MinnMan

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/r...-france-469420

GrainBrain

Honestly I bet it's just steroids for his nettle rash.

Marcus_Ti

If they were doping....given their results, they did a pretty terrible job.

Flip Flop Rider

was thinking the same thing

diphthong

was thinking barguil or quintana might nab a stage or the kom jersey but don't remember the team being a factor in any facet of the tour. at all.

Caretaker

Two things animate people on here, doping and Valverde doing something amazing on a bike.

ZHVelo

Hah, if they are doping what must everyone else be on?

As said above, could be related to the crash.

Flip Flop Rider

and Lance!

Marcus_Ti

Prisoner 1: What are you in for?
Prisoner 2: Bank robbing. What about you?
Prisoner 1: I was treating the hives without an Rx.

I'm not sure which is worse. Sucking at doping...or Having a doctor so inept they don't get a Rx.

robertorolfo

First of all, we all know that "doping" can only help so much. If a guy does have what it takes, it's not going to make him a world beater. We know Quintana is no slouch, but you guys need to consider the bigger picture as well.

Maybe he felt like he didn't have it anymore, and one last season simply near the top is enough to ensure him another year of a good salary before he heads off to a future of 50 something years without income. I think that Americans often forget (or just don't know) what the economies of other countries look like...

nomadmax 

He said that when he said "doping"

vane171

Sometimes the doping can have unexpected consequence, I doubt it is surefire thing to always make you into a rocket. That said, I am of neutral opinion regarding him. Lets say you're right, the crash might be responsible for it, we've seen others not performing well after crashes.

We might be seeing a long term results of doping, not just that something you took only recently failed to do its trick in coming days.

It is like our economic and political pundits still hold the belief that pouring money into economy will result in vigorous performance - while economy is not listening to them. Japanese economy could be talking heaps regarding this if it could.

79pmooney

There's another possible scenario. Quintana has enemies in his home country. He has been vocal supporting women's rights and exposing the corruption within the national cycling federation's ranks? Is it possible someone with an ax to grind made a call to a French authority with damning information?

Perhaps more has been discovered by the investigators than I have read, but 100 ml of saline solution and some needles in a doctor's stash sounds like stuff I'd want my doctor to have! Local painkillers after a crash like his if I have to get up and race the Tour every day.

I'm keeping an open mind but it isn't a given to me that he or the team has done anything wrong from what I've read so far. I certainly did not see any red flags in their racing.

hrdknox1

I suspected that he was doping when he bested the records of Armstrong and Pantani up Mont Ventoux in the Tour de la Provence.

ZHVelo

Well his statement was quite clear, they found things they didn't know so couldn't immediately close the investigation.

canklecat

Have any reports specified what was found, other than saline and needles? The news reports I've read described it as "health supplements," as if they're backtracking a bit or hedging.

I'd expect team medical support to have IV gear for saline and Ringer's lactate for dehydration, nothing controversial about that.

Didn't one of the teams admit to using ketone supplements this year? It's not restricted, AFAIK, and opinions differ about whether it helps. Phil Gaimon and others have experimented with the stuff but they aren't grinding it out for three weeks so it may not really help much if at all for any single day event.

asgelle

All IVs are banned regardless of their content. So yes, having IV gear when supporting a Tour team is controversial to say the least.

Marcus_Ti

Strange part being that the ASO were not involved in the raid or seemingly the aftermath.

ZHVelo

Interesting, pretty sure in Handball when they have European or World Champs they use IVs overnight because the game schedule is so intense. Just goes to show how much more seriously cycling actually takes doping.

canklecat

Ah, I didn't know that. I assumed team doctors had the option to use IVs for normal saline or Ringer's, since those are common among many pro sports for emergency rehydration.

aclinjury

French police got played. Looking more like fools each day goes on without finding any dope

MinnMan

Don't know what will come of it, but the noise is not done.

https://www.velonews.com/events/tour...our-de-france/

Caretaker

So far it's just noise and I wouldn't dismiss all of the concerns but I think bike doping is very unlikely at this level. Bike doping is something that's black or white and relatively easy to detect that any team would be risking too much to try it.

MinnMan

You have a point. That's what's kept pro cycling so clean all these years.

Caretaker

Take a sport that's huge in my country Ireland, Rugby (Union), it's riddled with PEDs but no one gives a ****.
Cycling is doping click bait.