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happypervert -> RE: Was Landis innocent? (11/15/2006 8:54:45 PM)
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I think there are two answers to the question: "Was Landis innocent?"
1. No, he isn't innocent -- I bet that he did have synthetic testosterone in his system
2. Yes, he is innocent -- I think he only used testosterone to get back up to his natural levels because it gets depleted from the effort of that race. This isn't like a baseball player using steroids to produce an athletic performance that otherwise would be above his ability; this is simply to maintain his performance at a level normal for him.
Yeah, I know that it is an endurance sport and other riders are subject to the same depletion of all their natural reserves; I think they're getting a "boost" too, and Floyd just happened to get caught because his effort on Stage 17 was so extraordinary that it threw his body out of whack even further.
Fact is, they don't use this stuff like baseball players to bulk up because that would kill them when trying to climb; he didn't test for having an abnormally high level of testosterone either -- that absolute level was well within limits. He failed a test that measures a ratio between testosterone and another hormone, and I think that is subject to fluctuations in a brutal event like the Tour de France. Basically, even if he did use testosterone I just don't think it is such a big deal.
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