Lance to buy ASO??
by Bruce Suomi on Sep 19, 2008 5:09 PM EDT
53 comments
LANCE ARMSTRONG says the reason for his return to road cycling is to engage in a global war against cancer. He also says more details of his battle plans will be revealed on Wednesday, when he holds a press conference in New York while attending the Clinton Global Initiative.
Rumours are circulating that behind Armstrong's decision, which will allow him to race in next year's Tour de France, is an audacious plan that will change the face of cycling.
It may not be unveiled next week, but the word is that Armstrong is involved in a possible buyout of Tour organisers Amaury Sport Organisation from its parent company the Amaury Group.
Furthermore, Armstrong may saddle up in the deal with Hein Verbruggen - the former president and now vice-president of cycling's world body, the Union Cycliste Internationale. Some say it may be an Armstrong-UCI deal.
continue here:
Hmmmm..........
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sources?
I see no sources in that article. There’s nothing in the European press anywhere either.
Looks like idle speculation to me. Someone is bored.
by gavia on Sep 19, 2008 5:20 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
hey, don't
shoot the messenger…
I have no sources, just posted this since it’s , well, pretty big if it turns out to be true.
The rumours of Clerc and Prudhomme getting a new “job” have been around for a while, this just adds more gas on the flames/fire.
by Bruce Suomi on Sep 19, 2008 6:56 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
not directed at you, promise :-)
very weary of anonymous-sourced articles like this.
dear rupert,
please name your sources. if you do, i might believe you. until then? you’ve just written another lame internet rumor, no matter how long you’ve been a journo.
love and kisses,
gavia.
by gavia on Sep 19, 2008 7:07 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I'm surprised at you Gav...
… go ahead and bash anonymous sourced articles… but do you doubt Bruce’s prescience at this point? This is merely another manifestation of the Bruce Gap!
Sic gorgiamus allos subjectatos nunc.
by crashdan on Sep 19, 2008 7:40 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
And millions of French heads explode
For what it’s worth, the Boulder Report has picked up the story and thinks it might be credible:
Guinness cites no named sources, but the report includes several details which would indicate inside knowledge of the proposed deal.
They also have a good discussion of the pros and cons if it turns out to be true.
by majope on Sep 19, 2008 5:23 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
hmm
I’m too lazy to read the Lyndsey article, but I wonder what he considers the inside details in the Guinness story.
The holding company – Éditions Philippe Amaury – for the ASO turns over an estimated 1 billion a year. It’s one of the biggest co’s in France, I believe. I guess I don’t really understand why they’d want to sell off their sports events sector, if it’s bringing in 150 million in revenue. That’s a pretty good chunk of change, right there. I also don’t understand where Armstrong would get the cash – I know Weisel’s pockets are deep, but are they that deep?
I guess the “why bother?” question is where I’m at, aside from my suspicions of post-count whoring from an otherwise reputable journo. But hey, all the cool kids are doing it. Anyway, I still can’t figure out why the best thing Armstrong can come up with to do with his time next year is ride the Tour. Like, dude, you got oodles of cash, go do something fun already.
by gavia on Sep 19, 2008 6:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Firstly I’ll believe it when I see it, but on the off chance this could be true I think it’s a terrible prospect – the idea of him basically owning the Tour does NOT make me a happy bunny – and this isn’t just becuse he’s Armstrong, I’d be opposed to Indurain (who I love) for example owning the thing too.
by Gemma on Sep 19, 2008 5:31 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Please, say it ain't so.
This has got to be the worst news to hit this sport since, well, since forever. If this turns out to be true, I will no longer consider myself a fan, but a cycling historian…the contemporary race scene will hold no interest for me.
This arrangement would be akin to Satan guarding the Pearly Gates. Yes, Hein is the devil, and his foul hand at the healm of ASO would throw our beloved sport in the gutter for years, if not decades, to come.
Someone wake me when this nightmare is over.
by The Team Chef on Sep 19, 2008 5:55 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
This story is absurd.
But, Lance is a businessman as much as a cyclist. He wouldn’t sit on a throne and dictate weird edicts to suit his fancies.
I’m interested to here your opinion. What do you think Lance would do with the ASO that would be detrimental?
by dheadrick on Sep 19, 2008 11:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Lance wants to be the Governor of Texas in the next 5-10 years, and then
perhaps even President. The one thing that could kill his political career before it ever got off the ground would be proof of doping during his Tour reign. Should ASO decide to backtest samples from the Tour, there really isn’t anything Lance can do at this point. Now, let’s suppose he should become part owner of ASO… I’m guessing all the old blood samples would sent to the nearest furnace or buried somewhere in Siberia.
Once the political money starts flowing, and a party decides that Big Tex is going to be their man in office at some point, then you can be damn sure that NOTHING will be allowed to stain his legacy. In this context, cycling and ASO are simply pawns in a much larger game. I can’t imagine a situation more detrimental for our sport.
by The Team Chef on Sep 20, 2008 2:32 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Armstrong is an avowed atheist.
His political career in the U.S. (and particularly, in Texas) is already dead.
I wish I could believe that an atheist could be elected to a high-level political office in the U.S. (and I think I would like Armstrong much better as a politician than I did as a cyclist), but there’s no way. The thought of Armstrong as governor of Texas is at least as far-fetched as the idea of him as the owner of ASO.
by Tifosa on Sep 20, 2008 10:25 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Good point.
One of Reagan’s kids, who would have run for office as a democrat, basically said that it was useless to run since he’s an atheist.
I didn’t know that about Armstrong though…maybe he’ll have some kind of born-again experience between now and then? After all, you’ve got to think that he must have considered this if he’s thinking about running.
by plinytheelder on Sep 20, 2008 12:04 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
If he is thinking about running for office,
then you’re right, he’s probably thought about the religion issue. I guess I just haven’t seen anything to make me think he is considering a political career. Granted, I don’t read a lot of Armstrong interviews, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard of him commenting on any political issue other than public funding for cancer research.
At this point, a religious conversion would be pretty hard to swallow. A guy remains a steadfast atheist while looking death in the face for months, spending several years married to a Christian woman, and fathering three children, then suddenly finds religion when he decides to run for governor of Texas? I can’t see that being too convincing.
by Tifosa on Sep 20, 2008 7:59 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
This might help change your mind
about his political aspirations. Here is the quote from the Vanity Fair article:
But surely he hadn’t asked me to dinner to talk about his plumbing. I began to wonder if, instead, he’d wanted to confide in me—as a historian and a journalist—about his purported plans to run for governor. Word had it that he’d been making the public-appearance rounds and setting his sights on 2010. He has Dallas roots and a ranch in Dripping Springs. While many in Texas have pegged Armstrong as a Republican (one of his advisers is Austin’s Mark McKinnon, who has helped burnish the images of both George W. Bush and John McCain), he nonetheless seeks the counsel of John Kerry and has decidedly Democratic leanings.
"What about the rumors," I asked him, "that you’ll run for governor?"
He answered slyly, "Down the road, something like that might be possible. Probably in 2014."
by The Team Chef on Sep 20, 2008 9:12 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I find people endlessly willing to buy sudden conversions
The more inexplicable, the better. Looking at a water droplet in the shower would do. And after all his Bush-buddy shots, I don’t tend to buy the “bipartisan” line. Unless it’s an explicit admission that he’s in it for ego and power, regardless of the party that’ll get him there.
by JFS_PGH on Sep 21, 2008 12:18 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I wish I could share your confidence
that Lance is a political pariah. He still has plenty of time to “see the light” and convert. I think the timetable for his run will be 2014.
I really hope I’m wrong about all of this, but I can’t help but think that his comeback is part of the grand plan set in motion by his party.
by The Team Chef on Sep 20, 2008 3:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I’d see Sarkozy nationalising ASO before letting it fall to Americans.
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
by fmk on Sep 19, 2008 6:12 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
considering the scoffing at la's supposed return (yeah, that was me)....
"Wizard's first rule. People are stupid. They will believe anything they want to be true or fear to be true." -- Terry Goodkind
by umwolverine on Sep 19, 2008 6:24 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
This is just wacky.
(Disclaimer: Lance fan.)
by cg. on Sep 19, 2008 6:42 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Lance, why don't you leave us alone?
I can’t wait for the French media reacting to this.
by King of Doping on Sep 19, 2008 7:03 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Agreed.
If this has any basis in reality – and it may not – my only comment is: this man’s ego is truly limitless.
Nothing about it yet at either L’Équipe or the Gazzetta as far as I can see.
Please dear god no.
by plinytheelder on Sep 19, 2008 7:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
probably went up tomorrow am Aussie time
which means it was too late in Europe for anyone to pick it up. so far, guinness is the only source.
by gavia on Sep 19, 2008 7:54 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
you got that right, guiness - the beer - is the only source
I hope
by lyne on Sep 19, 2008 7:55 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Don't they update through the night?
Lazy bastards! ;)
by plinytheelder on Sep 19, 2008 8:26 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Bruce is asleep
Quick, someone go steal his time machine. Then use it to go back in time and make this story go away.
by Jimbo... on Sep 19, 2008 9:36 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
It's not April is it?
I truly hope not since that would mean I missed Christmas and New Years, and Ski Season…… NOOOOOOOOO!
by Fred Marx on Sep 19, 2008 7:11 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
lol, no kidding
and i missed all the winter swells. nah. i think we would have noticed that, don’t you?
so counting the days right now, where are my winter storms?
by gavia on Sep 19, 2008 7:14 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Maybe this is just Rupe’s way of getting back at LA for dicking the Aussies round over the TDU.
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
by fmk on Sep 19, 2008 7:23 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
well this would be about the worst thing that could happen to the sport
if true
by lyne on Sep 19, 2008 7:23 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Now that I think about it...
…this makes total sense. Look how Obama’s getting attacked for his lack of “executive experience.” Well, when Armstrong runs for governor of Texas (maybe he’ll just skip this boring step and go directly for the presidency?), he’ll be able to say “I ran the Tour, goddamit! And I censored some books, fired some cops, hired some old friends, funded a bridge…er…”
by plinytheelder on Sep 19, 2008 8:25 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
if i recall correctly, the governor of texas don't do much... the lt gov and the legislature have the power
"Wizard's first rule. People are stupid. They will believe anything they want to be true or fear to be true." -- Terry Goodkind
by umwolverine on Sep 20, 2008 7:42 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Why would the French close roads to accomodate the Tour if LA was profitting?
Won’t happen.
I googled it, it must be true.
by flying dog on Sep 19, 2008 10:35 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I still haven't seen anything on this rumour in the press...
…however Gazzetta has a hilarious story for all you soccer fans, apparently Scolari (current Chelsea and former Portugal manager) has said “I want C. Ronaldo on Chelsea” – Ferguson will blow a gasket when he hears this, hilarious.
by plinytheelder on Sep 20, 2008 8:57 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
IT'S OFFICIAL!!!
Pat McQuaid’s denied it, so it must be true.
In fact, it’s so far removed from the truth that if it were closer to the date I would consider it an April Fool’s Day joke. It’s just not true.
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
by fmk on Sep 20, 2008 9:05 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
So now it's been confirmed ...
… let’s speculate on names. I say Armstrong Sports Organization. That way they can save a few cent by not having to change the stationery. And using a z instead of an s really pisses us Europeans off.
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
by fmk on Sep 20, 2008 9:52 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Armztrong Zportz Organization?
Sic gorgiamus allos subjectatos nunc.
by crashdan on Sep 22, 2008 12:52 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The state of Borduria is apparently supplying the cash needed
Carlos Sastre - Tour de France winner - Born From Jets
by Jens on Sep 22, 2008 1:04 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Borduria outbid Freedonia? Damn.
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
by fmk on Sep 22, 2008 1:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Lance's press conference on the 24th
is part of the “2008 Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting”, apparently they do some webcasting of the proceedings, check here. At the moment, it says there will be a live webcast of the opening plenary at 10 am EDT – perhaps there will be live coverage of the Armstrong presser as well there. If anyone’s interested …
by guidemd on Sep 20, 2008 10:50 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
intersting tidbit, making the rounds
According to Charity Navigator a non-profit charity tracker thingy, the LAF finished 2006 with a defiicit of 5 mil, and change. The Cozy Beehive bloggy has some analysis of the available financial information.
by gavia on Sep 22, 2008 1:02 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Saw that. Have downloaded the LAF accounts and may have something to say when I get a chance to read them.
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
by fmk on Sep 22, 2008 1:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Cool
I’d like to read what you have to say. Analyzing financial data is not really my strong suit. I can get the gist, but could easily mis-understand or mis-interpret the details.
by gavia on Sep 22, 2008 1:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
numbers is easy, once you know what you’re looking at. it’ll be a day or three before i do anything, i think. which’ll probably push into into the weekend, after everyone’s digested wednesday’s announcement.
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
by fmk on Sep 22, 2008 1:54 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Started looking at them. Right off, it’s a dirty job, but somebody’s got to do it. The whole purpose of Annual Reports these days seems to be to make information the even harder to access than it used to be. And to think, most of the changes that did that were meant to make these things easier for the lay-man to read.
Anyway, quick retort to the Cozy Beehive – they’re mixing up LAF and LAFE. There’s separate 990s filed for each, but the Annual Report is combined for the two. So the “REVENUE REPORT DISCREPANCY” is actually easily explained.
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
by fmk on Sep 22, 2008 5:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
sweet...
keep diggin’ i wanna know all about this one.
by gavia on Sep 22, 2008 5:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Also, the deficit is very easily explained and doesn’t mean the same as, say, a government deficit or a loss in a for-profit company. Is to do with when endowments can be used. Will explain all in a few days. But for now, don’t panic Lance lovers. We’re not necessarily looking at a recklessly mismanaged charity. Maybe just one that could perform better and may not be the ideal recipient of your conscience tax/donation.
pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway
by fmk on Sep 22, 2008 7:55 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
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