I'd love for you to do a video about cyclists who refused to dope. Would like to see a video about Graham Obree, a genius who used innovation rather than dope to go faster, and whose professional career was effectively over before it even began when he refused to dope, and who was consistently thwarted having his innovations banned by the UCI.
Great breakdown with the usual quota of sly jokes and dry humour. Nice one guys. I was living in Paris at the height of Virenquemania and it seemed to capture the imagination of everyone, especially the once-a-year cycling fans and even the avowed non-sports fans. RV was everywhere and people would argue over the regionally correct pronunciation of 'Virenque'. I can only think of Beckham-mania in England during a major tournament in the 2000s as being on the same scale. I watched some of the stages in a sports bar and the atmosphere was truly electric during the mountain duel to Courchevel. A hugely partisan media helped to spin everything with the St Etienne time-trial result becoming a pseudo victory for Monsieur Coeur de Lion. The 98 Voet bust followed by the tearful frosted-hair press conference was like a knife-in-the-heart for so many people.
I was living and working in France during multiple tours and classics and you learn quickly from the natives that if doping helped a French rider to win it was acceptable. On anyone else it was completely unacceptable and they dismissed anyone else who was ranked ahead of a French rider as a doper. I had that conversation many times. They would place their pinched thumb and index finger in front of their face to make that point as if that gesture indicated their opinion came from a higher source. The weird passion for French riders by the French was plain weird.
I really enjoy these videos, especially this one. This is filled with the under the radar jokes that only the cycling fiend would know and understand! Great job as usual.
No doubt money was involved, but the perhaps far greater motivation for RV's rivals was none of them wanted to see him win the Tour, or have to endure 12 months of him parading around as Tour champion. Not exactly a popular rider in the group. Compare that to a year later when Pantani had attacked on the Galibier, Escartin, Rinero, Jimenez and Massi all worked to help him, knowing full well he'd drop them all and win the stage, and the Tour with it.
For anybody having a bad day, this is the best. You're great at reparti.. Dying with lzughter, but true to the best. Bravo... Definitely subscribed....
"Welcome to the jungle, we got EPO and games We got everything you want, honey, we know the race We are the people that can find whatever EPO you need If you got the money, honey, we got EPO with ease"
There is footage (Eurosport) of the climb to Courchevel where you see Virenque haggling with Ullrich and Jan rubs his finger and thumb together in the international language of "show me the f*cking money". That was a great Tour, notwithstanding the absolute arms race of doping that was escalating to insane levels. Reading Daniel Friebe's Jan Ullrich book just now, so this brings it all back nicely.
@@cyclingstories - just finished it. As you'd expect from Daniel, it's excellent. Brings things right up to date (March 22). Does a lot on Puerto and Freiburg (those dudes were wild) and he's done really well getting interviews with lots of the guys who were In The Room Where It Happened (literally). Highly recommended.
Your channel showed up in my YT thumbnails awhile ago and I now watch regularly. I think the channel would be better named, "Doping Stories." I knew doping had a long history with cycling, but I guess I did not realize how bad it had become. I switched from running to cycling about 20 years ago and began watching racing a few years after that (I am watching the TDF daily right now). I am a bit embarrassed to admit, that I still do not understand many of the tactical nuances of team racing, even though I have read and asked questions on other channels. Therefore, even though I know you are making a point with humor (I do know comedy), your sly, subtle delivery goes right over my head sometimes. It's rather like trying to learn French by watching French language TV. Nonetheless, I enjoy your commentary, editing and historical analysis a lot and plan to keep watching. Eventually, I may even understand the jokes! Regards from SW Florida.
The name thing is because we didn't talk about other sports here, now the team created a Soccer channel too called Football Stories. Thanks for the comment, i'm very happy about the entertainment thing, that's the purpose!
July 19th 2023 So glad the doping days are far behind us both in pro and amateur cycling haha in my time it was Methamphetamine Hydrochloride, crazy strong stuff, a friend of mine twisted his handle bar as he couldn't open his hands and let go off it after the finish line, I know of 2 guys our age that just plainly became crazy using it. Something crazy was to see how fast the guys who had just signed a pro team suddenly became high speed trains from being very good in only a couple of months. The pro teams would say to the junior potential recruits that they need to understand they were good but they would have to become much much better, meaning we will sign you up but only if you accept to follow our medicine treatment. But hey who never took an aspirin the day after to perform better at work. Society does not want you to be a looser so everyone dopes and from the oldest human times
Seeing Jørn Mader´s name brings back memories. Jørn Mader and Jørn Leth was for many years the 2 commentators for danish TV2 daily stage coverage And no matter where the tour went they would always have funny stories from the tour or historical facts about the regions old castles, towns, food, wine and so on. They made even the most boring stages worth watching :)
@@kasperkjrsgaard1447 I don't think Ullrich hates himself. Besides, we are talking about popularity. Whether Ullrich likes himself or not is irrelevant.
@@cyril4046 Maybe i should have added a smiley. Jan Ullrichs recent behavoure doesn’t match a guy who’s in control. Drugs, alcohol and domestic violence is what most people remembers him for.
I think it is hard to sustain an argument that doping wasn't simply universal at that time. I honestly look back at doping in the nineties as a game of who was caught doping and who managed not to be caught. So many of the ones who were caught, weren't caught by testing positive, but rather by later investigation leading to their exposure. In those terms, it may 'just' be a matter of what documents were shredded and when, that makes the difference between being known for doping or not. I'm sure there would have been a few who didn't do it, but they would have been very, very rare in, say, the top 50 of the TDF field.
“The most doped watch-making team in history” And the blood transfusions were not as noticeable in his lumpy, unfaithful bald head” “Laurent Brochard…a fan of marsupials” “Virenque’s incredible legs, now recovered from the dental pain…”
I'm 60 and not a cyclist, but I have admired the cyclists since the days of Eddy Merckx. Your Channel should be called Drug Stories! It certainly puts a damper on my appreciation of the sport, to say the least...
Cycling is unique, or maybe it's not, in that it's entire history has a very omnipresent caveat to virtually every great champion, victory and team. It can't just be jettisoned, so many accept it so that there is something there. Otherwise you could could the number of ''clean'' TDF winners for example, on the fingers of one hand.
@Cycling Stories I don't consider myself a "fanatic" (I know the word "fan" comes from it...) I don't have all day to watch sports, no cable TV or online subscriptions. I watch highlights of stuff. So I applaud your work and thank you. It's one thing to be competitive in the true spirit of sports, quite another to constantly seek advantage through chemical and medical experimentations, for more money and fame, although I am not against professional sports in principle. Excess of money, the lure of it and of fame corrupt young athletes and artists and the whole entertainment and sports industries. All of it has a negative effect on society. I believe UCI and other federations are to blame too, don't you think?
Virenque was seen as some sort of national totem in France in his pomp. He really was a national sweetheart. I spent a lot of time in France in "his" years and remember well the flow of love for him. And the depth of expectation. His fall was swift and brutal... although he was never the malefactor in chief. I still have a great deal of respect and sympathy for Virenque. He was a cheat, but I still respect many of the other cheats from that era.
5:58 not sure if that was a joke as well, but "le patron" in French actually means "the boss". It would have to be "saint patron" to mean "patron saint".
I think with cycling, we have to see it the same way as bodybuilding. We all know what goes on, but just enjoy it for what it is. It is weird when one team mate gets popped but the winner for eg still takes the prize. Whereas in 100/400m sprint relays if one member of the team gets popped they all lose a medal.
@RollinRat exactly. If there's fame or money sadly there will be dishonesty. Always has and always will be. I don't follow or admire pro cycling like I used to. I learned first hand racing in international races in Europe in early 2000's how much dishonesty and greed there is in sport.
Why i do love Virenque? Well, because at the end of the day, Ullrich and Pantani proved they were no better than him, and i just love that red-dot shirt!🤣
You make it sound like whoever takes the most doping is going to win. Back then they were all doping and they still do it today. To think otherwise is being completely naive.
The only problem with this series is the fantasy that there was any pro team that wasn't doped to the eyeballs. Try reading A Hard Ride by Paul Kimmage - if you didn't dope you weren't a serious cyclist.
Everyone really seemed to be doping back then, it's absolutely ridiculous, considering that Lance Armstrong still was incredibly talented, if he wanted to win he had to dope though.
@@cyclingstories you might be Spanish or whatever, but you sure as hell don't seem to be real cycling fans, otherwise you'd make videos about some actual cycling history and not just only about "supposed" doping stories, with some of them looking nothing more than pure speculation. And disrespecting cyclists, like calling Chris Froome an "asmathic" using an ironic tone, like you did in another video (among many other examples) doesn't do you any favor either...
Maybe not directly in relation to the, ah, subject matter of the video, but always hilarious seem awkward cycling nerds, even at the top of the sport, engaging with pretty podium girls. Came as a sad surprise to me as a cycling youngster that no, tight lycra outfits and smoother more tanned legs were not, in fact, desirable attributes.
The narrator is a hypocrite. Still calls Indurain "big Mig" and sees nothing strange in a huge guy miraculously suddenly being a mountain climber. I'm fine with people outing riders if they use doping, but this guy has an agenda of only going after some riders, and turning a blind eye on others.
You are much too harsh on V. He was natural in a way he was only capable of break aways in the most mountainous stages and always in solo escapades in the TDF, his natural habitat. Not so doped as ridiculously excell beyond his domain like others. I very much like that era, the bikes and garments were cool, the riders recognizable. Not like the supposedly undoped robot riders of 2022.
The sport was full of individual characters back then and yeah the jerseys weren't part of the shorts and looked more colourful. The helmets and obligatory sunglasses make riders look much the same.
In 1997 (and i think 98 too) Festina was insane. Remember Laukka Man. Also, his loyal teammate Hervé was one of the most doped and dangerous riders in history. In other hand, yes, he was cool.
Doping schmoping....why would doping be an issue during that era. EVERYBODY DOPED and that was the game so in effect that was an equal playing field for all the stars. Old issue. Re-instate Lance's trophies you jealous Europeans.
The problem with doping is exactly that NOT everyone doped. Many, very talented athletes, walked away from cycling because they realised the only way was to dope. Pro cycling wasn't the best of the best, it was the best of the guys prepared to dope. And imo if doping never existed I don't actually think Lance would ever have won a tour, one day races yes but not in the mountains.
@@213tpg I beg to disagree it has been proven that doping does not turn you into superman. It helps yes but only a fraction and your talent and physiology is still your benchmark. All the GC main players Lance battled against were doped up and everyone admitted to it. So you mean to tell me that a rookie never had a chance? Of course! he won't because he's a rookie and must play a lieutenant role. Lance was a freak of nature whose lactic threshold was so high he felt less pain in his legs than the rest of them. Opinion about him is slowly turning around and fans are seeing the bigger picture of what cycling was about during that era. Only noobs and non-cycling people think like you do. Lance was the GOAT . His downfall was he became too greedy with winning the titles and not giving the newcomers a chance and his Texas brashness and arrogant character rubbed the whole pro cycling organization (teams and journalists) the wrong way. Lesson here is to be always nice and be humble especially when you are winning all the time.
@@gregmarcus3064 sorry but I'm no noob to cycling. Amongst the international cycling world nobody ever wondered if Lance was doping, but only ever what was he on. Doping done well doesn't make only a fraction of difference lol! And doping starts in U19's. It destroys cycling careers very early on. I get it's a very difficult decision for cyclists and athletes due to how common it is but ultimately if you break the rules you are cheating, it doesn't matter how many or few are doing it. Lance was/is a very gifted cyclist/ athlete but ultimately, like many, many others he cheated. As good as he was that can't be changed. Perhaps he would have been the greatest cyclist ever but also perhaps not, we will never know.
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We created a FOOTBALL STORIES Channel! SUSCRIBE HERE! 👉 ruclips.net/video/mqjrIuQ2CyU/видео.html
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Is there doping involved? 😁
Second reply 😂
Virenque weeping in the final scene, pleading innocence, dyed blonde hair in 1998 is a clip I'll always remember.
@@just-nalapantani dyed his beard blond once.
I'd love for you to do a video about cyclists who refused to dope. Would like to see a video about Graham Obree, a genius who used innovation rather than dope to go faster, and whose professional career was effectively over before it even began when he refused to dope, and who was consistently thwarted having his innovations banned by the UCI.
That would be a 10-second video.
Superman
@@CountryDick dick by name dick by nature … haven’t a clue have you …I suppose you’ve never seen the movie or read his book ya fanny
those riders alone have more backbone than all the needle pushers together
Add Nicole Cooke to that short list
Great breakdown with the usual quota of sly jokes and dry humour. Nice one guys.
I was living in Paris at the height of Virenquemania and it seemed to capture the imagination of everyone, especially the once-a-year cycling fans and even the avowed non-sports fans. RV was everywhere and people would argue over the regionally correct pronunciation of 'Virenque'.
I can only think of Beckham-mania in England during a major tournament in the 2000s as being on the same scale.
I watched some of the stages in a sports bar and the atmosphere was truly electric during the mountain duel to Courchevel.
A hugely partisan media helped to spin everything with the St Etienne time-trial result becoming a pseudo victory for Monsieur Coeur de Lion.
The 98 Voet bust followed by the tearful frosted-hair press conference was like a knife-in-the-heart for so many people.
I was living and working in France during multiple tours and classics and you learn quickly from the natives that if doping helped a French rider to win it was acceptable. On anyone else it was completely unacceptable and they dismissed anyone else who was ranked ahead of a French rider as a doper. I had that conversation many times.
They would place their pinched thumb and index finger in front of their face to make that point as if that gesture indicated their opinion came from a higher source. The weird passion for French riders by the French was plain weird.
I really enjoy these videos, especially this one. This is filled with the under the radar jokes that only the cycling fiend would know and understand!
Great job as usual.
No doubt money was involved, but the perhaps far greater motivation for RV's rivals was none of them wanted to see him win the Tour, or have to endure 12 months of him parading around as Tour champion. Not exactly a popular rider in the group. Compare that to a year later when Pantani had attacked on the Galibier, Escartin, Rinero, Jimenez and Massi all worked to help him, knowing full well he'd drop them all and win the stage, and the Tour with it.
Love it, great humor, great story telling, keep it up guys!
0:40 the most doped watchmaking team in history :) :) :) you are king :)
Man that looked like Axel rose.. dope video man :)
For anybody having a bad day, this is the best. You're great at reparti.. Dying with lzughter, but true to the best. Bravo... Definitely subscribed....
"Welcome to the jungle, we got EPO and games
We got everything you want, honey, we know the race
We are the people that can find whatever EPO you need
If you got the money, honey, we got EPO with ease"
There is footage (Eurosport) of the climb to Courchevel where you see Virenque haggling with Ullrich and Jan rubs his finger and thumb together in the international language of "show me the f*cking money". That was a great Tour, notwithstanding the absolute arms race of doping that was escalating to insane levels. Reading Daniel Friebe's Jan Ullrich book just now, so this brings it all back nicely.
How good is the book? I saw the documentary and it's great with Lance comments
@@cyclingstories - just finished it. As you'd expect from Daniel, it's excellent. Brings things right up to date (March 22). Does a lot on Puerto and Freiburg (those dudes were wild) and he's done really well getting interviews with lots of the guys who were In The Room Where It Happened (literally). Highly recommended.
YOU ARE A CHAMPION 🏆 FOR TELLING US THE TRUTH!!! 👍
Great breakdown and another iconic win exposed to its real value! Good job!💪🏻🚴♂️
the Irish Accent and the sly digs 'bluffing friend' 'lumpy bald head' cracking me up haha
Another great video from cs factory
The guy looked like Axl rose coming out from the retirement 😂😂😂 number 1
Mutant Bjarne Riis. 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Your channel showed up in my YT thumbnails awhile ago and I now watch regularly. I think the channel would be better named, "Doping Stories." I knew doping had a long history with cycling, but I guess I did not realize how bad it had become. I switched from running to cycling about 20 years ago and began watching racing a few years after that (I am watching the TDF daily right now). I am a bit embarrassed to admit, that I still do not understand many of the tactical nuances of team racing, even though I have read and asked questions on other channels. Therefore, even though I know you are making a point with humor (I do know comedy), your sly, subtle delivery goes right over my head sometimes. It's rather like trying to learn French by watching French language TV. Nonetheless, I enjoy your commentary, editing and historical analysis a lot and plan to keep watching. Eventually, I may even understand the jokes! Regards from SW Florida.
The name thing is because we didn't talk about other sports here, now the team created a Soccer channel too called Football Stories. Thanks for the comment, i'm very happy about the entertainment thing, that's the purpose!
July 19th 2023 So glad the doping days are far behind us both in pro and amateur cycling haha in my time it was Methamphetamine Hydrochloride, crazy strong stuff, a friend of mine twisted his handle bar as he couldn't open his hands and let go off it after the finish line, I know of 2 guys our age that just plainly became crazy using it. Something crazy was to see how fast the guys who had just signed a pro team suddenly became high speed trains from being very good in only a couple of months. The pro teams would say to the junior potential recruits that they need to understand they were good but they would have to become much much better, meaning we will sign you up but only if you accept to follow our medicine treatment. But hey who never took an aspirin the day after to perform better at work. Society does not want you to be a looser so everyone dopes and from the oldest human times
Seeing Jørn Mader´s name brings back memories. Jørn Mader and Jørn Leth was for many years the 2 commentators for danish TV2 daily stage coverage And no matter where the tour went they would always have funny stories from the tour or historical facts about the regions old castles, towns, food, wine and so on. They made even the most boring stages worth watching :)
Great video,shows the absurdist sport in the 90's wasn't a sport just a freak show.
Pascal Herve turned this sport onto a joke
Please do a video about rasmussen, if not done yet. Thanks
i can push about 225 watt average i need to hit the right blood bag
It is strange how he is still a hero and Ullrich and Armstrong are hated. The double standards
Who hates Ullrich?
He’s French and he didn’t win the TDF. Everyone loves an underdog.
@@cyril4046
Ullrich it seems
@@kasperkjrsgaard1447 I don't think Ullrich hates himself. Besides, we are talking about popularity. Whether Ullrich likes himself or not is irrelevant.
@@cyril4046
Maybe i should have added a smiley. Jan Ullrichs recent behavoure doesn’t match a guy who’s in control. Drugs, alcohol and domestic violence is what most people remembers him for.
I think it is hard to sustain an argument that doping wasn't simply universal at that time.
I honestly look back at doping in the nineties as a game of who was caught doping and who managed not to be caught. So many of the ones who were caught, weren't caught by testing positive, but rather by later investigation leading to their exposure. In those terms, it may 'just' be a matter of what documents were shredded and when, that makes the difference between being known for doping or not.
I'm sure there would have been a few who didn't do it, but they would have been very, very rare in, say, the top 50 of the TDF field.
“The most doped watch-making team in history”
And the blood transfusions were not as noticeable in his lumpy, unfaithful bald head”
“Laurent Brochard…a fan of marsupials”
“Virenque’s incredible legs, now recovered from the dental pain…”
Can someone tell me whats the name of the music in the background is?
Way to go buddy!
I'm 60 and not a cyclist, but I have admired the cyclists since the days of Eddy Merckx. Your Channel should be called Drug Stories! It certainly puts a damper on my appreciation of the sport, to say the least...
That's the problem. The admired/fanatic thing.
That's the thing though, cycling and doping have gone hand in hand for decades.
Cycling is unique, or maybe it's not, in that it's entire history has a very omnipresent caveat to virtually every great champion, victory and team. It can't just be jettisoned, so many accept it so that there is something there. Otherwise you could could the number of ''clean'' TDF winners for example, on the fingers of one hand.
@Cycling Stories I don't consider myself a "fanatic" (I know the word "fan" comes from it...) I don't have all day to watch sports, no cable TV or online subscriptions. I watch highlights of stuff. So I applaud your work and thank you. It's one thing to be competitive in the true spirit of sports, quite another to constantly seek advantage through chemical and medical experimentations, for more money and fame, although I am not against professional sports in principle. Excess of money, the lure of it and of fame corrupt young athletes and artists and the whole entertainment and sports industries. All of it has a negative effect on society. I believe UCI and other federations are to blame too, don't you think?
Cycling Stories, the DOPED cycling youtuber.
to me it was always armstrong, ullrich, pantani, virenque in my childhood. i basically only knew these 4 :D
Virenque was seen as some sort of national totem in France in his pomp.
He really was a national sweetheart.
I spent a lot of time in France in "his" years and remember well the flow of love for him.
And the depth of expectation.
His fall was swift and brutal... although he was never the malefactor in chief.
I still have a great deal of respect and sympathy for Virenque. He was a cheat, but I still respect many of the other cheats from that era.
5:58 not sure if that was a joke as well, but "le patron" in French actually means "the boss". It would have to be "saint patron" to mean "patron saint".
I think with cycling, we have to see it the same way as bodybuilding. We all know what goes on, but just enjoy it for what it is. It is weird when one team mate gets popped but the winner for eg still takes the prize. Whereas in 100/400m sprint relays if one member of the team gets popped they all lose a medal.
@RollinRat exactly. If there's fame or money sadly there will be dishonesty. Always has and always will be.
I don't follow or admire pro cycling like I used to. I learned first hand racing in international races in Europe in early 2000's how much dishonesty and greed there is in sport.
"Weeping" = perfect verb for R.V.
When Richard Virenque was at Polti team he was clean and constantly drug tested and you could see his true level
Don't know. Maybe in Domo or QS. But in Polti with Hervé around him... (Remember Izoard 2000)
Not at levels of Festina of course but is suspicious.
@@cyclingstories Better only suspicions than basically giving himself away in the road.
Why i do love Virenque? Well, because at the end of the day, Ullrich and Pantani proved they were no better than him, and i just love that red-dot shirt!🤣
Where are you from?
These are much more interesting stories than the BS going around the current 2022 tour..What a joke the TDF is.
Richard Virenque, and I have salty taste in my mouth. May be the crisps I'm eating now however...
It is a shame that he won the climber jersey more than Van Impe who was a much better climber, but before epo:
10:01 15k euro's in 1997?? 😂
These are hilarious
You make it sound like whoever takes the most doping is going to win. Back then they were all doping and they still do it today. To think otherwise is being completely naive.
Do a video on Cunego that was clean
Giro Salta de qualita
He was popular with the ladies old Richard.
The only problem with this series is the fantasy that there was any pro team that wasn't doped to the eyeballs. Try reading A Hard Ride by Paul Kimmage - if you didn't dope you weren't a serious cyclist.
Virenque translated: Varunk 🤭
Everyone really seemed to be doping back then, it's absolutely ridiculous, considering that Lance Armstrong still was incredibly talented, if he wanted to win he had to dope though.
If you look closely, you can see rocket flames coming out of these riders' arseholes.
How come Jan never was stripped of his TDF like Lance was?
Do you have any stories that don't mention "DOPING"? Doesn't seem like it...
They could do one on Stephen Roche & Sean Kelly, the only two cyclists who never doped.
@Peter west we're spanish
@@cyclingstories And ?
@@cyclingstories you might be Spanish or whatever, but you sure as hell don't seem to be real cycling fans, otherwise you'd make videos about some actual cycling history and not just only about "supposed" doping stories, with some of them looking nothing more than pure speculation. And disrespecting cyclists, like calling Chris Froome an "asmathic" using an ironic tone, like you did in another video (among many other examples) doesn't do you any favor either...
@@peterwest5525 Steven Roche was a doper apparently- David Walsh called him out on it on live tv a while ago I think
Maybe not directly in relation to the, ah, subject matter of the video, but always hilarious seem awkward cycling nerds, even at the top of the sport, engaging with pretty podium girls. Came as a sad surprise to me as a cycling youngster that no, tight lycra outfits and smoother more tanned legs were not, in fact, desirable attributes.
What's the Michael Jackson reference?
simply a french tv show where celebs did something in disguise and at the end, presentator (Patrick Sebastien) said who it was
The narrator is a hypocrite. Still calls Indurain "big Mig" and sees nothing strange in a huge guy miraculously suddenly being a mountain climber. I'm fine with people outing riders if they use doping, but this guy has an agenda of only going after some riders, and turning a blind eye on others.
Maybe its sarcasm the big mig thing
Prison 👉🏻
Please don't call Pantani, elefantino. It's unkind and he hated it.
Cycling "only negative" Stories . dark, sad sport
aren't all cyclists on the tour de france doped? why is that something to point out negatively? lol
Mr. Retropussette...
You are much too harsh on V. He was natural in a way he was only capable of break aways in the most mountainous stages and always in solo escapades in the TDF, his natural habitat. Not so doped as ridiculously excell beyond his domain like others. I very much like that era, the bikes and garments were cool, the riders recognizable. Not like the supposedly undoped robot riders of 2022.
The sport was full of individual characters back then and yeah the jerseys weren't part of the shorts and looked more colourful. The helmets and obligatory sunglasses make riders look much the same.
In 1997 (and i think 98 too) Festina was insane. Remember Laukka Man.
Also, his loyal teammate Hervé was one of the most doped and dangerous riders in history.
In other hand, yes, he was cool.
The biggest robot mutant rider was Armstrong 😂
Like a lot of mature industries and/or sports everything about cycling has become stultifyingly corporate.
Doping schmoping....why would doping be an issue during that era. EVERYBODY DOPED and that was the game so in effect that was an equal playing field for all the stars. Old issue. Re-instate Lance's trophies you jealous Europeans.
The problem with doping is exactly that NOT everyone doped. Many, very talented athletes, walked away from cycling because they realised the only way was to dope. Pro cycling wasn't the best of the best, it was the best of the guys prepared to dope.
And imo if doping never existed I don't actually think Lance would ever have won a tour, one day races yes but not in the mountains.
@@213tpg I beg to disagree it has been proven that doping does not turn you into superman. It helps yes but only a fraction and your talent and physiology is still your benchmark. All the GC main players Lance battled against were doped up and everyone admitted to it. So you mean to tell me that a rookie never had a chance? Of course! he won't because he's a rookie and must play a lieutenant role. Lance was a freak of nature whose lactic threshold was so high he felt less pain in his legs than the rest of them. Opinion about him is slowly turning around and fans are seeing the bigger picture of what cycling was about during that era. Only noobs and non-cycling people think like you do. Lance was the GOAT . His downfall was he became too greedy with winning the titles and not giving the newcomers a chance and his Texas brashness and arrogant character rubbed the whole pro cycling organization (teams and journalists) the wrong way. Lesson here is to be always nice and be humble especially when you are winning all the time.
@@gregmarcus3064 Still drinking the Koolaid, years later.
@@coldsilnc Like what Bill Burr said and no BS. "My roided guy beat your roided guy. 😂" Kool aid!? I drink what the kids drink now. Bubble tea 😂
@@gregmarcus3064 sorry but I'm no noob to cycling.
Amongst the international cycling world nobody ever wondered if Lance was doping, but only ever what was he on.
Doping done well doesn't make only a fraction of difference lol!
And doping starts in U19's. It destroys cycling careers very early on. I get it's a very difficult decision for cyclists and athletes due to how common it is but ultimately if you break the rules you are cheating, it doesn't matter how many or few are doing it. Lance was/is a very gifted cyclist/ athlete but ultimately, like many, many others he cheated. As good as he was that can't be changed. Perhaps he would have been the greatest cyclist ever but also perhaps not, we will never know.
Virenque was so overrated.