NY Velocity has published a tremendous, unedited, transcript of Paul Kimmage’s interview with Floyd Landis. There’s a ton of information in there—stuff from Floyd accusing Oscar Pereiro of calling the kettle black to more details on that whole “blood down the drain” story—but what really struck me was this exchange:
Kimmage: How many of the decisions you made after that were coloured by this experience you’ve had with the UCI and their relationship with Lance? How big a factor was that in the decision you made to dope?
Landis: That’s all of it.
The real takeaway here should be that when the UCI arbitrarily decides to break one of its own rules—even one unrelated to doping—it invites riders to break the others. Pat McQuaid can talk about personal responsibility until the the cows come home, but the distance between not tapping into a bank guarantee and a rider re-injecting a liter of blood is a bit thinner than the sport’s governing body seems to realize.
McQuaid might do well to have a sitdown with Kimmage sometime in the near future. Perhaps the UCI President can be goaded into such an interview by the knowledge that, Lance Armstrong took the precisely opposite approach.
MC Quasy Spineless is running a three ring circus but he is no longer the ring master we all thought he was !
Seems like the entertainers are in charge and he and his cohorts will be playing “catchup” through to the World Chumps Parade in Sept/oct !
Great blog!! Started reading interview this morning went back to finish reading it and link no longer working.
Keem, try the cached entry: https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:https://nyvelocity.com/content/interviews/2011/landiskimmage
Thanks for the cache. How do those websites get shut down? Anyhow who believes in conspericies. This is not an era of dictatiorial rule!?.
Thanks for working link to the interview. It was certainly worth reading the entire interview.
It’s like a massive car wreck. We don’t want to look but we can’t take our eyes away.
What about this exchange:
Kimmage: “Okay, allow me to rephrase the question: What if I handed you a blank sheet of paper? What if you had the chance to do it again?
Landis: To start over?
K: Yeah.
L: My whole life?
K: Yeah.
L: Well, in the context of what happened since, I would do everything the same and I would just admit it, afterwards.
K: When you tested positive in 2006?
L: Yes.
K: You would admit it?
L: Yes, but I would do everything exactly the same. I wouldn’t change a thing. I wouldn’t have missed that.”
You need to give Landis credit for his (belated) honesty. It was worth it to him. It is worth it to all the others. Any question why cycling will never get on top of the issue? I mean of course besides the silly little fact that the UCI and USACycling are complicit in the whole mess.
What an interview! What a sport! What a mess!
Excuse me while I go ride my bike.
Lorin
Yes, well it is now crystal clear: with the UCI rigging the game and virtually allowing blood doping (for their cronies only of course) pro cycling will NEVER get better. And Bernhard Kohl was right. Who will admit to that?
So guilty verdict for the UCI: Man One premeditated murder of pro cycling.
Very next on the guilty list: the cycling press and websites. Accessory to murder.
Exhibit C: favorite quote from the interview.
PK: “The next step is to stay away from Cyclingnews and all of the cycling websites, but keep riding your bike, that will always feel good.”
Enough said.
I’d rather see McQuaid sit down with Novitzky.
“So guilty verdict for the UCI: Man One premeditated murder of pro cycling.
Very next on the guilty list: the cycling press and websites. Accessory to murder.”
i agree it.
What an interview! What a sport! What a mess!