Obviously, one of the biggest stories of the Summer of '06 was relative unknown American cyclist, Floyd Landis, winning the Tour De France, and his subsequent positive tests with regard to testosterone and epitestosterone ratios.
In the days after the test results were revealed, Landis produced a number of reasons why his testosterone levels could have been off. They included a condition whereby his body naturally produced higher levels of testosterone, thryoid medication, a conspiracy against him, cortisone shots and my personal favorite, drinking a lot of whiskey.
Today though, it appears that Landis may have a reasonable argument against the lab and their results. The French newspaper, Le Monde, has reported that "the French anti-doping lab that tested American cyclist Floyd Landis' urine samples made an 'administrative error' when reporting its findings on his backup 'B' sample". Apparently, someone confused sample 994,474(originally thought to be Landis') with 995,474(the real Landis sample). So basically the French lab tested the wrong sample, and pinned the results on Landis. Of course the lab is stating that "the error, of an administrative nature, does not mean the positive B sample was not that of the American". But right now it looks like there are enough legitimate questions and concerns surrounding the lab's testing procedures to cast doubt on the supposed positive tests.
I can only imagine how much whiskey Landis will drink should the positive results prove to be false. Someone might want to put Lynchburg, TN on notice.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Floyd Landis, Victim of "Administrative Error"?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
The administrative error was a simple typo and has absolutely no bearing on Landis' innocence or guilt. Landis's defense have admitted as much (the B sample was his and everyone agrees the sample that tested positive was his).
This whole typo story is complete red herring to confuse the real issue. SO, I am sure the Landis defense team can thank you for such sloppy logic.
Not even Landis is arguing the the sample number typo is evidence that the sample tested wasn't his. But, you know, other than that you're dead-on with this analysis.
More interesting is the IHT story today about some other discrepencies, provided by "the hacker"
See trust but verify for details.
This will be linked into the roundup soon.
TBV
In reference to the Landis defense team, and the mislabeling of the B sample here's what has been reported, "But it(the mislabeled B sample) is being used today by his lawyers ... to contest his positive doping results."
From Sports Illustrated, "Landis' attorney, Howard Jacobs, has already alleged that the French lab made repeated errors in its analyses, including mismatched sample code numbers."
Sounds like that does relate to this post about the B sample being mislabeled. Please try again after you have made yourself aware of all the facts and logic surrounding this case.
Post a Comment