Poll Vault: Do you think any pro athletes are clean?
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Lance Armstrong's seven Tour de France titles are now tainted. Associated Press file photo
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Oakland Athletics starter Bartolo Colon was suspended for 50 games by Major League Baseball on Aug. 22 after testing positive for testosterone. Associated Press file photo
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About a month after winning the MVP award in this year's MLB All-Star game, San Francisco's Melky Cabrera was suspended for testosterone use. Associated Press file photo
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Former Cub Marlon Byrd, traded to Boston in April, was suspended in June for taking a banned substance. Associated Press file photo
My husband and I are big cycling fans, but Lance Armstrong was always a subject of disagreement in our house.
He thought Armstrong was clean. I didn't. In fact, in our wedding vows, I jokingly promised to give Neil a shoulder to cry on once Armstrong was found out.
That day has come. Now that the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency has released its documentation, we're in agreement that Armstrong was a cheat, a bully and a liar.
I'm never surprised when a pro athlete tests positive. The incentive to cheat is tremendous, the payoff too tempting. A few have been caught this year, like San Francisco Giants outfielder Melky Cabrera and Oakland A's pitcher Bartolo Colon, but I suspect a lot more are getting away with it. The chemists somehow manage to stay one or two steps ahead of the tests.
Is this just cynicism on my part? Do you think most athletes are clean, with a few bad apples giving the good guys a bad rap? Or do you think cheating is rampant in pro sports?
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