On Lance Armstrong's fall from grace...

I like watching sports, and cycling is one of them, even though I'm not much of a rider.  There is something about competing in sports that feels almost refreshing; afterall, either you win it, or you don't.  Well, apparently, it isn't that clean cut, and it's much shadier than one would have imagined it.

Such is the rise and fall of Lance Armstrong, the Tour de France winner, multiple times over; the cancer survivor who beat back cancer and made such dramatic comeback to win more Tour de France titles; the philanthropist whose foundation and cancer awareness program of Livestrong has been such an inspiration of millions, all of which bring tremendous wealth to the guy whose commercial endorsements are envy of other aspiring cyclists and athletes.  He seems to have it all.

As we know now, all these were never meant to be.  No one doubts Armstrong's fierce determination to win.  As the USADA investigation has peeled off his façade, not only was his win-it-at-all-costs attitude unethical, but his systemic approach to coerce others on his team to get in on the game in his own dirty way is illegal and criminal as well.

For far too long, Armstrong shouts down skeptics and critics in their suspicion that he cheats, pointing out that he has been drug-tested numerous times over the years, and he's never caught red-handed, as evidence that he's not a cheat, and that those critics are  sore losers envious of his success.  He's been so successful in hiding this scheme, that his teammates and co-conspirators have been cowered into not speaking out.  The rightwingers, like those Wall Street Journal readers who posted in the forums in all Armstrong news, are particularly supportive of him, telling others to just give it a rest; that Armstrong deserves every bit of success he's worked for; that he did so much good to the society and to the sport that no lingering doubts on him was justified.

When his teammates have finally, one after another, decided to come out with the truth, Armstrong made his last ditch attempt to prevent the USADA report and evidence from coming out, by deciding to not fight the charges against him.  In the end, USADA releases its report and findings anyway, resulting in his undoing, finally and totally.

I'm sick to my stomach, reading the report on how Armstrong and his enablers coerce others to get dirty in order to stay on the team.  By making everyone around him to dope, he anticipates them to clam up since they are now part of dirty scheme, co-conspirators, and are forced to help cover up the deeds, lest they face the fierce consequences that have now fell him.

I'm glad too to hear that he's going to lose his most prized Tour de France titles that he won unfittingly over the years, and others (eg. Olympics) are going to follow suit soon.  I'm also glad to hear those like Nike are finally stopping their financial support and endorsement on this cheater.  It should leave no doubt to anyone who are still doping, or even contemplating doing so, that there are serious consequences in doping.

Time and again, I read those WSJ readers claiming that it's a waste of taxpayers' money, of USADA, in going after an "honored" athlete like Armstrong; I hope they find their rightful place under their bed, hide and ponder how idiotic they have been in supporting Armstrong, without any critical thinking.

Perhaps I'm naive, or maybe I don't want to seek the truth too deeply, but I know I'm not alone, when I watch sports competitions, that I somehow - wishfully perhaps - hope that the winner pervades because of their skills, sweats, talents, rather than due to unfair advantage like doping.  (This is one of the reasons why I like watching soccer since it's not just about strength and endurance, and you can't fake the skills and footwork and teamwork with dope.)  Afterall, everyone wants to believe in the fairy tale of Armstrong, having not only survived cancer, but making such strong comeback that he would go on to win more Tour de France titles.  This is despite the fact that, deep down, I know somehow that a large part of it could not have been true.  It would have been nice, to go back to a simpler time, when winning and losing are as clear cut as day and night, without an ounce of doubt.  Lance Armstrong utterly destroys that age of innocence.  For that, I would be glad to see him banished from all sports.  Good riddance.