Afternoon Baseball

ESPN.com - Wojnarowski

An excellent article from Adrian Wojnarowski on the new claims that Lance had EPO on him in 1999. He -- correctly -- boils it down to this: Lance Armstrong is either the most persecuted athlete ever or is one of the biggest frauds ever.

Lance always deserves credit for his triumphant return from cancer and an ancillary benefits that brought: increased screening, the yellow wristband thingy, Sheryl Crow not making music.
But let's get real, too: Lance, like any great athlete, is entirely ruthless. He's dropped trusted employees and confidantes at a moment's notice. He dropped his (much younger than Crow) wife after she stayed with him through years of cancer and a few Tours, having his children in the process. He clearly lives his life, or did, for the Tour, not really concentrating much on any of the other races, of which there are several other important ones.
Being ruthless is not the problem. We can't reconcile that the greatest, most competitive and dominant-over-their-peers athletes must be vicious -- right up to the line of cheating or violence (Michael Jordan comes to mind). But that line can be, for many, like dangling over the edge of a cliff while drunk. Drunk on winning.

Lance hasn't failed a test. And the French, or at least those accusing him, are equally vicious in their jealousy and hatred. But let's not call it a witchhunt until Lance is really vindicated.