Lasse Viren = Fraud? 1976 article shows that he was a blood doper

In the article, Lasse denies doing anything wrong, there is no proof mentioned (hearsay does not count). Perhaps he just trained really, really hard?

In fact, both of his legs were huge.

Cousin Ernie wrote:

In the article, Lasse denies doing anything wrong, there is no proof mentioned (hearsay does not count). Perhaps he just trained really, really hard?

Perhaps this issue was beaten to death over 40 years ago?

And what was the verdict? They didn’t have tests to detect EPO back then reliably. Since this is Letsun he is guilty until proven innocent no? Or are we giving him a pass because he is.. you know

Dfa wrote:

And what was the verdict? They didn’t have tests to detect EPO back then reliably. Since this is Letsun he is guilty until proven innocent no? Or are we giving him a pass because he is.. you know

What? There wasn’t epo back then. The Fins were using blood transfusions.

I would not be surprised. So much cheating at the top.

His 1976 Montreal Olympics:

Day 1: He finished his 10,000m heat in 28:14 to qualify automatically.

Day 4: He finished the 10,000m final in 27:40 to win.

Day 6: He finished his 5000m heat in 13:33 to qualify automatically.

Day 8: He finished the 5000m final in 13:24, with the last mile under 4:00, to win.

Day 9: He finished the marathon in 2:13:10 to place 5th, just 18 hours after the 5000m final.

It is not totally unbelievable without doping. Athletes commonly run fast times shortly after a championship.

dfa wrote:

I used to think Lasse Viren - the dude who crushed Prefontaine in the Olympics - was a clean runner with a clean legacy.

I used to think he stood out and separated against some of the more "questionable" distance runners in the modern Era like Daniel Komen, Hicham El G, etc.

But no, it turns out that he just had an early adopter mentality to EPO, which gave him a huge leg up over not just East Africans but Americans, too.

So basically with this, LRC posters - hopefully - stop using Lasse Viren as a counter-argument to diminish the achievements of East African champions like Kenny B, Mo Farah, and such. He is not on the same tier in terms of GOAT conversations with these drug cheat allegations.

https://www.nytimes.com/1976/08/01/archives/the-blood-scandal.html

Have you read the data on his heart?

That's just one of a few missing points.

Do thorough research.

"Nothing wrong" = not illegal. Blood doping was not illegal in 1976.

*Lasse laughs all the way to the bank*

dfa wrote:

I used to think Lasse Viren - the dude who crushed Prefontaine in the Olympics - was a clean runner with a clean legacy.

I used to think he stood out and separated against some of the more "questionable" distance runners in the modern Era like Daniel Komen, Hicham El G, etc.

But no, it turns out that he just had an early adopter mentality to EPO, which gave him a huge leg up over not just East Africans but Americans, too.

So basically with this, LRC posters - hopefully - stop using Lasse Viren as a counter-argument to diminish the achievements of East African champions like Kenny B, Mo Farah, and such. He is not on the same tier in terms of GOAT conversations with these drug cheat allegations.

https://www.nytimes.com/1976/08/01/archives/the-blood-scandal.html

Kenny B and Mo Farah being squeaky clean then?

...Jos Hermens and Al Sal/Jama Aden...

History buff wrote:

Dfa wrote:

And what was the verdict? They didn’t have tests to detect EPO back then reliably. Since this is Letsun he is guilty until proven innocent no? Or are we giving him a pass because he is.. you know

What? There wasn’t epo back then. The Fins were using blood transfusions.

*Finns

whatelseisnew wrote:

Day 8: He finished the 5000m final in 13:24, with the last mile under 4:00, to win.

Win yes. Not correct on the final mile.

When they deserve an extra N, I’ll add it. Until then they are dolphins.

Theyre not dolphins wrote:

History buff wrote:

What? There wasn’t epo back then. The Fins were using blood transfusions.

*Finns

lol nice handle

It was reindeer milk. Always has been.

Blood doping wasn't on the banned list back then. He was in the "grey zone" but doing nothing officially wrong.

You all need to understand that Blood Doping was not illegal until after the 1984 Olympics when several U.S. Cyclists did it using other peoples blood. This caused the IAAF/IOC to make it illegal.

What I noticed most about the article was that Dave Anderson, the NY Times columnist, had a real style to his writing and he was not mealy-mouthed. Sorry to see that no longer evident in much sports writing.

He doubled in 5k and 10k in two straight Olympics. Rumors of blood doping were rampant. No definitive proof was ever offered. He was a clever fellow also (not sure if this is relevant).

I for one choose to appreciate and celebrate his achievements and greatness.