the pink cap was being interviewed. His adorable accent while speaking french amused me, and he was telling he wanted to thank his wife for this victory and that he was happier than when we won the Tour in 1986.

Faint memories of an American winning the Tour a few years before came back to my mind... I also remembered the news of that American rider getting injured and not able to defend his title. But all was really blurry on my mind.

In the next few days, I didn't miss any broadcasting of the Tour stages. I got totally appealed to the story of this guy who seems so happy to just be on his bike, always smiling, nice with journalists and making funny comments. I must also acknowledge that teen me found him really handsome.

The Tour 1989 was a pure delight to follow. And the final time trial was the most exciting sport event I ever saw in my life. Being a Greg LeMond fan on July 23rd, 1989 was a blessing. As we say in french: "Le pied total"!

I followed the next Tours and other important races that were shown on TV with great thrill. I gathered all press articles about Greg I could find. I cried when he announced his retirement in 1994. And I grew up, and forgot about the Tour, forgot about Greg...

Until 2001. At that time, I knew Lance Armstrong was the new champion. I found his story also quite interesting... I had quite a bit of admiration for the guy. I watched the Tour sporadically, with a bit of nostalgia, remembering the excitement it gave me at the end of my childhood. But somehow, nothing felt really appealing. Those guys look too much like robots. None of them were answering interviews in french with cute accents anymore... None of them looked like smiling kids happy to ride a bike.

And then came the LeMond controversy. And as many, I first wondered. I didn't like what I was hearing. I didn't want to think about doping. During all my former LeMond fan years, I was shrugging at and pushing away all the doping insinuations. My Greg was clean. The full peloton was clean. These guys were heroes.

And I didn't like to hear the guy I remembered as "utterly nice Greg" critizing someone. And I wondered. Is he jealous of Lance? I needed to know more.

In my pile of old articles from the 1990's, I found back one article where
Greg was mentioning Dr Ferrari and the danger that this man was going to be for the future of cycling. I wasn't convinced, but I started to get big doubts about what cycling had become.

I kept on following cycling from far, as well as what Greg was saying about it... I got back a bit of interest. I replayed my tapes of the Tours 1989 to 1992. I still loved what I was watching.

And then came 2004 and the Simeoni episode. All my admiration for Lance disappeared instantly. That guy appeared to me as a brute, a man ready to all to win and make others shut up.

I'm now thinking Armstrong is a cheat, and one of the godfathers of the mafia system that cycling has become. I think he is threatening people opposing him. I think the money involved around him and his image as a hero will probably protect him for the rest of his life.

Notice that I said "I'm thinking". Not "I'm convinced". Not need to scream at me... If you have arguments to convince me I'm wrong, my ears are wide open.

And I won't yell at people who say LeMond is a bitter old champion full of sour grapes. If that's your opinion, then try to convince me that you're right. Without reharshing the same false arguments (for instance the usual "LeMond must have doped, he held the record for the fastest time trial in the Tour for 15 years"). I won't ban negative comments about Greg here. Express yourself!

The recent event, the USADA vs. Landis arbitration, LeMond's revelations of his very painful childhood, his courage in testifying and coming out, have increased my admiration for the man big time.

Greg LeMond, the nice, polite, smiling young rider, turned into a tall man of high standards, honesty and coherence. A true human being. Let me say it once again, I'm proud to be a LeMond fan.

The Big Interview

2007-07-05T20:06:00.001+02:00

If you're interested in Greg LeMond, you already know that the big recent news about Greg is the interview he did with Paul Kimmage.

Though it's an interesting reading, where we can learn more about the timing, circumstances and consequences of Greg's sexual abuse, the full article is quite frustrating, blurry in its chronology, and giving the idea that Paul Kimmage is interrupting Greg. I'd rather have had more direct quotes from Greg.

It's a shock to realize that Greg was hiding such a dark secret for several decades. When the news came out during the USADA vs. Landis arbitration, I didn't expect that he told his family so recently only. It's impossible to imagine what he's been through all these years. Behind his huge smile on podiums, he was hiding a big load of fear and shame... and was carrying this all alone.

I wanted to be seen as a good person,” LeMond says, “and never wanted to let people down, but I found it hard to handle the fame or adulation. I didn’t feel worthy of it. I was ashamed by who I thought I was because I felt partly responsible [for the abuse] and I was never able to enjoy the stuff I should have been able to enjoy. My first thought when I won the Tour was: ‘My God, I’m going to be famous’, and then I thought, ‘He’s going to call’. I was always waiting for that phone call. I lived in fear that anyone would ever find out.

The statistics about coming out about abuse are terrifying. The average time span between the abuse and talking is 17 years... It's considered that about 85% of men who were abused never come out. That says quite a lot about the amount of shame victims are carrying. I hope that Greg's admission will help other people.

I find the link that Kathy LeMond makes between her husband's past and his view on doping convincing and quite fascinating:

We’ve done a lot of talking about this,” Kathy says. “Why wouldn’t Greg have gone to [Dr X]? Why not? I think Greg was carrying such a load of shame that, like he said, he couldn’t have survived a positive drug test, he probably couldn’t. He had to have something to hold on to that was pure and good about himself, and cycling was that.

It's a bit like hearing Greg say: "I rode clean, but I didn't have any merit, I couldn't do otherwise".
I think Greg's always shown understanding and compassion for riders who admitted to doping. I never heard him sounding judgemental. Pointing his finger to the system and the corruption, to the unethical doctors, but not to the riders (except one of them maybe...). I really don't think he is putting himself on a pedestal above other riders.

Finally, I'm not so happy to see Greg bitter about Landis, and wanting him punished for the infamous call, while it's not clear FL had actually anything to do with the call. But Landis' post on the Daily Peloton Forum was pretty clear and threatening, and I guess enough to trigger Greg's anger. Greg mentions having dealt with a lot of therapy about it, probably to accept that there was nothing to be ashamed of, to realize no one could judge him for that, or use it against him... Landis' post asserting he knew something about Greg that could "severely damage his character", and the threatening phone call by Geoghegan, must have felt pretty destroying. The interview with Kimmage shows that it was far from an easy task for Greg to come testifying.

On another note, Greg was interviewed on Open Source Radio not long ago, talks about doping, and about the recent admissions by Zabel and Riis, and you can see here once again that Greg seems to strongly believe in "The Truth will set you free". He's on from 25'23'' on.

Little introduction

2007-07-05T18:01:00.000+02:00

I'm a big Greg LeMond fan, and I felt that this world was lacking a little shrine to the man. So I'm opening this blog, where I'll post recent news about Greg, old and new pictures, recollections of his great times on a bike, archived articles, quotes... anything concerning Greg.

Feel free to comment, whether you love or hate the man. I love and admire him, and I'm eager to share this admiration with anyone. I am well aware that Greg LeMond is also a man of controversy, and I won't turn my eyes on that. I'm eager to share argumentations...

English is not my native language, so be ready for some uneven cobblestones along the way.

The title of this blog is a quote by Greg, from his book "Complete's Book of Bicycling". He probably knows what he is talking about...

Enjoy the ride!