Latest comments
- EPO baby
- yes they should
- I have 3 kids, all going to college, and we have great relationships as a family. our kids come to us (me, their mom/my wife) for guidance. sure there is outside influence, but we don’t rely on influencers to raise our kids and give them values.
and, they are smart enough to realize what a paid professional does to their body for their profession is unique to them, their profession, and not necessarily something to be emulated.
as for changing ones body, Matthew McConaghey lost 40 lbs for Dallas Buyers Club, and he was nominated for an academy award. He looked like death walking. Natalie Portman did the same for her ballerina movie Black Swan, and was nominate for an award. did Demi speak up on their behalf???
Is it healthy? Hell no. Is it “required” to play the part - be it the part of an AIDS patient or TdF winner - YES. MM would not have been a convincing AIDS patient had he not lost 40 lbs.
if a person isn’t smart enough to realize that it is required for that role, then so be it.
as for Demi, if she truly wants to be a role model, maybe what she could model for young people is graciousness. Instead of saying “I lost Liege because I’m on my period” she could just congratulate Kim LeCourt and say “it is great to see new teams win”. instead of saying “I lost to Pauline because I refuse to get that thin”, she could say “PFP raced a great race, and kudos to them for the tactical masterclass of having a rider up the rode to hook up with her half way up the climb. We have to do better”. or blame losses on crashes - which everyone has. or yell “you bitch” when sprinting against a teammate for Strade Bianche.
nothing about being a professional cyclist, footballer, boxer, MMF fighter, etc is “healthy”, but it is their choice as a person. for the young people who say “that isn’t healthy”, well, you already have your answer. don’t do it. for the adults, all I can say is have a relationship in which you are the role model, not some professional whatever.
- Your idealism is good but I think you forget the context a little. There came a point/period when the powers that were had gotten so implicated (mostly tacitly) in the whole doping system that it was hard to make a strategic stand against any part of it and any rider entering would get vetted for fitting into the scheme or not, if you showed too strong a viewpoint or reluctance you were often replaceable, if you wanted a chance you’d have to take risks too, knowing no-one would do much against it as long as you played the game. It was an extremely difficult tine to be a snitch, especially if you had no other work to fall back on. Drug and trafficking gangs are not the only ones with experience in recruiting the right kind of youngsters.
- I don’t see why, the admission is not new, the statement is basically what you’d expect from someone trying to be honest as opposed to others pretending they “didn’t” know what they were doing or have symbolic remorse but not quite enough to relinquish anything they obtained or achieved. I’ve not seen one rider handing his money or prizes over to the best non-doped rider he respected. You don’t do this kind of stuff if you’re not aware of the implications. And morally he’s still higher on the list than those who’ve never admitted the obvious or only when up against a wall. He’s high up but not first on the list of actives who should be banned from the circus.
- Install sensors on all bikes, penalise each entry into someone else’s zone in designated safety areas with a time and or financial loss and possible disqualification.
- Yes, I reckon the days of :35y olds in the peleton will soon be over. And soon you’ll have to sacrifice school to have a chance against others who do or there’ll be no place left by the time you graduate.
- I think he totally gets it for that very exclusive well paid well supported professional, I don’t think he’s getting the message at all. This is not just about decisions pro athletes should be making for or by themselves, it is the image they should convey to the countless youngsters hoping to follow in their footsteps (over 99.99% of which will miserably fail) not getting the idea that this is a prerequisite at the outset which WILL lead to an even higher number of medical issues than non competitive youngsters already exhibit due to eating disorders. Horner seems to have very little insight into the difference in scale of the problem between boys and girls, in and outside the sport, he’s probably never even coached youngsters or observed their lifestyles or ambitious parents’ “guiding”.
Society is finally starting to remember that youngsters are extremely easily influenced and that they need good role models, not cheap outside advice from completely misplaced persons. Would Horner tell kids they should drop school if they want their tiny chance of being a pro athlete by dedicating those extra dozens of hours a week to training?
- what is it about her concern for the well being of younger female riders that makes her unlikable to you? i don’t get it.
- I’m really trying hard to be a Demi Vollering fan, but she’s making it difficult for me.
