So people who use testosterone don’t use it “just once.” The gel and the patch can deliver test constantly via the skin. So clear your mind of the image of body builders injecting testosterone.
For cyclists in general, they could be using synthetic testosterone, or could be engaged in a regimen designed to raise their natural testosterone levels well above normal, and despite this keep their test/epitest ratio at or slightly below 4:1. By keeping their ratio at this level they wouldn’t raise any red flags, and as a result wouldn’t have their urine tested for synthetic testosterone. Only if their ratio was above 4:1 would the testers look for synthetic test.
And if a rider is using LH, he could claim that he is not taking testosterone and also wouldn’t have traces of synthetic testosterone in his system, since LH stimulates the body’s natural test production.
This explains how Landis could have avoided detection throughout the Tour’s drug tests prior to his Stage 17 win; his ratio was in line and didn’t raise any red flags. Don’t forget, a person’s ratio could be in line if they were using synthetic testosterone. This is why keeping the ratio at 4:1 is key. Who knows what the testers would find if all urine - regardless of the ratio - was submitted to testing for synthetic testosterone.
You must keep in mind that athletes who dope don’t just dope by using one item, and they don’t always just take a substance on the morning of a competition that will have a direct result on them for that day. Doping is a very sensitive and sophisticated endeavor that has to be constantly monitored, and in the case of circulating levels of hormones, an athlete's levels can fluctuate wildly during the doping regimen and especially in response to competition. This is why the Balco system required that their athletes submit to an almost constant routine of blood, urine and fecal tests. The Balco plan was to so closely monitor their athletes that they could avoid testing positive under any circumstances.
In the Landis case, don’t forget that in Stage 16 he finished about eight and a half minutes off of the pace. Landis was the leader of the Tour at this late stage of the race, and he was considered to be in command. Looking back, Landis’ awful showing in Stage 16 should have been as much of a red flag as was his remarkable performance in Stage 17.
Landis’ crash in Stage 16 could have been caused by a minor mistake in whatever regimen that he was following. Did he forget to apply his testosterone gel or did his patch fall off before the day’s dosage of test was delivered? Or was someone on Landis’ team monitoring his ratio throughout the tour, and did this monitoring indicate that Floyd’s ratio was in danger of getting out of line, necessitating that he forego his daily doses sometime around Stage 16?
Article comments
1 - lori
I wonder if it hurts to take the patch of the 'nads. Or maybe cyclist's balls are so numb by the time their done for the day that they don't even notice.
2 - Matthew T. Sussman
Does WADA test for tinfoil?
3 - Mike
According to Landis' comments on TV - he said his testosterone level tested NORMAL while his epitestosterone tested LOW. He DIDN'T have a RAISED testosterone level, just his RATIO of T/E was high. The LOW result on the epitestosterone CAUSED the ratio to be out of range - NOT that he took additional testosterone!!
I wish the media would get this FACT straight and stop saying Landis TOOK testosterone..... it is not a correct statement!
4 - Jerome Lacoste
- Why aren't athletes tested all over the year ?
- Why aren't all samples tested for syntehtic ? Just because of costs ? If more tests were done, cost would go down, right ?
- Why aren't all samples kept for future tests (let's say 2-3 years, when the testing technology catches up with the cheating one) ?
- Why aren't managers/directors never affected by these failed tests ?
I often doubt that everything is really put in place to detect the cheaters.
5 - Pierre-Selim Huard
Jerome I think that some samples are kept for the futur and that's how Lance Amstrong got tested positive. But I'm not sure this results can be used against him.
6 - sal m
guys i think that certain loopholes,like the ones jerome has pointed out, exist simply because the authorites are willing to tolerate a certain amount of doping.
everyone bandies about the 4:1 ratio issue without really thinking about the reality that it represents. a 4:1 - hell even a 3:1 - ratio happens because of disease or doping. a person's test levels are steady and can be charted over a period of time, so any normal spikes can be accounted for.
a 4:1 ratio is due to manipulation.
7 - RJ Elliott
Drew Sharp weighs in...
8 - sal m
the espn reporter who broke the bomar story said that bomar didn't tell the program what he was doing, and that the kid would go to the dealership before practice, check in and go to practice, then go back and check out.
these kids have to fill out paperwork that goes through the school's compliance director for approval. so the school will definitely have some cover, whether or not it's enough to avoid sanctions we'll see...
for what it's worth, this isn't as bad as the bush and leinhart issues, or the jarrett issue.
9 - PatsFAn
Your argument works, except for one very vital mistake: Floyd's T wasn't high; his E was exceptionally low, skewing the ratio. He says it on his own Web site, as do a few other URLs which actually have the information *correct*.
10 - sal m
that's what he says, however, his test was 11 times higher than normal and he had synthetic test in his system as well.
landis' site - where he stopped people from leaving comments - is hardly a source for accurate information, as his defense is laughably pathetic.
11 - Justin
godd!!! Floyd is innocent ppls