Vino at the Vuelta, From Flickhr user The Wolf
Alexandre Vinokourov’s return to the Pro Cycling Peloton has been met with much derision from the start. Vino was a much loved rider in the early part of the decade for his “attack at any moment” style of riding. He displayed grit and toughness that made many fans across the globe.
Then in 2007 Vino posted an outrageous performance in the Tour de France to comeback and win two stages back-to-back. For Vino fans this was a highlight moment that was only deflated days later when doping tests revealed a homologous blood transfusions. Vino went away from Pro Cycling immediately and vowed to clear his name, a vow that rang much like OJ Simpson trying to find the “real killers”. Vino provided no excuse and no defense to his dope test and seemed to all to be guilty as charged. This would be the end of the story for most riders except for Vino who decided to re-establish his place on the team he helped form from the ashes of Liberty Seguros a few years earlier.
Vino was determined to comeback and start pretty much where he left off. For die-hard fans of cycling this is a tough turn of events. The cyclist who seemed to bombastically make a mockery of doping at the Tour is deciding to comeback without a public apology or even an attempt at a defense. Compare to other high profile cyclist who were busted or highly conspicuous such as Basso, Landis and Ullrich.
Ivan Basso’s milquetoast defense of “I never actually doped” and his cooperation with the law helped to redeem him to most fans. His comeback has shown he does not have the same level of form as before. Could this be due to his two years off or the fact that he is not doping? The last year away from top results helped make amends to his fans so if Basso were to win, there would not be the same level of animosity as we see with Vino.
Floyd Landis put a very aggressive defense and could have almost won, short of a 2/3 decision. Floyd eventually came back, but was limited to the US Domestic peloton where he did not get many results with OUCH!. Landis just barely latched onto the Bahati team after a switch to Rock Racing fell through. He put in his time, but is not back to the same form he possessed when winning the Tour in 2006. This could be a result of Landis not having the opportunity to race in Europe. No Pro-Tour squad will want to get near Landis since they could risk a spot in the Tour. The ASO has been burned by Landis and they do not seem eager to include him in the future.
The Landis situation makes Vino’s comeback more rage inducing. Landis can’t get a ride or be seen next to the color yellow short of the ASO get upset. Meanwhile we will have to endure the prospect of Vino and Contador riding down the Champs Elysee together.
Jan Ullrich retired from the sport in 2006 and continues to be hounded by doping allegations. He put his time into the sport and quit when the allegations became too much. He did not attempt to comeback with the same form to prove anything to anyone.
Now we have the case of Vino who seems to be back to his usual form with no explanations or excuses. How can a fan or former racer explain Vino’s resumption of form after two years off?
Jonathan Vaughters could not explain this when asked by Phil Liggett.
Phil Liggett: “so, Jonathan, how is it these guys can come back from suspension and still ride so well?” JV: “Ummmmm…. Uhhhh….”
So what do we do now? Vino did serve his time of two years off and owes nobody any excuses. His home country still sees him as a hero, so the Astana conglomerate funding the team is happy. So I guess we should get used to seeing Vino on the podium while we cringe.