Shelby Houlihan Sets Up a Gofundme and Website

hopping on this train wrote:

Just curious, does Shelby realize that the authors of the two poorly written, fundamentally flawed supporting blogs are like ridiculous conspiracy theorists on twitter (@twoggle3 and @moultonk) without any qualifications? Her whole schtick is bad.

Also, I'm not convinced @twoggle3 and @moultonk are seperate people considering their twitter style and the number of identical posts between them.

Lots of good points. Twoggle3 looks crazy. Like Q-Anon crazy.

I too have been here since the start and remember the dreams of a real (AKA: white) American hope. The BroJos did defend Armstrong for quite a while. Could be less racial and more that fetish patriotism we often see in US these days.

I'm most disappointed in the teammates still supporting her. To me, that means they are suspect. I wonder how many of those anonymous donations are teammates?

I already made three donations. I'm tapped. Good thing I found some Christmas gifts stashed in the back of the closet. Kids will just have to make due.

Did she use or not? I don't know and neither does anyone here.

She did use, and we do know. Why? Because her sample tested positive for a significantly-more-than-trace quantity of nandrolone.

This was a comment from the GoFundMe, I don't agree about the reward being too small. In her case it could mean the difference between a lucrative pro contract or having to find a 9-5 job:

I've watched this kid run since her freshman year in high school. As an actuary, I spent much of my career measuring risk and reward for insurance companies. I know all too well how numbers don't always tell the whole story. In my estimation the reward for doping was simply too small for Shelby to have taken its risk. Keep fighting the good fight Shelby and family!

WADA alert wrote:

This was a comment from the GoFundMe, I don't agree about the reward being too small. In her case it could mean the difference between a lucrative pro contract or having to find a 9-5 job:

I've watched this kid run since her freshman year in high school. As an actuary, I spent much of my career measuring risk and reward for insurance companies. I know all too well how numbers don't always tell the whole story. In my estimation the reward for doping was simply too small for Shelby to have taken its risk. Keep fighting the good fight Shelby and family!

With good old Deca; the risk/ benefit equation does not add up.

A variety of new SARS ; yes, Deca …. really.

This is the link to the latest WADA tech doc for Nandrolone.

Can anyone interpret it in relation to the SH case.

Again what concerned me with the case was Ayotte giving evidence of Fact and then expert testimony of Opinion at the same time when she is paid as employee of a Wada funded lab. Will this be the basis of an appeal to the Swiss Court?

Up to $13584 now, thanks to this guy - she just needs a few hundred more people like him.

John Flanagan donated $500

My way of thanking past supporters is to pay it forward….to Shelby! Keep your dream and passion going.

Actually we don't. None of us conducted the test. We just read crap online and assume it's all legit.

To know something, you have to have true, justified belief.

Heck. I don't even know w/o a link to anything you've suggested that you even read in any authoritative source that she failed. All I know is that you appear to be making an assertion.

It could be a well-informed assertion, but I have no way of knowing that w/o evidence.

Go Get a Job vs. Go Fund Me 💰 💵 💲

Which is the more responsible thing to do for Shelby?

Her GofundMe has been up for two weeks now. Over $7,000 in the first 6 hours, up to $11,819 after two days. Only made $2,665 in the 12 days since. $14,484 is more than I thought she would get.

All she is accomplishing with this stunt is alienating herself from American track fans. I have not talked to any runner yet who believes her story. If she would have just shut up and served her 4-year ban, a lot of people would have welcomed her back to the track. Things would have calmed down some. Now, I expect her to get booed when she steps on the track. Harassment from the fans will follow her the rest of her career. She has gone from just another runner who got popped for drugs to a true villain in the T&F world.

go away, Shelby wrote:

Her GofundMe has been up for two weeks now. Over $7,000 in the first 6 hours, up to $11,819 after two days. Only made $2,665 in the 12 days since. $14,484 is more than I thought she would get.

Strange, isn't it though? So many people spoke out on her behalf on letsrun, and the average income of letsrun posters is allegedly over $500,000 p.a., but none of them kicked in a few thousands.

go away, Shelby wrote:

All she is accomplishing with this stunt is alienating herself from American track fans. I have not talked to any runner yet who believes her story.

Same here. Most runners I have heard from appreciate that an uncastrated young boar might make it into the food chain every once in a while, and orders do get mixed up here or there, but the too high nandro amount even for stomach offal + the wrong androgen levels + the CIR being only consistent with synthetic nandro are just too much to swallow.

On the other hand, there are still over three years to go until her return, and people are forgetful. I am not convinced that she will still be treated as the villain in 2025.

Whether setting up a GofundMe page was wise or not, I see Shelby as a victim. In this sport you either dope or you are a dope who will not be competitive. It was the same for cyclists starting in the 1990s. At that point the chemical doping had become so strong that you had to use PEDs just to be an effective domestique.

I said at the time she ran that AR 5000m that she was doping. And her teammates too. The times did not lie. They were PED based. But when you consider some of the athletes who have made a complete mockery of antidoping in this sport still running for glory at the Olympics, can I blame them? In this sport to win you have to go full Armstrong. You need to dope just to be competitive. All the DOJ's vendetta to get Armstrong did was wipe out US cycling. The sport proceeded as dirty as ever.

The flip side of all this is that every distance runner's career and reputation can be destroyed by a lab result. If the lab is shoddy or mistake prone, too bad. If there are no safeguards regarding chain of custody or contamination, you are out of luck. So generally I am in favor of some form of adversarial judicial review. Thinking someone doped and fairly and effectively proving it are different things.

casual obsever wrote:

, but the too high nandro amount even for stomach offal + the wrong androgen levels + the CIR being only consistent with synthetic nandro are just too much to swallow.

This reminds of the "explanations" of Radcliffe's leaked off scores - the dehydration, the uncalibrated lab equipment (for her samples not the other athletes tested on the same equipment), the faulty way of drawing blood (for her and not the Russians of course), the antibiotics, the altitude training, the whatever you can think of basically ..

Yet these BS excuses, were accepted by the authorities and they turned a blind eye. So in a weird way though Shelby should be banned (preferably for life), she is sort of a victim compared with so many other athletes who are completely getting away with things ...

Where on earth would we have it as an stated fact that you can’t challenge that the lab has done the work according to their own standards?

And where on earth can the standards used be not challenged if they do no comply current best science?

Where on earth is allowed that an expert witness to opinion can give her opinion on her own factual evidence and that person having her salary functionally paid for by WADA?

Not sure what you are asking exactly, but yes, the lab's protocols and procedures should be transparent and opened to judicial challenge. Years ago the UCI eviscerated the WADA lab regarding Armstrong. He was guilty of course, but not based on anything that lab found or did. It's findings were completely compromised.

Anyway athletes need to be smarter. Pro teams hopefully have regular testing for their own athletes. Sure this can be used to help doping and avoid detection, but it is a logical safeguard. Also I would never give a sample without keeping my own.

astro wrote:

Not sure what you are asking exactly, but yes, the lab's protocols and procedures should be transparent and opened to judicial challenge.

Which they are. See the CAS report.

And, it is of course common practice to have experts explain their data, and put them into context.

And, Ayotte does not receive her salary from WADA, neither functionally (whatever that means) or otherwise. She is an INRS employee.

Plus, in any case, WADA was not a party here: the "Claimant" was World Athletics, and the "Respondent" was Houliham.

See I.1.-3. in the CAS report.

liar soorer wrote:

It is inconceivable that an athlete on whereabouts would go near a drug so highly detectable, perhaps months with granddaughter metabolites.

It’s perfectly conceivable:

1) perhaps her designer ‘roofs were contaminated. ..

2) Or perhaps she’s really dim and didn’t think she could be caught out.

Scenario 2 certainly concurs with the belief that (a) the burrito defence would be accepted and (b) thinking others will pay for her failed defence.

But whatever - she’s appealed, lost and is banned. Nevertheless, I do hope that one day owns up and tells the truth. I’m sure she would find great relief in doing so.