And here's the link to the article itself. I saw it at the time, and after a great deal of trouble, managed to locate the French language version, which I could then cut and paste into Google Translate as my French is, well, to call it "rusty" is a bit of an understatement. I can follow the gist of what people are saying, but I miss all the subtleties.
As far as I can remember (and if there are any Lux-speakers out there - Amanda, I am looking at you! - who would be kind enough to translate, please feel free to do so) it was confirming that he's had a lousy season and would rather forget it. But I might be wrong.
Annoyingly, I now can't find the French language version. Clicking on the French version on the webpage takes you to RTL 5-minutes, which seems to be a chopped-down version of the news, and - frustratingly - I can't find the same story. They have other Schleck stories for the date of the 17th, but not this one!
Oh, and the video on the original isn't working either.
Grr.
But the audio file is: of course, Andy is speaking his own language, but it's nice to just let the sound wash over you.....
Here is the cycling RTL-5-minute version, do feel free to dig around and let me know if you find the article in question.
I did find one story of mild interest - about Shack and their sponsors for next year. Yes, I know, I know, we don't like Shack, we don't particularly care about Shack.. other than the fact that Andy and Frankie are tied to them for another year, as is poor Fabian, who has been reported as trying to escape, but "his attorneys were unable to find a way to break the contract" . Other than paying a year's salary, of course, but that was estimated at 1.65 million euros, ouch!
Anyway, this story tells that Nissan, Shack and Trek are all still sponsoring the team next year - or at least, that's what they are saying at the moment - so they are keeping the three-sponsor name, despite the express wishes of the UCI. They are, however, losing two of the smaller sponsors, Sram and Giro.
Do we really care? Were Sram the ones responsible for Chaingate? I think not, so we're not really bothered. Of course, things may change hugely if Mr Bruyneel is "done" for doping/arranging doping, as per the Lance Armstrong case. Things might be very different indeed, mwaah haaah haaaa!
Oh, they are also gaining Nike for off-the-bike shoes, if Google Translate can be relied on. What! No more orange shoe laces!?!
So what was I saying about RTL.lu? Oh yes, they are clearly discriminating against English-speaking fans, as they won't translate their website into English, but will only offer us a cut-down version, in French, which doesn't even have the article with the nice photo and the video... booo!
Mind you, *looks over shoulder to check the no-one is listening* look what else I found. I put "Andy Schleck" into what I thought was the "search" box, hoping to get all the stories fearing Our Andy.
Instead I got this:
I've blanked out the details, but it does rather appear to give Andy's home address, and possibly phone number, as well as that of the family home.
And a nice little map to show us where they are.
Let's hope that crazy Italian Stalker
Alas, my Luxembourgish stinks. Sad, too, because to really hang with the local fans here, it is vital.
ReplyDeleteDid I tell you I sometimes have yoga with Frank's wife? Talk about stalking. Actually, I did not know it at the time. I just thought she was really pretty and had nice jewelry.
Aw, I was relying on you!
ReplyDeleteNever mind, I am sure that some clever person will find the cunningly-hidden French language version.
Yes, you mentioned the yoga thing - lucky you! Mind you, I imagine that you are far too polite and civilised to approach her about Frankie. I know that I would be far too nervous to mention it!
But as for the language, you are on the move every couple of years, aren't you, which must make it difficult to commit to learning the language?
Coug
PS, what is the series of 8 numbers in the listing? Are they phone numbers??
ReplyDeleteCoug
Not planning to stalk, just curious...
Sometimes I copy and paste the Luxembourgish text to Google Translate and then put it on German to Dutch, but that mostly tranlates about 3 words per line, so it doesn't really help..
ReplyDeleteBut since they've already added Lituanian and Ukrainian (sp?) to their list, hopefully one day they will add Luxembourgish to the list too.
And Velonation is reporting that Andy might return to racing next week: www.velonation.com/News/ID/12933/Andy-Schleck-to-return-in-Binche-Tournai-BincheMemorial-Frank-Vandenbroucke-race.aspx
I really hope so, he must have had enough of sitting at home by now!
Oh, and I was at the Worlds last Sunday (great fun!) and there were lots of Luxembourgish people around wearing their Schleck-fanclub caps or tees. I was happy to see that. And I read an interview with Karsten Kroon in a cycling magazine and he said that Fränkie is a good friend of him and that he believes him when he says he didn't take anything on purpose. "I know him well enough that he wouldn't do such a thing."
Inge
Hi Inge,
ReplyDeleteHow do we get Google to add Lux to their languages? Anyone know how to get a petition started???
That is really good news, if Andy can get back to racing this year - we won't expect him to win, but it would be great to see him back on the bike again.
It's been very strange watching the crowds in the race footage in the last couple of months, and not seeing any Lux ensigns or Schleck Fan Club orange flags.... good to know that there are still people out there wearing theirs.
So, fingers crossed that Andy can race again this year, and fingers crossed that Frankie gets the correct ruling at the LADA meeting on the 8th October.
Oh all right, "ALAD". Should be LADA. *mutters to self*
Coug
Here in the Netherlands we can get the whole footage of the RTL-Lu video. BeNeLux advantage or something about Schengen and/or Great-Britain's policy to prevent people from here to watch their programs later on....
ReplyDeleteI also was at the Worlds (in fact the whole week)and besides that what Inge noticed, there even was a quite big house, very close to the finish, completely covered with Leopard signs and Red lion flags. It really made me smile the rest of the day.
Barbara.
For a good translation maybe you could ask Angi at Twitter (@KreischelGolden I think).
ReplyDeleteBut I think the title of the video says: "Andy Schleck: I would be very glad to be able to cycle without pain."
Barbara
So, in short he's saying that he's missing cycling without pain. If he's on the bike more than 3 hours he has too much pain.
ReplyDeleteAlso, he talks about the people who criticize the brothers. It enters to one ear and get out to the other
If you got more questions, don't hesitate to ask
Angi ;-) @KreischelG
"I miss cycling without pain", of course, *slaps forehead*, that was it!
ReplyDeleteThank you Angi, I knew that I had found the French version and translated it... but I just can't find it again. Perhaps they moved it? Anyway, I'm glad to hear that there are still Schleck-fans out there (apart from us lot, of course) and let's hope that Andy does indeed ride again (preferably without pain) next week.
Coug
I hope that both are ok soon!!! ;-)
DeleteOne time a Schleckfan, always a Schleckfan... Oh b.t.w: editus is the Lux. Phonebook
OMG that means I now have Andy's phone number.....
DeleteCoug
*hastily deletes it from memory*
Who is the Italian stalker? Maybe RAI journalist Alessandra De Stefano? She used to talk about Andy all the time on the Italian TV but now she's moved to younger guys ;)I can't really think of anyone else to be referred to as "crazy Italian stalker"... Anyway let me know!
ReplyDeleteAlice from Italy (Hi Schlecklanders, I'm new here!!)
Hi Alice! *waves*
ReplyDeleteDon't ask about the Scary Italian Stalker!
Send me an email if you really want to know.....
Coug
Come on, I'm tooooo curious! I'm sure she won't come to the UK to kill you if you tell her name... At least, it will take a while to go from Mondorf to Britain so that you can get safe in time!
DeleteAlice
PS, guys, you know how I love my blog stats, and seeing what search terms are being used for strangers to get here... well, in the past 24 hours, someone got here by typing "Andy Schleck parameter of legs".
ReplyDelete*snorts with laughter*
I've just done it myself, and went 6 pages in without finding a link to Eisen Andy, so I have no idea what they were searching for!
Fascinating stuff....
*gets back to studying*
Coug
Oh Alice, you are a bad girl, making me drag all this stuff up again....
ReplyDelete*sighs*
OK, Scary Italian Stalker: 2010, I'd been running my original blog, Schleckland, for several months before I happened to find her blog *spits*.
She was crazy, demented, and delusional, and told long long stories about how she took a cake to Mondorf and stood on Andy's doorstep with it (accompanied by photos of his house in case we didn't believe her). Also of how he invited her to Mondorf for an interview (she said) then blew her off with a txt message *snorts with laughter* and how she got really shirty with him: [note to S.I.S - this is not the way to win a guy's heart] or the lovely story of how he had to drop out of a race, feeling ill, but how she insisted on interviewing him. Yes, we could tell he was really taken with her. Months of her stalking him apparently culminated with him telling her to back off: I believe the phrase was "take it easy" but it was clear what he meant.
I read this stuff with horror, thinking "there but for the grace of god go I." It was a dreadful warning of how being a fangirl could take over your life and turn you into a scary weird obsessive stalker.
So I deleted my blog, in fear and trembling, and foreswore Andy Schleck altogether.
Luckily, some of my lovely Schlecklanders took the trouble to contact me, and persuaded me that they all enjoyed my inane ramblings and that they were nowhere near as insane as those of S.I.S., and that there was no chance of me turning into her.
So I started again, with Eisen Andy. Slightly less emphasis on "ooh, lovely Andy" and slightly more emphasis on "serious cycling fans." Well, frivolous cyling fans, perhaps.
At around this time, one of my Schlecklander nieces (in case you hadn't realised, Alice, I am Auntie Coug to the Schlecklanders, on account of being probably the oldest) gently tried to tell S.I.S. that she was getting a bit psychotic, and in return the ghastly woman harangued my niece, hounded her, threatened her, and was extremely unpleasant to her.
After a while, S.I.S. either had therapy, or was put on medication, as she suddenly calmed down, removed Andy's name from her blog name, and now just does really, really dull reports on races.
So now we never talk about her - except for today, and that's your fault.
But I bear a huge grudge against that woman, as a) she was horrible to my favourite Schlecklander niece, b)she caused me to delete what was a good body of work, and c) she put me in the position of being a bit of a drama queen - "oh, I'm giving it all up" *tosses hair back* "No, no, Auntie Coug, come back, we love reading your stuff." "Oh, all right then."
Plus she gives all fangirls a bad name.
And after all that, if you really have to know about her, type "no more allez andy" into google and check it out for yourself. The best bits are back in mid-2010 when she published, in instalments, a translation of Chris Anker Sorensen's book, which was really very interesting.
But be careful how you read the older posts - some of them are downright scary!
Coug
*Down on my knees* I humbly beg your pardon for asking you about that.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I already knew that blog and I found her a bit too depressed and... yes, really obsessed. I remember that she published poems about him and stuff like that. She's an adult woman and she claerly had some problems, but actually it's her business if she felt like that about Andy.
I've never read your previous blog but I love this one because it's a perfect mix of humour and fangirl love, as it should be. Big congrats!
Alice
D'aaaw, thank you Alice, *blushes* I'm happy that you enjoy this blog.
ReplyDeleteTechnically, yes, it's "her" business how she feels, but she was very mean to my favourite Schlecklander niece, which made it "our" business.
Never mind, let's forget her, and move on!
Coug
Just a little question which crossed my mind while reading your report about S.I.S.: you call yourself "auntie" as your suppose to be the oldest of all Schlecklanders. But, to my foreign ears, your English sounds like a sort of slang... To be honest, I guess you can't be older than 25, but somehow childish in your behaviour and also kind of dreamer.(don't see it as a criticism). How old are you if you want to say? Or, as I'm pretty sure that you're not going to say it, is my guess close to reality?
ReplyDeleteAlice
http://5minutes.rtl.lu/fr/actualite/luxembourg/315175.html ... is this the french version of the original version that you are looking for Coug or was this the version that you were able to find on your own?
ReplyDeleteOh, how I've missed this blog and the good fun (and information) it provides.
Take care all,
Kat
Hi Kat, hey, clever you! Yes, that's the one, the one I found and translated from the French.
ReplyDeleteI can see from your link that it was filed under Actualite, Lux. Instead of Sport, cyclisme, which is where I was looking, duh!
Nice to hear from you again, welcome back.
Oh and Alice, yes, my writing is full of slang, so sorry, I do try to be aware that a high proportion of my readers are not English-as-first-language, and I do therefore try to compose beautiful, gramatically-correct sentences, but I get swept away sometimes, and the slang creeps in. Perhaps we should say that I am aiming to provide clear examples of English slang to assist my non-UK readers in improving their English. Err, as long as their idea of "improving" includes "using slang", that is!
No older than 25, eh? *big kiss for Alice* What a little sweetheart you are! No, despite my childish behaviour, I'm well past 25, but I still think of myself as being "young". Diversion: When I was young the first time, I would sometimes read (in books) that "old" people think of themselves as young, and I used to think that was very strange - I mean, once you start getting old, every time you look in the mirror you can see that you are getting old, so why would you still think that you are young?
And now that I am definitely middle-aged *grumble grumble, refuses to accept it* I can see what they mean: my self-image is that I am still the same as I was at 18, but about a million times more confident. Sometimes when interacting with - for example - young male shop assistants, I have to remind myself that I should not flirt with them, as they will be looking in horror at someone who, to them, appears to be about the same age as their youngest aunt.
I say that as I am not prepared to admit that I'm old enough to be someone's mother! Although there was a news story in the UK recently about a 39-year-old grandmother. Grandmother! Not that impossible, you say. But the grand-daughter was seven years old, which meant that the mother and the grandmother each got pregnant at 15..... honestly, I don't wish to bring class into it, but there is a certain type of person who gets pregnant at 15, isn't there?
Where was I? Oh yes, avoiding the question of how old I am.
OK Alice, I will try to be less childish in my behaviour, but I refuse to "act my age" as it's much more fun being Auntie Coug and behaving like a teenager!
Coug
Age: indeterminate
Coug you're so hilarious! Never mind if you're a teenager in a middle-aged body ;)
ReplyDeleteBy the way I ACTUALLY read your blog to improve my English (as well as to have a good laugh sometimes). And I have to say that I usually achieve both these aims :) If only my English could be as fluent as yours!
Hey Alice, I'm very pleased to hear that I am being used as an educational resource!
ReplyDeleteIf ever I say anything that you don't understand, do please ask: we used to have long discussions here about slang, and in particular the use of swearing (of which I disapprove) and how certain words have a different impact in the different countries.
Auntie Coug
TEAFL associate
(Teaching English As a Foreign Language)
(only joking!)