The return of Cathal Lombard

I bit ironic but I thought it worth mentioning: this guy - KARIM EL MABCHOUR - is on drugs. And no, not because he won. He changed his name after he was caught about 1 year ago, and has been hitting up the US road circuit all summer long. Peachtree denied his entry. Crazy 8's welcomed him with open arms.

He should stay gone. Him and David Millar get right up my nose! They get caught and immediately try to get some credit for being anti-doping?

Eyes are smiling.... wrote:

joe, why don't you take that one hand off your junk and count how many guys have actually admitted to drug use...caught or not caught. .

You are missing the point. Whether they admitted to it or not after they were caught is irrelevant. They were caught. Who cares if they admitted to it? We already know the truth. Yet guys like you want to turn it into some sort of positive character trait that he doesn't try to ignore the evidence staring him in the face.

Irish Hunk wrote:

I never understood why anyone had any admiration for him 'being honest and opening up about his drug taking' as a previous poster said he would still be on the juice now if he hadn't been caught. He didn't own up until he had no other option but to admit it, he is an f***ing cheat and I for one would not line up against him, I'd want him removed from the race, if everyone had that atitude these dopers would not come back to our sport.

I reckon the race organsisers wouldn't miss your 36 minute 10k performance if you decided to boycott.

Can someone please tell me who this guy is?

Cathal Lombard is an Irish runner who set the Irish 10,000 meter track record a couple of years ago. Shortly thereafter it was discovered he was doing drugs (I think it was EPO).

I was actually one of the runners who competed year on year on fairly equal terms with Cathal at Irish Champs, when he was around a 14.15, 29.45 guy, I was honest, worked hard and kept at my running, I improved but only so much, Cathal came out and ran 2 minutes quicker within a year or so, how do you think that makes somebody like me feel? Do you want me to put my arm round him and say 'There there, welcome back', I don't want people like him in the sport. If he had run 27.30 and then come out and said 'actually my improvement is down to EPO, this is the hypocracy of our sport' then fair enough I would see that he was trying to show how bolloxed the sport was, but he didn't do that, he got caught and then he backtracked.

I bet he isn't so fast to show his face at races in Ireland as there are a few people over there who will probably lamp him. The guy played with other peoples careers not just his own, people missed out on champs, funding and medals because of him, he is a disgrace. What he did was calculating and planned, he was not a naive young guy being led up the garden path, he is an intelligent and clued up guy and he knew exactly what he was doing.

You are right to feel mad. But actually Cathal came 'clean' and admitted to what he did, fully.

Because of that, he should be given a second chance. He has told everyone everything he knows about doping in sport, and his knowledge level is high. I think he has a background as a solicitor.

Ghost in Korea

You are right to feel mad. But actually Cathal came 'clean' and admitted to what he did, fully.

Because of that, he should be given a second chance. He has told everyone everything he knows about doping in sport, and his knowledge level is high. I think he has a background as a solicitor.

Ghost in Korea

Check out this article prior to the EPO bust

http://www.irishrunner.com/cathal03.html

Ghost in Korea

And Cathal's apology statement after the drug bust.

http://www.rte.ie/sport/2004/0810/lombardc.html

Ghost in Korea

coach:

christophe_moulton@yahoo.ca

This is how Cathal Lombard was caught. He ordered EPO over the internet, and the drugs was intercepted by Irish customs agents.

I think Cathal was a runner who could have reached around 13:50 and 28:45 'clean.'

Let us give the guy a break and see how far he goes now, in his comeback. He might also prove to be a good marathon runner.

http://www.irishabroad.com/news/irishinamerica/news/irishdrugcheat.asp

Ghost in Korea

What is there to suggest that Cathal could run 28.45 clean? He went from 30.35 to 28.05 in one race, he never got near 29.00, he is 30 years old now, he is running the equivalent of 30.30 again, this is obviously his 'level' when he is clean.

He doesn't desreve a break.

So you think that EPO worth more than 70 seconds in a 10000m race?

Get real.

150 seconds improvement over 10,000m ! (6 seconds EVERY lap)

My first reaction wouldn't be "EPO"; it would be "Someone fecked up the lap counting"

"He went from 30.35 to 28.05 in one race"

For Lombard, I would guess that the EPO was worth 30 seconds at the most over 25 laps. He wasn't just doped, He was VERY FIT AND DOPED.

DEFNITELY WORTH MORE THAN 30 seconds, he had never broken 14 for 5k and then he ran 27.30's! The guy was not capable of anything like those times, as will be proven by his times now.

It's black and white. He cheated. Why he deserves a 'second chance' is irrelevant. You either believe cheating is OK or you believe it to be wrong. It is the very existence of the middle ground being peddled by the limp wristed first poster that will ensure cheats always have the middle ground to survive in.

Rules dictate he can compete again. It is up to individual athletes how they react. If he lined up against me I would have to decide if I wanted to race against him at all or just call him a cheat, to his face, at every opportunity. For that is what he is (not 'was').

Lombard displayed a very impressive improvement. I'd love to get hold of some stuff that got me running 34mins instead of 36mins!