But when LA is out on his bike in Paisley, the Nike/Livestrong kit looks like just another brand. & the brand is Lance…

that criticism against LA is irrelevant because of his dedication to the fight against cancer I must be getting it wrong too.
I think it is a pretty blatant attempt of using the cancer-community as a shield against uncomfortable questions. Am I misunderstanding it?

in the location, timing, and level of press for his cancer-related work, as opposed to his work on the bike, and his work helping to get another team off the ground.

The post does not even say that the less effective timing, location and level of interest is somehow Lance’s fault.

If someone wants to draw the inference that attention to the launch of Shack could have distracted from full-time attention to the Cancer stuff and PR for the cancer stuff, rather than helping it, they could make that argument. You could instead argue that interest in Shack has helped to bring more attention to the conference, or that it makes sense to focus on both long term and proximate goals.

But I don’t see a hatchet job here. There is, bona fide, a bit of a disconnect between what Lance said he’d do, and what he actually did. Ireland is lovely, but it’s not as high-profile as Paris after the Tour. It’s also presumably cheaper, and presumably fit better into the schedule, and this way, it’s timed to come out with the study on tanning booths / sunbeds. That makes it a reasonable choice, in the abstract.

But in general, if someone promises an international meeting, and people make plans on that basis, it’s a huge frigging pain and problem and expense to move the meeting—especially when you move it from summer break into term time, which affects researchers who also teach. So I have to guess that the meeting is shorter on researchers, and longer on PR, than one might hope.

I wasn’t in the business of making ads, so I’m probably not the one who decided to make an ad where Lance tells the world that he doesn’t like cancer at the same time as he snipes at his critics. Besides, if he didn’t return to racing “for” them, why mention them at all? The Lance doth protest too much, methinks.

If you hold a pc where you insist people talk about the Global Cancer Summit in Paris after the TdF rather than more awkward subjects it is kind of funny that you end up with an anonymous GCS in Dublin after the ToI instead?

I’m Irish and I love Dublin as much as the next Dub does, but I do have to face facts – we’re a tiddly little backwater most people still think is a provincial part of the UK. We’re not a sexy city. As a location, we’re not going to help selling cancer awareness globally. Unlike a sexy city like Paris. Or even London. The location matters cause it impacts on how the story is going to be sold internationally.

High goals are laudable, but they’re also free, and require no planning or money. Being effective matters.

Effectiveness means some of the following:

1. policy makers and/or researchers are meeting, who would not otherwise have met.
2. people are learning things they did not already know.
3. the public is learning, too.

All of these things could certainly happen at a meeting in Ireland. But it is less likely if it’s a last minute job in place of more elaborate plans. (Mind you, I don’t know if it is, or if Lance dropped in on a pre-existing meeting). And not if it’s mostly getting local coverage (which is what the question is about) despite the assumption that Lance’s sponsorship and presence will result in global coverage.

Well how scary or inept is Mary Harney? I won’t go further because it moves from Lance, medical research etc to politics. Luckily in a democracy there’s a vote.
Obviously sunbeds in Australia rank below the basics, like ‘real’ sun and its resultant problems.
Seriously, that’s fucked! Not vaccinating for papillomavirus. WTF!

Just think after the funeral will be soon enough. Agree TK wouldn’t want an opportunity to be wasted but first there needs to be time to reflect on the passing of an era. (Like you, I know I’m teetering on the political edge).