Home Recreation Coaching McQuaid Is “Pathetic” Claims Armstrong

McQuaid Is “Pathetic” Claims Armstrong

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Lance Armstrong has added to the growing pressure on International Cycling Union (UCI) President Pat McQuaid by calling him “pathetic.”

The self-confessed drugs cheat claimed that the Irishman is primarily concerned with protecting his position as head of the world governing body rather than making any serious attempts at cleaning up the sport and that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), announced controversially by McQuaid on January 28, is just his latest attempt to save himself.

Lance Armstrong has tried to cast doubts over the achievements of fellow American Tour de France winner Greg LeMond.

Armstrong also tried to take the credit for the idea of the TRC.

“It’s not the best way, it’s the only way,” Armstrong told cyclingnews.com today in his first interview since he admitted to doping throughout most of his career on Oprah Winfrey. “As much as I’m the eye of the storm this is not about one man, one team, one director. This is about cycling and to be frank it’s about ALL endurance sports. Publicly lynching one man and his team will not solve this problem.  [I came to this conclusion] a long time ago. When I was on speaking terms with ol’ Pat McQuaid many, many months ago I said, ‘Pat, you better think bold here. ‘A full blown, global, Truth and Reconciliation Commission is our sports best solution.’ He wanted to hear nothing of it.”

Armstrong claimed that the reason McQuaid, who was called “deceitful” by World Anti-Doping Agency President (WADA) John Fahey, was originally against a TRC was because he knew it would implicate the UCI.”Pat is just in constant CYA (Cover Your Ass) mode,” said Armstrong. “Pathetic.”

Armstrong continued to try to justify his doping by claiming that other great champions of the sport had used banned drugs, including three-time Tour de France winner Greg LeMond, one of his fiercest critics.

”My generation was no different than any other,” said Armstrong. “The ‘help’ has evolved over the years but the fact remains that our sport is damn hard, the Tour was invented as a ‘stunt, and very tough mother f****** have competed for a century and all looked for advantages. From hopping on trains a 100 years ago to EPO (Erythropoietin) now. No generation was exempt or ‘clean’. Not [Eddy] Merckx, not [Bernard] Hinault, not LeMond, not [Fausto] Coppi, not [Felice] Gimondi, not [Miguel] Indurain, not [Jacques] Anquetil, not [Gino] Bartali, and not mine.”

Armstrong urged the TRC to not set limits on who they would ask to give evidence.

“It’s not my place to set the parameters but if you’re asking, I’d say that if you are alive today and you podiumed [in a World Championships or Grand Tour] then you should be called. Sounds ambitious but the authorities have proven that nothing with regards to cycling is time barred.”

Contact the writer of this story at duncan.mackay@insidethegames.biz  Inside the Games is a blog of the London Organizing Committee that helped put on the recent Summer Olympics.  This article is reprinted here with permission of the authors of the blog.

1 COMMENT

  1. The only really amnaizg thing here is that I agree with the UCI. Ixnay the radios. I’d live to see a gadget free race too. Let’s take cycling back to a strong, smart bunch of people on bicycles. He’s awareof his body, not dependent on a power meter. He signals his team mates with raised eyebrow and a wink. The brainy coach with the ariel view speaking in the ear of the brawny rider schtick has to go. It’s getting too segmented. Remember mad max? Who rules the peloton? Master blaster! I know I’m romanticizing it all but this is cycling.

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