Everyone geeks about race suspension, race engines, race bikes, race tune, race everything, and then expect the racers to be stock? Cmon. Respect to RR cause he's still a phenomenal rider.
It seems impossible not to question Rude's 2015 and 2016 overall wins.
#tainted
He should be forever known in the history of enduro racing as been a drugs cheat. Doped up the eyeballs and when he got caught he weaselled his way out of it.
If I was one of his fellow pros I would be disgusted seeing him back.
Thanks to this thread, we are reminded that this story broke out November of last year.
Going back to racing less than a year after the ruling got public, in addition to the absence of a sincere mea culpa in his statement, is a very bad PR move. It only stokes the anger and hate of mtb fans even further.
I'm sure it will only get worse if he podiums or wins an EWS.
In my humble opinion, Richie should have skipped this season instead.
The story is only halfway through, as we don’t know if JG was the rider who gave him the bottle or if he took water from the same bottle. The results of either case are not posted on the AFLD site yet, so it will be interesting to see what comes through the mill in the coming days or weeks. I’m sure there will be pressure on JG to make a statement one way or another after this.
VitalMTB needs to get Richie to sit down for a Maury Povich style *lie detector test* where Spomer asks him a series of pertinent questions- and the polygraph technician then gives a Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down to each question ........that’s about the only way anyone would believe him
So the lifetime ban rule...that got scrapped pretty quick didn’t it.
Though it was part of the 2018 rules, Richie got caught in 2018, so there’s an argument that the rule book from the time should apply
So the lifetime ban rule...that got scrapped pretty quick didn’t it.
Though it was part of the 2018 rules, Richie got caught in 2018, so there’s...
So the lifetime ban rule...that got scrapped pretty quick didn’t it.
Though it was part of the 2018 rules, Richie got caught in 2018, so there’s an argument that the rule book from the time should apply
would be interesting to see what would have happen if the rider caught wasn't someone with a big name like RR or JG, i think the story would have been different
He should be forever known in the history of enduro racing as been a drugs cheat. Doped up the eyeballs and when he got caught he...
He should be forever known in the history of enduro racing as been a drugs cheat. Doped up the eyeballs and when he got caught he weaselled his way out of it.
If I was one of his fellow pros I would be disgusted seeing him back.
Weren’t the substances totally legal the previous year? Everyone in the field could have been taking it in 15 & 16 and wouldn’t matter. Likewise I bet there’s a lot of people taking what’s legal now but next year would be classed as a cheat.
He’s no Lance Armstrong and the stuff he was taking wouldn’t turn him into the Hulk. Yes it was on the banned list but I don’t think doping can be classed as black and white.
There were articles linked here demonstrating the effects of these substances on athletes. While not the full roadie pro drug ring with transfusions, EPO and god knows what, it is a performance enhancing substance. You don't take it if you don't want performance enhanced.
Interesting from the EWS 2018 rule book:
"With the interest of keeping enduro mountain biking clean and to avoid the spirit and reputation of enduro mountain bike racing from being brought into disrepute, any cyclist, regardless of cycling discipline, who has previously been found guilty by any court or regulatory body of any use of or involvement with banned, performance enhancing drugs will not be entitled to compete or take part in any Enduro World Series event."
However, the next paragraph has an option to appeal in exceptional circumstances and the EWS board can grant an exception. So there was an out from a total lifetime ban.
This language was changed in 2019 to not competing while serving a ban, for the duration of that ban, but still reserving the right to maintain a zero-tolerance approach to drug taking in the EWS. So much more relaxed language, but both versions it is the discretion of the EWS.
The other thing I'm reading in lots of Pinkbike comments defending his return, is the nature of the drugs, how they weren't previously banned. Okay, neither was EPO or steroids. And no, I'm not comparing Higenamine to EPO, but yes, WADA banned it in 2018 for a reason. It has a similar effect to Salbuterol, enhances breathing. It also has a ridiculously short half life in the body, 9 minutes, with 94% removed from the body in 1/2 an hour. That makes it a pretty good candidate for doping. So no, it doesn't have an EPO-level effect, but this is the sharp end of the stick, where every bit helps. And the fact that any was found in his system speaks more to just a casual sip from a competitor's water bottle based on the short half life.
The other thing about oxilofrine, which if you just google, has been at the center of quite a few big name doping catches in other sports, the comments are suggesting this is minor and not even banned out of competition. Yes, because like ephedrine, which has a similar effect, it only makes sense to dope with it during competition. So I don't get that argument.
Regardless of "other water bottle", or the minimal effects, that's all bullshit, it's on the WADA list for a reason. I have no sympathy, and agree, if this wasn't such a big name I think the outcome is different. It's unfortunate that this happened, and the number of comments on the pinkbike article show the effect this story is having on the EWS series.
So the lifetime ban rule...that got scrapped pretty quick didn’t it.
Though it was part of the 2018 rules, Richie got caught in 2018, so there’s...
So the lifetime ban rule...that got scrapped pretty quick didn’t it.
Though it was part of the 2018 rules, Richie got caught in 2018, so there’s an argument that the rule book from the time should apply
Well,
You can take Chris out of UCI, but apparently you can't take UCI out of Chris... which when you look at it from the right perspective shouldn't be that surprising.
I still vividly remember and interview with Rob Roskopp , when EWS was announced and he was part of the board, if I recall correctly, where he expressed how strict is EWS when it comes to doping and he quoted that particular rule. Well, he's no longer part of the EWS and the rule is neither :D
On a lighter note the post from sspomer was a masterpiece... maybe trying to distract from the thorny issue like all good media do in pursuit of that advertising money, maybe just rubbing it in or maybe doing it for the laugh
all I can do is guess. Regardless, it was a really good laugh when I saw it. Kudos SSpomer :D
A lot of you are worked up over some pretty minor stuff. This isn't some Lance type of situation, yet your emotions are comparable to that fiasco. Rude will continue to be at the top end of the results and this will prove not to be something that "taints" his past results. He's paid more than enough of a price professionally and mentally for a pretty minor mistake. Time to get over it and get back to seeing Rude smashing.
I would bet that most of us here would fail a WADA test just because of stuff found in most OTC medications... Factor in various supplements that are very loosely regulated and I'm surprised more people aren't getting popped....
A lot of you are worked up over some pretty minor stuff. This isn't some Lance type of situation, yet your emotions are comparable to that...
A lot of you are worked up over some pretty minor stuff. This isn't some Lance type of situation, yet your emotions are comparable to that fiasco. Rude will continue to be at the top end of the results and this will prove not to be something that "taints" his past results. He's paid more than enough of a price professionally and mentally for a pretty minor mistake. Time to get over it and get back to seeing Rude smashing.
The mental challenge in my opinion is still to come for both Jared and Richie. They will be faced with rather lukewarm welcome at best during some rounds.
Wonder how they will be treated by other competitors though. That will be quite telling.
A lot of you are worked up over some pretty minor stuff. This isn't some Lance type of situation, yet your emotions are comparable to that...
A lot of you are worked up over some pretty minor stuff. This isn't some Lance type of situation, yet your emotions are comparable to that fiasco. Rude will continue to be at the top end of the results and this will prove not to be something that "taints" his past results. He's paid more than enough of a price professionally and mentally for a pretty minor mistake. Time to get over it and get back to seeing Rude smashing.
If Rude isn't back at the top end of the results when he returns it will make his previous wins even more debated. I'd assume he'd be clean as a whistle now so if all of a sudden he can't break top 20 everyone would go crazy.
I'd prefer to give him the benefit of the doubt in this case. As much as I love a good witchhunt (I wish people were this bloodthirsty about corner-cutters and riders caught getting uplifts), if he did honestly accidentally ingest the stuff - well he's gone through enough punishment for sure.
I think it ironic that people are so concerned about this form of cheating, yet so happy with the relatively minor penalties given for other forms that actually make bigger differences.
A lot of you are worked up over some pretty minor stuff. This isn't some Lance type of situation, yet your emotions are comparable to that...
A lot of you are worked up over some pretty minor stuff. This isn't some Lance type of situation, yet your emotions are comparable to that fiasco. Rude will continue to be at the top end of the results and this will prove not to be something that "taints" his past results. He's paid more than enough of a price professionally and mentally for a pretty minor mistake. Time to get over it and get back to seeing Rude smashing.
If Rude isn't back at the top end of the results when he returns it will make his previous wins even more debated. I'd assume he'd...
If Rude isn't back at the top end of the results when he returns it will make his previous wins even more debated. I'd assume he'd be clean as a whistle now so if all of a sudden he can't break top 20 everyone would go crazy.
I'd prefer to give him the benefit of the doubt in this case. As much as I love a good witchhunt (I wish people were this bloodthirsty about corner-cutters and riders caught getting uplifts), if he did honestly accidentally ingest the stuff - well he's gone through enough punishment for sure.
I think it ironic that people are so concerned about this form of cheating, yet so happy with the relatively minor penalties given for other forms that actually make bigger differences.
i think that he is guilty and that he shouldn't race this soon, but even though i think that he is capable of wining clean on the right day, he will not because he has not raced in 8 months, the other guys are race ready and in the right mind set when he is not.
To add to that Maes is too strong at the moment, i think that only himself can stop his wining streak by crashing, and the rest of the riders like Florian Nicolai, Jesse Melamed, José Borges, Edd Masters, etc are to strong and race ready .
A lot of you are worked up over some pretty minor stuff. This isn't some Lance type of situation, yet your emotions are comparable to that...
A lot of you are worked up over some pretty minor stuff. This isn't some Lance type of situation, yet your emotions are comparable to that fiasco. Rude will continue to be at the top end of the results and this will prove not to be something that "taints" his past results. He's paid more than enough of a price professionally and mentally for a pretty minor mistake. Time to get over it and get back to seeing Rude smashing.
If Rude isn't back at the top end of the results when he returns it will make his previous wins even more debated. I'd assume he'd...
If Rude isn't back at the top end of the results when he returns it will make his previous wins even more debated. I'd assume he'd be clean as a whistle now so if all of a sudden he can't break top 20 everyone would go crazy.
I'd prefer to give him the benefit of the doubt in this case. As much as I love a good witchhunt (I wish people were this bloodthirsty about corner-cutters and riders caught getting uplifts), if he did honestly accidentally ingest the stuff - well he's gone through enough punishment for sure.
I think it ironic that people are so concerned about this form of cheating, yet so happy with the relatively minor penalties given for other forms that actually make bigger differences.
Publicise that stuff and there will be outrage as well.
i think that he is guilty and that he shouldn't race this soon, but even though i think that he is capable of wining clean on...
i think that he is guilty and that he shouldn't race this soon, but even though i think that he is capable of wining clean on the right day, he will not because he has not raced in 8 months, the other guys are race ready and in the right mind set when he is not.
To add to that Maes is too strong at the moment, i think that only himself can stop his wining streak by crashing, and the rest of the riders like Florian Nicolai, Jesse Melamed, José Borges, Edd Masters, etc are to strong and race ready .
Let's see how he's doing after 5 races. Several races in 2018 he wasn't even in the top 20, so I don't think him coming out and not winning his first race means he only won in the past because he was doping. He'll obviously need some time to get back on pace. Sam Hill is doing poorly this year, should we assume he only dominated the last season because he was doping and is now being safe because others got caught? No. People perform different year to year due to other factors than doping.
i think that he is guilty and that he shouldn't race this soon, but even though i think that he is capable of wining clean on...
i think that he is guilty and that he shouldn't race this soon, but even though i think that he is capable of wining clean on the right day, he will not because he has not raced in 8 months, the other guys are race ready and in the right mind set when he is not.
To add to that Maes is too strong at the moment, i think that only himself can stop his wining streak by crashing, and the rest of the riders like Florian Nicolai, Jesse Melamed, José Borges, Edd Masters, etc are to strong and race ready .
Let's see how he's doing after 5 races. Several races in 2018 he wasn't even in the top 20, so I don't think him coming out...
Let's see how he's doing after 5 races. Several races in 2018 he wasn't even in the top 20, so I don't think him coming out and not winning his first race means he only won in the past because he was doping. He'll obviously need some time to get back on pace. Sam Hill is doing poorly this year, should we assume he only dominated the last season because he was doping and is now being safe because others got caught? No. People perform different year to year due to other factors than doping.
i do think that before Red Bull he was with a lot more stuff, that overtake on Damien Otton (who was2 in that stage) that he passed like otton was stopped isn't normal, and it was the last season where he dominated.
we have seen more than one guy dominate, like Maes, but not that much of a margin
and Sam Hill was ill in the first 2 rounds, so if doing top 15 in all the races and sitting top 6 is doing poorly...
i think that he is guilty and that he shouldn't race this soon, but even though i think that he is capable of wining clean on...
i think that he is guilty and that he shouldn't race this soon, but even though i think that he is capable of wining clean on the right day, he will not because he has not raced in 8 months, the other guys are race ready and in the right mind set when he is not.
To add to that Maes is too strong at the moment, i think that only himself can stop his wining streak by crashing, and the rest of the riders like Florian Nicolai, Jesse Melamed, José Borges, Edd Masters, etc are to strong and race ready .
Let's see how he's doing after 5 races. Several races in 2018 he wasn't even in the top 20, so I don't think him coming out...
Let's see how he's doing after 5 races. Several races in 2018 he wasn't even in the top 20, so I don't think him coming out and not winning his first race means he only won in the past because he was doping. He'll obviously need some time to get back on pace. Sam Hill is doing poorly this year, should we assume he only dominated the last season because he was doping and is now being safe because others got caught? No. People perform different year to year due to other factors than doping.
i do think that before Red Bull he was with a lot more stuff, that overtake on Damien Otton (who was2 in that stage) that he...
i do think that before Red Bull he was with a lot more stuff, that overtake on Damien Otton (who was2 in that stage) that he passed like otton was stopped isn't normal, and it was the last season where he dominated.
we have seen more than one guy dominate, like Maes, but not that much of a margin
and Sam Hill was ill in the first 2 rounds, so if doing top 15 in all the races and sitting top 6 is doing poorly...
@tmano2 that's a pretty loaded and dangerous accusation to be throwing around about a professional athlete simply based on your feels and not one shred of factual evidence. There an interview with Jerome Clementz and a few others in VeloVert this past winter that posed the question of Richie passing Oton as you mentioned and not one racer thought it was a big deal... For one, no PED work that way. You don't get superhuman powers and at best it is small marginal gains. Even Jerome blew it off as Richie seeing his closest competitor in front of him and that giving hm some extra motivation to dig deep. Anyone with a top level race background will certainly agree to to or understand this.
As for the rest of the trash talk, accusations, and general level of misinformation being paraded around here and multiple other website please take your time and read this statement from Jared Graves that was written by him earlier today on another site in response to similar rumor being touted out there as fact.
Jared Graves "Ok,I'll try and clear a few things up, NO BS, just facts, hope it can help.
The supplemnet in question in this case is BPM labs "the one" which if you want to look it up. Now states Higenamine in the ingredients list, but in older versions, and in the tub in this case was listed as Nandina Domestica (fruit extract) and the oxilofrine component is still labelled as Synephrine HCL. Things get tricky when you type these ingredients into the WADA search and not a single result comes up, which tells you everything is OK. So we had to dive a bit deeper into finding out how these things got in our systems, and when we did, we found of that many ingredients have many different variations, and names, which is what has caught us out.
We also found out since learning the hard way, just how prevalent these ingredients are in off the shelf pre workout drinks, which is a bit scary when you first hand find out the consequences, and how unregulated products with these ingredients are. Even a teenager could walk in to a supplement store and buy this, no questions asked. I've also since learned that 1 in 5 off the shelf pre workout drinks (in Australia at least) have something banned in them.
Everything i've mentioned above had to be proven beyond doubt to the AFLD (french anti doping) theres no corruption, or loopholes, or lawyers spin put on it. Just facts and real consequences.
So i'll put my hand up all day long and say im guilty of negligence. MY mindset was that I'v never sought anything performance enhancing, and Ive never had an issues with the Dozens and Dozens of in and out of competition doping tests ive had, so all will be good. I git a bit too relaxed with the whole process, I never thought there was any chance I could ever be in this situation, yet here we are. A moment of Negligence yes, premeditated cheaters, hell NO!!!!
Maybe ask yourself, would you ever think you need to do extensive study and research, on every ingredient of every thing you ever put in your body?
Combine that with what I said above, and hopefully you get a clearer picture of how this very unfortunate situation has come to be.
Possibly the main reason i'm writing this is the amount of uneducated and downright false comments here. Some of you really should be a bit more careful with your wild assumptions and accusations. There are real people on the other side of this. Its obvious that many just want to be hateful and drag people down, and that's pretty sad. When road cycling and in Particular Lance Armstrongs name gets thrown in the ring, WOW, are you serious??? Consider the things iv'e mentioned, and maybe think again.
People all seem to think theres some kind of Magic pill out there, that will take them from weekend warrior to world class level podium guy. Nobody stops to think that maybe the 25+ hours a week spent training, in the gym, on the bike, not going out with your friends, 5am starts, the constant crahses, injuries and sacrifices, has a bit more to do with it. The work that goes in is simply incomprehendable to most, and it's what makes the difference. Everyone who trains and competes at that level understands that, Which I would say is the main reason no other pros have spoken up about this.
Mistakes were made, and we're both paying the biggest price for that. It's added more stress to my life, on an already extremely stressful time. So maybe take the time to consider both sides of the equation before spreading some uneducated hate, and misinformation."
... Hopefully that clears the air a bit and will help people be a bit more informed before they start pounding the keyboard and accusing various riders of being lifelong cheaters and what have you.
Some of these comments are absolutely egregious. You've got an Olympian and a world champion having to defend themselves against the reliably uninformed vocal minority on the internet. These guys are explaining the situation to the best of their abilities, in an honest and straightforward way.
#tainted
If I was one of his fellow pros I would be disgusted seeing him back.
Going back to racing less than a year after the ruling got public, in addition to the absence of a sincere mea culpa in his statement, is a very bad PR move. It only stokes the anger and hate of mtb fans even further.
I'm sure it will only get worse if he podiums or wins an EWS.
In my humble opinion, Richie should have skipped this season instead.
Though it was part of the 2018 rules, Richie got caught in 2018, so there’s an argument that the rule book from the time should apply
He’s no Lance Armstrong and the stuff he was taking wouldn’t turn him into the Hulk. Yes it was on the banned list but I don’t think doping can be classed as black and white.
"With the interest of keeping enduro mountain biking clean and to avoid the spirit and reputation of enduro mountain bike racing from being brought into disrepute, any cyclist, regardless of cycling discipline, who has previously been found guilty by any court or regulatory body of any use of or involvement with banned, performance enhancing drugs will not be entitled to compete or take part in any Enduro World Series event."
However, the next paragraph has an option to appeal in exceptional circumstances and the EWS board can grant an exception. So there was an out from a total lifetime ban.
This language was changed in 2019 to not competing while serving a ban, for the duration of that ban, but still reserving the right to maintain a zero-tolerance approach to drug taking in the EWS. So much more relaxed language, but both versions it is the discretion of the EWS.
The other thing I'm reading in lots of Pinkbike comments defending his return, is the nature of the drugs, how they weren't previously banned. Okay, neither was EPO or steroids. And no, I'm not comparing Higenamine to EPO, but yes, WADA banned it in 2018 for a reason. It has a similar effect to Salbuterol, enhances breathing. It also has a ridiculously short half life in the body, 9 minutes, with 94% removed from the body in 1/2 an hour. That makes it a pretty good candidate for doping. So no, it doesn't have an EPO-level effect, but this is the sharp end of the stick, where every bit helps. And the fact that any was found in his system speaks more to just a casual sip from a competitor's water bottle based on the short half life.
The other thing about oxilofrine, which if you just google, has been at the center of quite a few big name doping catches in other sports, the comments are suggesting this is minor and not even banned out of competition. Yes, because like ephedrine, which has a similar effect, it only makes sense to dope with it during competition. So I don't get that argument.
Regardless of "other water bottle", or the minimal effects, that's all bullshit, it's on the WADA list for a reason. I have no sympathy, and agree, if this wasn't such a big name I think the outcome is different. It's unfortunate that this happened, and the number of comments on the pinkbike article show the effect this story is having on the EWS series.
You can take Chris out of UCI, but apparently you can't take UCI out of Chris... which when you look at it from the right perspective shouldn't be that surprising.
I still vividly remember and interview with Rob Roskopp , when EWS was announced and he was part of the board, if I recall correctly, where he expressed how strict is EWS when it comes to doping and he quoted that particular rule. Well, he's no longer part of the EWS and the rule is neither :D
On a lighter note the post from sspomer was a masterpiece... maybe trying to distract from the thorny issue like all good media do in pursuit of that advertising money, maybe just rubbing it in or maybe doing it for the laugh
Wonder how they will be treated by other competitors though. That will be quite telling.
I'd prefer to give him the benefit of the doubt in this case. As much as I love a good witchhunt (I wish people were this bloodthirsty about corner-cutters and riders caught getting uplifts), if he did honestly accidentally ingest the stuff - well he's gone through enough punishment for sure.
I think it ironic that people are so concerned about this form of cheating, yet so happy with the relatively minor penalties given for other forms that actually make bigger differences.
To add to that Maes is too strong at the moment, i think that only himself can stop his wining streak by crashing, and the rest of the riders like Florian Nicolai, Jesse Melamed, José Borges, Edd Masters, etc are to strong and race ready .
we have seen more than one guy dominate, like Maes, but not that much of a margin
and Sam Hill was ill in the first 2 rounds, so if doing top 15 in all the races and sitting top 6 is doing poorly...
As for the rest of the trash talk, accusations, and general level of misinformation being paraded around here and multiple other website please take your time and read this statement from Jared Graves that was written by him earlier today on another site in response to similar rumor being touted out there as fact.
Jared Graves "Ok,I'll try and clear a few things up, NO BS, just facts, hope it can help.
The supplemnet in question in this case is BPM labs "the one" which if you want to look it up. Now states Higenamine in the ingredients list, but in older versions, and in the tub in this case was listed as Nandina Domestica (fruit extract) and the oxilofrine component is still labelled as Synephrine HCL. Things get tricky when you type these ingredients into the WADA search and not a single result comes up, which tells you everything is OK. So we had to dive a bit deeper into finding out how these things got in our systems, and when we did, we found of that many ingredients have many different variations, and names, which is what has caught us out.
We also found out since learning the hard way, just how prevalent these ingredients are in off the shelf pre workout drinks, which is a bit scary when you first hand find out the consequences, and how unregulated products with these ingredients are. Even a teenager could walk in to a supplement store and buy this, no questions asked. I've also since learned that 1 in 5 off the shelf pre workout drinks (in Australia at least) have something banned in them.
Everything i've mentioned above had to be proven beyond doubt to the AFLD (french anti doping) theres no corruption, or loopholes, or lawyers spin put on it. Just facts and real consequences.
So i'll put my hand up all day long and say im guilty of negligence. MY mindset was that I'v never sought anything performance enhancing, and Ive never had an issues with the Dozens and Dozens of in and out of competition doping tests ive had, so all will be good. I git a bit too relaxed with the whole process, I never thought there was any chance I could ever be in this situation, yet here we are. A moment of Negligence yes, premeditated cheaters, hell NO!!!!
Maybe ask yourself, would you ever think you need to do extensive study and research, on every ingredient of every thing you ever put in your body?
Combine that with what I said above, and hopefully you get a clearer picture of how this very unfortunate situation has come to be.
Possibly the main reason i'm writing this is the amount of uneducated and downright false comments here. Some of you really should be a bit more careful with your wild assumptions and accusations. There are real people on the other side of this. Its obvious that many just want to be hateful and drag people down, and that's pretty sad. When road cycling and in Particular Lance Armstrongs name gets thrown in the ring, WOW, are you serious??? Consider the things iv'e mentioned, and maybe think again.
People all seem to think theres some kind of Magic pill out there, that will take them from weekend warrior to world class level podium guy. Nobody stops to think that maybe the 25+ hours a week spent training, in the gym, on the bike, not going out with your friends, 5am starts, the constant crahses, injuries and sacrifices, has a bit more to do with it. The work that goes in is simply incomprehendable to most, and it's what makes the difference. Everyone who trains and competes at that level understands that, Which I would say is the main reason no other pros have spoken up about this.
Mistakes were made, and we're both paying the biggest price for that. It's added more stress to my life, on an already extremely stressful time. So maybe take the time to consider both sides of the equation before spreading some uneducated hate, and misinformation."
... Hopefully that clears the air a bit and will help people be a bit more informed before they start pounding the keyboard and accusing various riders of being lifelong cheaters and what have you.
Can't Ritchie and/or his attorney defend himself? Having an industry associated professional do so unsolicited on his behalf sounds, well, ridiculous.
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