Post by bellehu112 on Dec 5, 2012 6:38:57 GMT -5
A reputation that Livestrong
80 million. 80 million yellow wristbands. $80 million donated to help fight cancer. All to represent one person’s fight and his esteemed career. Lance Armstrong was admired by people all around the world for his determination, strength and dedication to the sport of cycling. Over the span of his career he raised over $470 million to help find a cure for the insidious disease he battled earlier in his life. Armstrong knows first hand the meaning of a fight, through his own struggle with cancer. Armstrong won seven Tour de France’s: an unthinkable feat due to the grueling course through the mountains of France, thus pronounced one of the best athletes in history. Through Armstrong’s successes he earned millions of dollars for himself and for his teammates. But this money came with a burden, they had to watch Lance Armstrong cheat in order to win, and lie, and deny it for years. However as time progressed, more and more people outside of his team became aware of his cheating, through the use performance enhancing dugs, but no one said anything. Money is a powerful object, it is something that everyone desires, and it ultimately the basis of our everyday life. The burning desire to earn money drove these people to lie about Armstrong’s drug use. Members within his team knew if they continued to lie, and fed into the consensus about his drug use, they would continue to earn more money for themselves. And those who were Armstrong’s competitors refused to go against the tyranny of consensus, because they knew if they revealed the truth about Armstrong, the money that the Livestrong Foundation donates to cancer would stop. With everyone conforming into the consensus, it only continues its cycle, feeding into the lies and cheating that Armstrong used to enhance his career.
For years, many people lied to the media and the cycling officials about Lance Armstrong’s scandal, only furthering the consensus. One of Armstrong’s competitors Tyler Hamilton, shares his experience with the sport of cycling. Tyler alleges that Armstrong tested positive for cortisone during the 1999 Tour de France, however Armstrong told Hamilton “it would be taken care of… obviously people governing the body of the sport knew about it, and they just okayed it.” Hamilton also highlights in 2001, when Armstrong tested positive for EPO, but Armstrong responded to Hamilton saying,” that calls to the right people would be made and this test would just disappear.” However, one day Tyler Hamilton’s career was destroyed. He tested positive and was no longer allowed to participate in the sport of cycling. Hamilton was infuriated with idea that Armstrong always got off the hook and decided to go against the tyranny of consensus. He was not afraid of losing money, and wanted to prove that Armstrong was guilty of doping. Ultimately, the iconic American hero was found guilty. He was then stripped of his right to participate in any more cycling events, Nike no longer supported him and he lost the respect of millions around the world. It only takes one person to refuse to the tyranny of consensus, and it can be completely flipped upside-down.
Word Count: 530
Work Cited:
www.cbc.ca/books/2012/11/the-lance-armstrong-doping-scandal-whats-next.html
www.cnn.com/2012/10/17/us/lance-armstrong-doping/index.html
www.livestrong.org
80 million. 80 million yellow wristbands. $80 million donated to help fight cancer. All to represent one person’s fight and his esteemed career. Lance Armstrong was admired by people all around the world for his determination, strength and dedication to the sport of cycling. Over the span of his career he raised over $470 million to help find a cure for the insidious disease he battled earlier in his life. Armstrong knows first hand the meaning of a fight, through his own struggle with cancer. Armstrong won seven Tour de France’s: an unthinkable feat due to the grueling course through the mountains of France, thus pronounced one of the best athletes in history. Through Armstrong’s successes he earned millions of dollars for himself and for his teammates. But this money came with a burden, they had to watch Lance Armstrong cheat in order to win, and lie, and deny it for years. However as time progressed, more and more people outside of his team became aware of his cheating, through the use performance enhancing dugs, but no one said anything. Money is a powerful object, it is something that everyone desires, and it ultimately the basis of our everyday life. The burning desire to earn money drove these people to lie about Armstrong’s drug use. Members within his team knew if they continued to lie, and fed into the consensus about his drug use, they would continue to earn more money for themselves. And those who were Armstrong’s competitors refused to go against the tyranny of consensus, because they knew if they revealed the truth about Armstrong, the money that the Livestrong Foundation donates to cancer would stop. With everyone conforming into the consensus, it only continues its cycle, feeding into the lies and cheating that Armstrong used to enhance his career.
For years, many people lied to the media and the cycling officials about Lance Armstrong’s scandal, only furthering the consensus. One of Armstrong’s competitors Tyler Hamilton, shares his experience with the sport of cycling. Tyler alleges that Armstrong tested positive for cortisone during the 1999 Tour de France, however Armstrong told Hamilton “it would be taken care of… obviously people governing the body of the sport knew about it, and they just okayed it.” Hamilton also highlights in 2001, when Armstrong tested positive for EPO, but Armstrong responded to Hamilton saying,” that calls to the right people would be made and this test would just disappear.” However, one day Tyler Hamilton’s career was destroyed. He tested positive and was no longer allowed to participate in the sport of cycling. Hamilton was infuriated with idea that Armstrong always got off the hook and decided to go against the tyranny of consensus. He was not afraid of losing money, and wanted to prove that Armstrong was guilty of doping. Ultimately, the iconic American hero was found guilty. He was then stripped of his right to participate in any more cycling events, Nike no longer supported him and he lost the respect of millions around the world. It only takes one person to refuse to the tyranny of consensus, and it can be completely flipped upside-down.
Word Count: 530
Work Cited:
www.cbc.ca/books/2012/11/the-lance-armstrong-doping-scandal-whats-next.html
www.cnn.com/2012/10/17/us/lance-armstrong-doping/index.html
www.livestrong.org