rekrunner wrote:
But why are you saying that to me? I think drugs can work. I'm not JR, or Jon O. I only talk about making a case for the effect of EPO for *top* distance runners. I don't ask anyone to believe me - there's already too much belief. I would ask you to examine why you believe yourself.
Why I believe myself:
- Thousands of top cyclists have been caught for it. Some of them have admitted how they were on it for years and then detailed how they beat the tests (Landis, Hincapie, Hamilton, Barry, Leipheimer, Armstrong, and the rest of the 12 from the Reasoned Decision testimony).
- Every TdF winner from 1996 to 2007 has been caught for drugs, and most of the top-10 every year for 20 years going back to before they tested for EPO, but just made the 50% HCT limit. Riis (admitted) 1996, Ulrich (caught and admitted) 1997, Pantani (caught) 1998, Armstrong (admitted) 1999-2005, Landis (caught and admitted) 2006, Contador (caught for clen') 2007.
- If every multi-millionaire WINNER gets caught (even with all their resources) of EVERY TdF winner for 12 years, this leads me to believe that nearly everyone at the ProTour level is using.
This leads me to believe that it is in heavy use in other sports where testing is not as effective. The hundreds of positive tests in XC skiing, and other endurance sports support this. Before you tell me testing in track is just as effective, establish your credentials as a cycling expert. Track is a sport where, when someone sets an AR in the Steeple, they "forget" to take the obligatory drug test and the organizers don't force them. They subsequently do not ratify the AR.
- Hundreds of top runners have been caught for it. By "top runner" I mean someone who could meet the "A" standard. I can't provide a list of them, but if you were actually as committed as you act like, you would see them when I do. I read them in Track and Field News each month, in Athletics Weekly, on the internet and other publications. Just because you may not be aware that hundreds have been caught does not mean they weren't. Hundreds of other lesser lights and National Class athletes have been caught too.
This leads me to believe that its use is nearly 100% among the top class.
- Last, the distance WRs had plateaued by the end of the '80s despite (or perhaps BECAUSE OF) drugs being used heavily for 30 years in distance running, when lo and behold (after EPO became available) in the early '90s they started dropping from 1500-10k.
When Ondeiki ran 26:58 and became the first man to break 27, it was hailed as The Greatest Distance Race of All Time. Do you know why you never hear about that anymore? Because EPO suddenly made that record look weak ... and every other one from 1500-10k right with it.
NoNames were suddenly running faster than every WR holder and Olympic Champion before 1990. I remember in 2000 when Felix Limo came out of NOWHERE (he had never run under 28:00 - he had run 28:23 a yr earlier) to run SECOND at Brussels to Paul Tergat (at 27:03) and run 27:04. He only ran under 28:30 twice more (27:26 and 27:57).
So the records dropped 3.5 secs for 1500m, 7 secs for 2000m, 9 secs for 3000m, 20 secs for 5000m, and 46 secs for 10k all in 6 years. Then they sat there for 17 years.
WRs set in the '90s (most of it over 8 yrs):
1500m - 3 (dropped 3.46 secs)
Mile - 2 (dropped 3.2 secs)
2000m - 3 (dropped 6.6 secs)
3000m - 3 (dropped 8.7 secs)
Steeple - 4 (dropped 10 secs)
5000m - 6 (dropped 19 secs)
10000m - 8 (dropped 45 secs)
Total - 96 secs
29 WRs set in the 90s (by 15 different people).
WRs set since Yr 2000 (over 16 yrs):
1500m - ZERO
Mile - ZERO
2000m - ZERO
3000m - ZERO
Steeple - 2 (dropped 2.1 secs)
5000m - 1 (dropped 2 secs)
10000m - 2 (dropped 5.2 secs)
Total - 9.3 secs
5 WRs set in 16 yrs (by 3 people).
It is so patently obvious that the development of EPO is what brought this on.