A bit more than twenty years ago, American cycling was changed forever by a man whose name will forever exist in infamy. Lance Armstrong, after a decade and a half of controversy surrounding his record-breaking seven Tour de France wins, has been brought down from his pedestal as one of the champions of cycling’s biggest era of doping. Nobody was surprised, given the fact that he managed to beat out multiple doping competitors while also immediately off the couch from a bout with testicular cancer, but it raised a question: who’s going to dive into the performance-enhancing drug ring next? While we have some major leads, such as Chris Froome, who has won four Tours, others manage to slip under the radar due to their newfound insignificance, such as Froome’s former rival, Alberto Contador.
Chris Froome exists as the concept for an ideal cycling body. He’s wiry and lean, he can contort himself into any aerodynamic shape imaginable, and he puts out power like a team of horses. All in all, he’s a powerful guy, revolutionizing the sport with his high-cadence pedaling style and touting one of the most well-budgeted teams in recent history, Team Ineos (formerly Team Sky). His claim to fame took a sharp turn downward in recent years, however, after a scandal at the 2017 Vuelta a Espana was brought about by a few too many puffs from his asthma inhaler. He was nearly banned from competition, but a sudden decision by the UCI put him on the startlist for the next year’s tour days before its commencement. Many were furious about the overlooking, but it became insignificant after Froome did not take home a fifth win in 2018.
Alberto Contador, on the other hand, exists as a bridge between the Lance era and the Froome era. While coming up through the ranks as a contemporary on Armstrong’s Discovery Channel team in the ’00s, he managed to stretch his career out enough to fully retire only a few years ago. Contador, unlike Froome, was actually caught in his doping misadventures. He was stripped of his 2010 Tour and 2011 Giro d’Italia titles, and still resents the decision to this day, despite his ungratefulness toward being allowed back into the sport at all. He claimed the drug that scored him the ban was ingested via a “bad steak,” which is just as asinine an excuse as you think it is. He continued his career until his retirement in 2018, and has left the sport with heaping piles of money and a clear conscience about his wrongdoings, somehow.
Ultimately, doping has its place in the sport of cycling. It’s hard to admit, considering my fervent desire to get more people interested, but it’s hard to get past the precedent that has been set by many professionals. American juniors interested in the sport have declined dramatically since the end of the Lance era, and the sport as a whole has reached a recession. With hope, however, there is a chance we can overcome this dark period and get kids on bikes again. It’s a healthy, practical, and generally non-aggressive sport that would be perfect to help youngsters develop a spirit of sportsmanship that doesn’t require kicking or tackling anybody. Until then, cyclists like me will have to get used to speeding down streets like West College and listening for the inevitable drunken cry: “Faster, Lance!”
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