Basso quotes Armstrong in post drug use stupor...

ROME (AFP) — Disgraced former Tour of Italy champion Ivan Basso claimed Thursday that his two-year doping suspension was the best thing to happen to him.

Basso was tipped to win the 2006 Tour de France, shortly after cruising to victory in the Tour of Italy, but he was caught up in the infamous Operation Puerto scandal and barred from taking part.

He later admitted to having contacted the tainted laboratory involved in the affair with the view to blood-doping, a move that earned him a two-year ban from the sport.

He has spent his time working for various charities.

"I feel like a better man, to paraphrase (Lance) Armstrong, the ban was the best thing that could have happened to me," said Basso in an interview on Affaritaliani.it.

"It gave me time to reflect, it's turned my life around and now I'm ready to come back."

Despite enjoying this time off, he has continued to train and he is eager to come back and fulfil one of his dreams, winning the Tour de France.

"That's my dream but I don't want to think too far ahead," he added. "I prefer to take small steps, like holding out a hand to a child."

 

He's not eligable to race the tour until 2009 is he?

 

When is his banned completed?


It will be interesting to see if Basso can return at the top level : his pedalling at the 2005 Giro looked effortless (we now know why).
I've got a couple of the mountain stages tapped - the ones after he had the stomach trouble and lost 42 mins.
His pedalling was sublime.

 

October 08 his ban completes.... and yes he's a bloody good rider...... reminds me of Hampsten in pedalling style......(not drug pedalling)

 

It ends in October of 2008.

Basso will never compete to win Tour again. He wont' be able to get on a top level team until 2011, at which time he will be too old to go for the win. Even then it's doubtful the ASO will allow him to ride.

 

Rumour confermed - Cipo will ride for Ball…Basso may too ..Ball want him

http://www.tuttobiciweb.it/home.htm

 

Thanks fellas :

 

Sounds almost like he wishes he'd had some of those life changing, metastasising oncogenes that transformed his hero and mentor. A simple drugs ban really doesn't quite do it in the life-turn-round stakes.

 

Who cares what he says, about anything. He's a proven liar. He hid behind his lies behind his mother's death from cancer. Fark him. He might be a great pedaller (whilst on PEDs) but his words mean nothing.

 

"He has spent his time working for various charities"

- yeah but he worked for some charities.... that alone is enough for atonement for lying on your mothers grave.......... I mean no one I know has ever done anything for charity.... he truly is a very very noble man…… not since Lance Armstrong shagged his own mother has there been such a noble act of remorse…

 

I really have a strong dislike for the man (I can tell you do too WBT). Think my dislike stems from the fact that my father died from cancer shortly before Basso's mother did. If I learnt nothing at all from that experience I still wouldn't have the gall to lie and swear upon my father's grave. Also, less importantly, I went to Italy the year Basso stole, sorry, won the Giro, and feel like his alien antics cheated me out of watching a decent race. Yes, they all dope but his cheating bordered on outright arrogance.

 

Can I just mention that I'm not all that fond of him either. Farking cnut if you ask me.

 

You & me both my friend..... I followed Basso for a long time and enjoyed watching him improve year on year. Like you I went to Italy for the Giro in 2006 and saw Basso smash the field...... I have also lost a parent to cancer and its a very personal thing.... you don't lie about it and you certainly don't use it as a smoke screen or a shield from doping...... its just plain sick…… Basso is scum..... and to think even after all that he was happy to sign for Disco, sign a NIKE contract and keep the bullshit up....... its funny how these guys have an epiphany only when they get busted...

....I watched Overcoming again a couple of weeks back.... is so funny now watching it after knowing that all of them were injecting blood into their systems... even Riis is in on he act in the movie..... and our good friend JJ taking Paris-Nice...... and fark me Bobby Jullich is such a girl......

 

...and one more thing. He stole the careers from so many clean riders and didn't give a shit about them...... they shouldn't accept him back or at least make him wear a special jersey which denotes a drug user out of suspension.... this way we can see the black sheep in the peleton... cock-smoker if you ask me.... and Ivan you're reading this..... "fark off !"

 

I'd only like to see him ride again in order that I could go stand at the roadside and shout abuse. And comparing himself to Armstrong?! Is he making the comparison that they are both lying cheats or that they have both overcome some great trial - ie comparing cancer to being a found-out cheat?

 

Let's start an anti-Basso club. What's the opposite of tifosi? We could be his anti-tifosi.

 

The antipasto.

 

That just for starters - get it?

 

Fantastic. Public shaming and humiliation might work much better than a suspension- which is essentially a private punishment and is generally soon forgotten. It might bring some bad short term publicity if some ex-doper won a big race wearing the jersey but ye gods, can the PR be any worse than it is now. Longer term, it might really inhibit the desire to cheat and have a really positive effect.
Smart idea, which obviously means that the wretched UCI would never consider it.

 

VeloNews confirms this: http://velonews.com/race/int/articles/13926.0.html