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Picture the scene, Floyd Landis has just romped to victory in the Tour, winning a massive mountain stage by more than five minutes from his nearest chaser after a giant romp across the mountains. Impressive, no?
Certainly cyclingnews.com was impressed. They gushed “Without a shadow of a doubt, today will go down as one of the finest stages in modern Tour de France history.” Oh dear!
Sadly today we know that was more than a shadow of doubt, Landis was caught doping. Stripped of the stage win and indeed his Tour de France win, today Landis has effectively lost everything.
One of the most frustrating aspects of cycling (and indeed some other sports) is that the more impressive the performance, the more question marks appear.
It was a spectacular return – sad that it ended the way it did. I think most riders have had really good days after horrific days, so I guess, for me, I thought (dreamed, maybe hoped) that this was one of those things. I was kinda crushed when he tested positive.