Written by : Myles McCorry
www.BIKEPURE.org
To meet a cycling legend is a memorable day for any biker. To meet the rider who turned victor in the most amazing dogfight with Laurent Fignon in the 1989 Tour de France is a great day. Lemond is a hero. Who could forget his bullish attacking riding style throughout the 1980s and early 90’s. On Saturday morning in Limerick, Ireland, a one hundred or so select group of cyclists lined up for their photo to be taken alongside the former world champion prior to the start of the Get Back Challenge Charity event.
It’s the second year Lemond and his family have assisted this worthwhile charity which dedicates it’s efforts to helping young children from socially disadvantaged backgrounds through a network of hospices.
Greg was getting set to take part in the Charity event, yet he and his wife Kathy had time to chat about the Bike Pure campaign and lend their valued support to our efforts in trying to bring about a better future for cyclesport.
After winning the Tour de France in 1989 and 1990, Greg entered the 1991 Tour in the best form of his life. Tests on Greg illustrated this was to be another victorious year. It was not to be. In the best shape of his life, all that he could muster was 7th. Riders that he could previously ride off his wheel were leaving him for dead. This was a tragic and common experience for many clean riders as they entered an era of EPO abuse. An era where champions were defeated and doctors were the most valued members of any team.
Doping has cast a heavy shadow over our sport for over 50 years. Generations have been affected. Lemond, like us, wants to protect the next generation to prevent the plague continuing. He is outspoken and this coupled with Lance Armstrong’s fued with him, have turned a few off him. But I witnessed a man with a genuine, honest love for the sport. A biker who knows what is (and has been) going on in the inner circle of the sport, Lemond has proposed functional methods to clamp down on some of the cheats destroying cycling, yet he seems frustrated with the lack of openness and willingness to listen from those who make the critical decisions. His legitimate proposal for Vo2max testing have been supported by some of the UCI¹s own doctors as a more efficient method to flush out the dopers but are, as yet, unimplemented. Greg has long voiced the opinion that it is the system, not the tempted riders that needs restructuring, thus removing the infrastructure that allows riders to obtain and utilize performance enhancing drugs.
Regardless of your personal view on the man, he is a legend, his palmers and the memories he gives to a generation are sensational and he is working to protect the sport for the future. Keep it up.
