The Shrine

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.

The French are soooo pissed!

Not really.

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

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

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.