Rasmussen just been chucked off le tour

natureboy but there's no evidence to suggest that rasmussen has been doping during the tour - I mean, he's been passing the tests, right? so unless the effects are longer term than I thought then he had been winning under his own steam.

you know, the whole thing would be a lot better if we just knew they were all doping - at least then a win would still be a win. It's the thought that some of them are cheating and others not that's most corrosive. I only just got round to watching Monday's stage, which I would have really enjoyed having developed a soft spot for Vino after his troubles last week, but now it seems, well not quite hollow, but a bit sad and futile. I didn't know what to think while he was giving his interview at the end - was he clean that day? or was he just being a hypocrite talking about how he miraculously felt better?

Vino was lying. He had doped, that's why he was feeling better.

Same as Virenque lied for 2 years when he said that he wasn't doping after the Festina affair. Everyone else on his team admitted they doped, the soigneur said the whole team was doped, the manager said they were all doped, but Virenque insisted he wasn't doped. And then finally broke down in court and confessed. This after he published a book called 'Ma Verite' (My Truth), in which he said he hadn't doped.

Rasmussen lied and said he was in Mexico, when he was really in Italy. Why did he do this? To avoid the out of competition testing that would have probably showed him positive for EPO.

The reason that it's not cool to dope is that the products kill.