Le Tour du Lance

[Nev]

Lance Armstrong wins 7th consecutive Tour de France.

http://si.cnn.com/2005/more/specials/to ... index.html

Damn straight. I hear the man works harder than God. Didn't know Sheryl Crow was his girlfriend - I always rather liked her, too.

[SineSwiper]

The French are soooo pissed!

[Kupek]

Not really.

[SineSwiper]

Yeah, that's why they gave him two piss tests before he went, right?

(And no, that wasn't supposed to be a pun.)

[Nev]

No, I really think they are, Kup. Some other coverage (not CNN) that I was reading said that one of the things he said, aside from the more P.C.-"Viva le tour!", was something to effect about how he hoped the cynics could get over it (meaning, his victory).

I read part of an article in Men's Journal (not to be confused with Men's Health, which last time I read it was complete garbage) about how there are a bunch of French people who have been accusing him of doping, even to the point of starting rumors that he faked his own testicular cancer to hide doping with chemotherapy.

[Tortolia]

From what I've heard, for the most part the French like Lance. He's a gracious competitor, he's brought a lot of positive attention to the sport, and he likes their country a lot (witness his endorsement of Paris for the 2012 Olympics).

The constant accusations of doping strike me as a bit of jealousy, but it's not the entire French community claiming he's a doper, and there's nothing to pin on him.

That's the way it goes.

[SineSwiper]

[Tortolia]

Yes, that single picture is representative of France as a whole.

News flash: Sports fans? Yeah, they don't all like the same athlete or team. It's shocking, I know.

[SineSwiper]

Yeah, I know that, smartass. I thought I'd post the picture just for the hell of it.

[Kupek]

Funny, it looked like you were trying to use it to support your argument.

From everything I've read, Tort's description is dead-on.

[Nev]

The guys in the picture sure aren't doing anything to dispel stereotypes about arrogant/rude Frenchmen.

Still, since I'd like people overseas to not automatically think "warmongering, ignorant American" when they meet me, it goes almost without saying that I need to extend them the same courtesy; i.e., not judging an entire culture by the attitude of a few shallowly-thinking individuals. Kup/Tort's point is one to keep in mind.