Well, it's been a bad few days for Our Andy, there's no doubt about that.
My thought now is that the team should take him off the Tour squad list, to remove that pressure: then send him out to every single Pro Conti race they can get him in.
He said himself that he felt like a neo-pro, having had more or less half a year off the bike - and bear in mind that he has been riding since he was, what, 15? He went straight into competitive racing, has never done anything other than race, and has never had more than a short holiday off the bike. And we know that even when on holiday (Curacao, for example) they still ride their bikes most days.
So he would never have experienced what it's like to be totally unfit.
(Unlike you and I, ha ha)
I think it's too much, to throw him back into the high publicity, high tempo races: yes, I know that other riders have done it, but as we have seen, Andy is struggling, and the constant criticism from the media and the commentators is not helping.
So, my suggestion is to get him racing on quiet, un-televised races at a lower level, where he will quickly feel that he is stronger and better than most of those around him.This will raise his confidence, he can then slot back into the A team, and who knows, he may even perk up in time for the Tour.
But unless he is really feeling good, I would rather see him miss this year's Tour, and maybe go with Frankie for the Vuelta instead.
Makes you wonder what on earth RadioShambles are going to do for the Tour, doesn't it? No Frankie, possibly no Andy: Horner and Kloeden are still hanging on the Lance Armstrong hook, and may yet be hauled off to answer doping charges: they don't have a lot of options, do they? Can't say that I am sympathetic, as I have very little regard for Mr Becca and Mr Bruyneel (who seems to have disappeared without trace, which is not a bad thing), and I still resent our Leopards being shoved into the Shack team without so much as a consultation.
How long is Andy's contract, does anyone know?
I believe both he and Fränk signed for 4 years, so that means another 1,5 years to go...
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, probably the best thing to do for the team is to take all the pressure off his shoulders (race-, and performance-wise). It is very obvious he is not feeling well right now, so the main priority should be that he's happy again. I hope the team will look at him right now as the human being Andy Schleck, not the professional athlete.
There's been a lot for him to deal with over the past 2 years, and it might have been too overwhelming. Add to that that there's always been pressure on him to perform since the Giro of '07...
I don't know what the best way forward is, I think that's up to Andy himself to decide, perhaps with help from his beloved ones. I just hope that the team is willing to give him the time and space he needs.
If he's still going to do the Amstel, Liège and the Tour, I will cheer on top of my lungs for him. If not, that's fine. As long as he finds his happiness again.
Inge
Weren't they (Schlecks) saying in 2011 that they still had 2 more years - or was that last year? Whenever the rumors were flying about them creating another team (after Leopard)?
ReplyDeleteI agree Coug. This is just plain battery on some levels. But - could Andy ever ride a race without it being publicized to the point of invalidation for that plan? I don't know - I just wonder what kind of hooplah would come out. "A. Schleck - dropped again"...ya know?
My heart just goes out to the dude though. And I thought I've had a few rough years! Ha!
LE
I'm going to politely disagree. Andy needs to man up, put the bottle down, and train. The bars will still be open when he's retired. Alcohol retards muscle recovery. It's horrible, even in small doses. At his level, every fraction of a percentage counts. Wiggins isn't getting sloshed on the weekends. Neither is Contador, Froome, Evans, or any of the other big name contenders. I think he needs the pressure. What he doesn't need is the drinking and the horde of yes people who have probably flocked to him over the last few years. And his gf should be asking some serious questions about why he was getting drunk in a hotel bar instead of calling her to pass the time. I want the Schlecks back. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteUntil I hear Andy admit that he was staggering drunk, I am going to politely disagree with the random French publicity-seeking politician: and even if it turns out to be true to some degree, (ie that he'd had a couple of beers and was somewhat drunk, if not quite falling down drunk) then I don't think anyone can accuse Andy of being "on the bottle".
ReplyDeleteEveryone, even athletes, are allowed the occasional "evening off".
There has never been a suggestion that Andy has a serious drinking problem: every single "incident" in his life has been well publicised, for our delight and delectation, and I can only think of half a dozen at the most, and one of those was for driving too fast. It's not as though he can do anything secretly, is it?!
I stand by my suggestion, that he has never been "unfit" before, and it's been a big shock to him. So yes, I agree with you, Texas Gal, he needs to get out there training: there have been a couple of hints from the team and from Jensie that he didn't train enough over the winter - which of course is related to having had a fractured pelvis. (I can't even imagine how painful, and how frightening that must have been.)
Elle, you have a point in that any race is going to get publicity if Andy enters it, no matter how small - hey, he could make up some back salary by being paid to appear! Sorry, ignore that, what was I saying? Oh yes, publicity, but at least they wouldn't be televised. As much. In fact, that proves that I'm not qualified to run a cycle team (I have never claimed to be so qualified, in fact) as I really don't know what I am talking about.
Ignore me, Andy! *cheerfully*
So, I guess we will have to Watch This Space to find out how the team are going to deal with the situation: will they take him off racing until he recovers? Will they continue to put him into races on the basis of "you have got to learn to cope with it"?
Oh, Inge, another year and a half to go? *sigh* *shakes head*
Coug
I thought that team organization was supposed to deal with situations like this. Doctors and trainers to work with the riders on rehab in a planned program, which should include psychological support. There may be more behind the scenes, but it seems like Andy has been left on his own to come back in his own way.
ReplyDeleteNot only has he never had such a severe injury before, but he has so much natural talent, he never really had to work hard to succeed. He's like the kid in high school for whom every subject is an easy A, then doesn't know what to do when he hits university and everything is unfamiliar territory.
Of course I only see what is in the media, so maybe I am wrong.
emjay
Just saw this - on twitter....
ReplyDelete"Not Pat McQuaid @UCI_Overlord
Rumour has it a certain blonde young man who has the initials AS may be on TV tonight addressing his troubles and clarifying certain things."
No idea where or when............
Overlord will clarify when he knows, I am confident.
LE
Hi Emjay, *waves* you make a very good point, what the hell are his team management playing at? They are supposed to be professional at their jobs, aren't they? I mean, athletes do know their own bodies, but they don't always know how much they should push themselves and when - after all , that's what you have coaches for.
ReplyDeleteI like your analogy of the A student! I agree, I think that Andy has been a superb natural athlete all his life, and maybe for that reason he hasn't had quite as much "coaching" as others have. And although he's not a puppy any more, he's still had an awful lot to deal with in the last year or two.
At least Jakob is riding out today!
Coug
"Putting the bottle down" isn't an implication he's an alcoholic. It's a way of saying that he needs to stop playing with his toys and get back to work. He needs to exercise discretion and discipline. He's in the spotlight, but so is everyone else. I've never heard of the other big names being accused of getting drunk in public during the season, or being ordered to leave a major stage race because of drinking. Either they're much better at getting away with it or they're not drinking in public during the season. To be clear, shame on that French politician - in what alternate reality did he think he could make a statement like that publicly without implicating the individual he was referring to? At the same time, I find it hard to believe someone would tell a story like that without it having some grounding in reality. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle. Unfortunately, Andy's celebrity restricts his freedom, but it doesn't restrict him anymore than it restricts the other big names. He ought to know by now the airport hotel bar isn't an ideal place for him to be seen, especially not when he's getting so much flack for being out of shape. He seems to have recovered from the fall (thank goodness!). Now he needs to recover from six months of sitting on an inflated donut. He doesn't have an enviable path ahead of him, but at least he has the talent to come back. Here's to hoping he doesn't miss his window of opportunity.
ReplyDeleteOn Lux tv he said he is still optimistic and addressed the french policitian sayings as ridiculous.-at least that's what I understood from his sayings in the interview.-
ReplyDeleteBarbara.
Most people agreed at the time of the Vuelta that Bjarne Riis over-reacted to Andy and Stuey having a couple of beers during the race, because they had already decided to leave his team. And I am sure you remember how it was over-reported at the time.
ReplyDeleteI don't keep track of other riders the way I do with Andy, so I wouldn't know in detail about their drinking habits, and it is fair to say that most of these serious athletes are very moderate in their drinking.
Although Boonen was famously "done" for doing cocaine - somewhat worse than alchohol, in my opinion - and I think that Zabriskie has been drunk a few times. Even current "new darling" Sagan (allegedly) drinks a lot of beer. And I read somewhere on a forum (oh yes, bound to be true) about our own Fabian falling off his bike at the end of a race, quite drunk.
Until I hear Andy's version, I am not going to believe that he was "that" drunk, or does so with any frequency.
Alas, we don't have Lux tv over here - thanks, Barbara, for the early update, maybe it will be on YouTube later on!
Coug
http://velonews.competitor.com/2013/03/news/report-radioshack-to-end-sponsorship-after-2013-season_278281
ReplyDeleteThis is interesting. Talks about Radio Shack leaving and potentially team disolving at the end of this current season.
Personally, I'd like to see "all my guys" set free from this. New starts and new promise of hope.
LE
ooohhh...just saw this
ReplyDeletethey may end up in a new german team started by Hondo & Voigt
LE
What - Danilo Hondo from Eskaltel, and Jensie?
ReplyDelete