There are stories in major European publications that are not making it into the English language sites that provide Tour de France news. A good example of this is the article that appeared in Le Monde a few days ago about the Lance Armstrong Foundation’s efforts to raise funds at the Tour de France by selling LiveStrong yellow wristbands. Apparently, Nike is sending a small group of young people to the end of each stage to sell LiveStrong wrist bands for € 1.00 each.
(The Le Monde article is written in French. If you can’t read French, follow the suggestions I provide in Translating Tour de France News in Major Non-English Publications for help converting the text to English.)
This is the first exposure that many French cycling fans are getting to the Lance Armstrong Foundation and the LiveStrong Surivorship Program. The Le Monde reporter is apparently surprised that fans are buying LiveStrong yellow wristbands in such large numbers. One young person selling LiveStrong wristbands suggested that his group of 10 co-workers is selling 2,000 to 2,500 LiveStrong wristbands per day.
Amazingly, the article (“La fondation Armstrong collecte des fonds contre le cancer”) manages to connect the LiveStrong fund raising effort to allegations of doping against Lance Armstrong. The article says that the book L.A. Confidentiel contains a quote where Jean-Paul Le Bourgeois, head of cancerology services at l’hopital Mondor de Creteil, said that he he rides a bicycle himself and is astonished that anyone who recovered from metastatic cancer was able to win the Tour several times in a row.
An even more dismissive statement was made by Thierry Bouillet of the medical oncology and radiotherapy department at the l’hopital des Peupliers, in Paris. The translated text says:
The cancer specialist, who looked after high level sportsmen suffering from the same evil that the American, explained to have noted “impossibility of bringing back them to their level of performance former to their cancer” .
This is the best example I’ve found of the extreme political viewpoint present in the European media with respect to Lance Armstrong. You often hear people like Lance Armstrong and Phil Liggett refer to the innuendo expressed in many publications that Armstrong is guilty of doping on a massive scale. Even in articles that talk about the charitable work of Lance Armstrong and his friends, the allegation of doping is made.
As Americans and pro cycling fans, we need to see these allegations for what they are: fundimentally unfair.
Update: If you are looking for places to buy a Livestrong Yellow Wristband after the Tour de France, please consult these Operation Gadget articles:
- Readers Successfully Buying 10-Packs of LiveStrong Yellow Wristbands Directly from the Lance Armstrong Foundation
- Where to Buy a LiveStrong Yellow Wristband
- Suggestions for Finding a LiveStrong Yellow Wristband Outside the United States
If you are looking for information about how to buy Pink Breast Cancer Research Wristbands, please consult this Operation Gadget article: