Timebase Pty Ltd v. Thomson Corporation, The

Filing 118

MEMORANDUM in Support re 116 MOTION to Compel Responses to Interrogatories 1 and 8 filed by Timebase Pty Ltd. SEALED DOCUMENT RECEIVED IN CLERKS OFFICE ON 2/12/10. (Gasey, Arthur) Modified on 2/12/2010 (akl).

Timebase Pty Ltd v. Thomson Corporation, The

Doc. 118 Att. 11

Exhibit 15

Dockets.Justia.com

Saturday's mailbag: Au open letter from Andy Hampsten, and your responses This report filed July 24,2004

Dear fellow cyclists and cycling fans, Like many of you, I have read Greg LeMond's recent comments regarding doping iu cycling and his interactionswith Lance Armstrong. For those not up to speed,see this concise account of Greg's statements in Engiisb.
The 0righz.dcomplete text in French appears in Le Monde.

I admire Greg's courage to speak his m n on the doping problems t a still plague id ht cycling. L i e h m I feel that this probiem is out of hand. Something needs to be done to i, ciean it up, not only for tbe sake of the riders' health,but also for the sake of returning ow sport to the truthsof human spirit, valor and talent.
The English version o f t e Eurosport article makes a huge point of Greg's personal h exprience 6 t h Lance and the resulting conflict. ObviousIy, Lance and Greg have their own private relationship. W e I know and respect both of these champions, having raced with both of them over the years, their personal interaction is none of my business. Speculating on conflict between the two only distracts h r n the bigger and more important issue of doping. What I found more compellingwas the complete Le M o d e . text. It clearly shows Greg, who remaids unquestionably the father of the modern era of American cycling champions, standing up and declaring that professional cycling has been and, regrettably, stiil is rotten w t drugs. ih Greg has put himself into personal and business diaculties by speaking out and getting involved with the issue of drugs i today's cycling. Vofuntarily placing himself in this n position shows me honesty and bravery far beyond what most of us could muster. LeMond could instead follow the cyclingworld's expectationsfor past champions and sit around "a fumer le pipe" ('chilliig' in cycling slang) in silence, but, his legitimate coneem for the health and lives of today's athletes and futureriders drives him to do what he can to return cycling to a healthy level. I want to see the same. Since the early 1990s both doping and the medical excessesplaced upon riders' health have gotten out of control.
Most of us will probably need to put aside our Tour time emotions and resist making the judgment that Greg is trying to gain something personal or is simply jealous ofbeing eclipsed as the dominant American cyclist.

I saw Greg race as a champion through the O OS, and into the '90s when the cycling community as a whole turned a blind eye towards doping and consciously ignored the onslaught of EPO in the peloton.

Like Greg, I, too, saw what I beiieve were the effects of EPO when it entered pro cycling
in the early '90s. In the first years it g e w from a few individuals reaping obscene wins

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from exploiting its "benefits,"to entire teams relying on it, essentially forcing all but the m s gi&d racers to either use EPO to keep their piace in cycling, quit or become just ot another obscure rider in t& group. l

I had the honor of racing in eight Tours. Being happily retired, I can reflect on my small part in that race and enjoy seeing it motivate kids just as it did me. So like Greg LeMond, I cannotjust sit idly by watching our sport continue to sufferf3om cheating. It's time to tell the truth.
Why now? Remember that while the Tour de France is the pinnacle of cycling, it is &o the Ieading force in fighting drugs in cycling. Right now, while public attention is still on the Tour, is a goad time to address the problem of doping.
F r Michele F e n d is knownto have supported the a e of EPO to increw his riders' ). perfomances. In `94, while his riders dominated the Ardennes C a s c ,he publicly lsis ridiculed making d e s against EPO saying it.was safe to use and should no$be made ilIegal in cycling. I believe behavior like this and the use of these products should not be tolerated. Violators should receive meaningful bans from the sport, bans that significantly outweigh any perceived benefits.

Many aspiring racers have confronted drug use as they rose through the ranks. UnfommateIy, their silent answer to this insanity is often to quit racing at this level. Otherwise, they risk succumbingto the conventional wisdom that "since everyonetakes drugs to be competitive, YOU should too." This must not continue to be the choice facing promising young racers.

Now, in his retirement, Greg LeMond is fighting to bring racing back to a natural Ievei of honest riders racing to their knits and living a long life to talk about it. I am writing to support him i this fight. n

Both Greg and I are involved with. a j d o r racing team, so this matter continuesto concern us as we support and urge kids to go as far as they can in the sport we love, both for their own personal rewards, and to keep cycling growing. It i irresponsiblefor us t s o encouragekids to race and potentially turn pro without doing 4we can to change cycling back to a sport where they will not likely be asked to take drugs that could ultimately destroy their natural good health, their charactersand their bodies.

Thanks for listening,
Andy Hampsten

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