Lance Armstrong Concedes Fight Against Doping Accusations - Will Be Stripped of Seven Tour de France Titles

Yesterday, Lance Armstrong announced that he will no longer be contesting the latest doping allegations levied against him by the United States Anti-Doping Agency, which claimed that he doped and was one of the ringleaders of systematic doping on his Tour-winning teams. According to the World Anti-Doping Code, this decision means he will be stripped of his seven Tour titles, the bronze medal he won at the 2000 Olympics and all other titles, awards and money he won from August 1998 forward.

(Photo courtesy of Christophe Ena, Associated Press)

In his official statement, Armstrong  continued to deny ever doping, calling the antidoping agency’s case against him “an unconstitutional witch hunt” and saying the process it followed to deal with his matter was “one-sided and unfair.” He drew attention to the 200+ negative results he has passed over the last decade.

“There comes a point in every man’s life when he has to say, ‘Enough is enough,’ ” Armstrong said in a statement. “For me, that time is now.” 

Armstrong, who turns 41 next month, said he would not contest the charges because it had taken too much of a toll on his family and his work for his cancer foundation, saying he was “finished with this nonsense.” This is certainly an expensive decision in many ways...just paying back the winnings owed could cost in excess of $7 million. But he remains focused on his causes and "being the fittest 40+ year old on the planet".

Other coverage:

NPR - When a Hero Lets You Down
NPR - Lance Armstrong's Seven Tour Titles Are Effectively Gone
WSJ - Officials Pursued Armstrong For Years

The Beauty of the Irrational (Video of Ryan Sandes)

The Beauty of the Irrational from The African Attachment on Vimeo.

A gorgeous video of South African runner Ryan Sandes succeeding at a new speed record on the 84km Fish River Canyon trail (6 hr 57 min!). The HD is amazing, so be sure to blow up the screen size.

Irrational, indeed. And beautiful!

(Salomon teammates Mireia Miro, Emilie Forsberg, and Kasie Enman sweep the podium; photo courtesy of iRunFar)

Salomon (Sande's sponsor) had quite a weekend at the Pikes Peak Marathon too, with Kilian Jornet taking the win and Emelie Forsberg, Kasie Enman, and Mireia Miro sweeping the Women's podium. Salomon racer Thomas Lorblanchet also picked up a win at the Leadville 100. iRunFar has interviews with Kilian, Thomas, and more.

The Challenge of Beach Running (NY Times)

Another great article in the NY Times health blog, this one about beach running. It turns out running on the beach takes 1.6 more energy, and works your calves. A good supplement for speed work, perhaps.

Read the full article here.

R.I.P. - Ultrarunner/Fastpacker Michael Popov (1978-2012)

It is with a heavy heart I have to pass on the news that local ultrarunner/fastpacker Michael Popov died Tuesday. He was 34 years old.

(Michael Popov during his 2009 JMT Trail traverse; more photos available here, photos courtesy of Ben Jones)

[Contents deleted by request of family]

[Update - The San Francisco Chronicle posted this article with more details, Great Risks Can Accompany Great Feats, at 8:42pm on Sunday, Aug 12th] 

[Update - This article by Outside Magazine was posted on Wed, Aug 15th, and shares a few more details about the situation]

Mo Farah Wins Gold in 2012 Olympic 10,000 Meters, Rupp Gets Silver

Britian's Mo Farah took the lead at the bell lap and took it all the way to gold, to the screaming delight of a packed stadium. His training partner, USA's Galen Rupp, took silver with a mean kick in the last 200 meters to get the last few places. Amazing!

Olympic Track & Field Middle/Long Distance Starts Friday, Aug 3rd

The super-stacked world class field is ready to roll this Friday! Here's the schedule, and you can also use this nifty online schedule:

Note: All times are listed are local London time. Subtract 5 hours for EST and 8 hours for PST. 

Friday, August 3

1:00 PM — Men’s 3,000m Steeplechase, First Round
8:05 PM — Men’s 1,500m, First Round
9:25 PM — Women’s 10,000m, Final

Saturday, August 4

11:35 AM — Women’s 3,000m Steeplechase, First Round
5:00 PM — Men’s 20K Race Walk, Final
9:15 PM — Men’s 10,000m, Final

Sunday, August 5

11:00 AM — Women’s Marathon, Final
8:15 AM — Men’s 1,500m, Semifinal
9:25 AM — Men’s 3,000m Steeplechase, Final

Monday, August 6

10:50 AM — Men’s 800m, First Round
11:45 AM — Women’s 1,500m, First Round
9:05 PM — Women’s 3,000m Steeplechase, Final

Tuesday, August 7

10:55 AM — Women’s 5,000m, First Round
7:55 PM — Men’s 800m, Semifinal
9:15 PM — Men’s 1,500m, Final

Wednesday, August 8

10:45 AM — Men’s 5,000m, First Round
11:35 AM — Women’s 800m, First Round
7:45 PM — Women’s 1,500m, Semifinal

Thursday, August 9

7:30 PM — Women’s 800m, Semifinal
8:00 PM — Men’s 800m, Final

Friday, August 10

8:05 PM — Women’s 5,000m, FInal
8:55 PM — Women’s 1,500m, Final

Saturday, August 11

9:00 AM — Men’s 50K Race Walk, Final
5:00 PM — Women’s 20K Race Walk, Final
7:30 PM — Men’s 5,000m, Final
8:00 PM — Women’s 800m, Final

Sunday, August 12

11:00 AM — Men’s Marathon, Final