kcblair

What's with the potty break, (Tom Dumoulin) just before the last climb of the day at the Giro, today ?? KB

Ken Brown

Disgusting that the GC contenders did not wait for him. I only saw highlights and it appeared that Nibali was the aggressor, but headlines say it was Movistar. I am disgusted with all of them.

lsberrios1 

Horrible move by Katusha, Bahrain and Movistar. I've lost a good chunk of respect for them. Especially attacking a guy that would have had the harder time of all GC contenders on the climb and using that unfortunate moment to take advantage. Means that they did find Dumolin to be a real threat and would not take the chance. If Nairo or Nibali win the Giro I will not care, and that says a lot for me since I am hispanic and my wife is italian. Not that they'd give **** what I think... It's sort of like kicking a baby while he's looking for his lost lolly pop.

I hope Dumolin destroys them on the next TT and takes 20 minutes on them.

canam73

I'll just leave this here.

(That's what he said)

wphamilton

I just saw this in a news article and came here to ask, because I don't get the controversy. Cycling is a physical sport, so why should the competitors stop for something like this? A mechanical or crash, I can understand, but this is part of the physical condition and even the diarrhea is a kind of physical would be a form of physical weakness. Should they stop if he had a sudden coughing fit, or wheezing and dizzy, or exploit his weakness?

I just don't see where Dumoulin has grounds to complain.

lsberrios1 

I guess part of being a great cyclist is having a great ability to hold your **** very well.

gsa103

Generally, there's a truce when the leader needs to take a nature break. It's typically more coordinated though, and at the mid-point of the ride.
For example, Froome stopping to pee, so that his teammates could catch up. So there's definitely evidence of it going both ways.

To Dumoulin's credit, it doesn't sound like he had a problem with them racing. Definitely something his team will need to address in terms of feeding plans. The riders are working very hard, and basically consuming sugar/liquid. It's not too surprising that someone's digestion can get thrown widely off kilter.

cthenn

This definitely seems to be more of a problem with the fans than with the riders. Even Dumoulin said he was not really that upset they raced on. My problem is that TD admitted he was having a problem earlier, and he held it until he couldn't any longer. Well, if that's the case, then he chose the worst possible moment to do his business. People complain it's not fair to him, but it's equally not fair to the other teams who rode in the gutter for hours trying to soften him up, only to be expected to stop racing while he takes a dump.

It's all your perspective. If you want TD to win, you see it through his point of view, and that it wasn't fair they attacked. But if you look at it from the other riders' perspective, you may realize there's more gray area than it first seems. The solution is there should be no expectation of waiting, especially when it's something in your own control. Taking a crap is not like getting a mechanical or crashing. I guarantee you if he got the sh**s halfway up the climb when everyone else was attacking, he would simply crap his pants. But because it was at the bottom, people seem to think he should be allowed to stop the race so he can take a break. Not right.

txags92

I think the reason they didn't wait was the timing. If you have your team driving hard all day to make sure only the true contenders are left at the bottom of the final climb and a leader is isolated, you would be understandably upset if the leader suddenly decides to take a nature break that conveniently allows his teammates a chance to rest and gather their energy. TD should have stopped long before the final climb if he expected them to wait for him.

Reynolds 

Ethical points aside, I thought pro athletes of this level were very regular and disciplined, always going to the toilet after breakfast, etc.