THE PLANK JULY 14, 2009
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David Roth has written an article for TNR about Lance Armstrong's strange ties to Kazakhstan:
As inspiring as it is to see 37-year-old Lance Armstrong un-retired, healthy, and near the front of the pack at this year's Tour de France, it's hard not to be distracted by what he's wearing. In place of the relatively wholesome U.S. Postal Service and Discovery Channel jerseys he wore during his previous wins, Armstrong is currently racing in the blue-and-yellow of the Astana Cycling Team. Which means that one of America's last golden boys is a walking (or riding) advertisement for the Kazakh government.
Click here to read the whole article.
Update: Check out Zengerle's 2003 Diarist on Lance.
11 comments
I posted this there, too, but the non-open threads are more fun.
Lance Armstrong is one of the greatest cyclists ever. Totally uncontroversial statement. However, he is also a starfucking, glory-addicted nosebleed. Why doesn't anyone ever mention how his wife stuck with him through testicular-cancer and then was dropped when fame brought Cheryl Crow to the door? And the Olsen-twin borking? He just seems like the annoying guy who would yell at you for not working out enough, or for smoking. I'm glad we're finally figuring out that he is also a traitor and supports a cruel police state.
OK, that might have been over the top, but the dude is still a prick
- boneill
July 14, 2009 at 4:37pm
Lance, you need to do some pro bono work for Freedom House.
- liberal reformer
July 14, 2009 at 4:41pm
boneill,
Quit smoking already.
- dylanposer
July 14, 2009 at 5:01pm
Maybe he just likes Borat!
- WoodyBombay
July 14, 2009 at 5:05pm
Dylan, I would, if I could only have some kind of constant reminder around my wrist...
- boneill
July 14, 2009 at 5:17pm
Oh, give Armstrong a break... as a noted public intellectual recently observed: "Kazakhstan is more civilised now. Women can now travel on inside of bus, and homosexuals no longer have to wear blue hat."
- thetraytiger
July 14, 2009 at 5:20pm
Dude rides a bike for a living. Get a real job, you damn hippie!
- ratnerstar
July 14, 2009 at 5:24pm
Before I went to Austin this year, I planned on renting a bike so I could do my own tour of Travis County. Interestingly, upon researching bike shops, the local recommendation was in fact not Mellow Johnny's, but a well-known shop on the other side of the Colorado River. I thought this strange, becuase I figured Lance's shop would be a point of hometown pride for Austinites. Not so.
- dylanposer
July 14, 2009 at 5:39pm
Actually, Armstrong is just expressing solidarity for his brother, Bruno.
If you know what I mean.
And if you don't, tough.
gw
- iambiguous
July 14, 2009 at 6:24pm
You know, re: boneill's comment, it's generally time to get suspicious the moment a big-time athlete un-retires. Brett Favre may not be hooked up with repressive totalitarian dictatorships, but don't you think he would if that were necessary to get back into the NFL?
- cspencef
July 14, 2009 at 7:17pm
Good point, spence. However, you must be aware that the NFL itself is a "repressive totalitarian dictatorship." Thus, El Favre is already hooked up.
- cvillekid
July 15, 2009 at 7:43am