Yolande de Villiers sanctioned for anti-doping rule violation

1 hour ago, DieselnDust said:

When she drop Robyn and Amy then I start to eat popcorn faster 

Can't wait for her to drop Platt & Sauser... 

1 hour ago, Comrade J said:

On these Stats, I don't see anything strange, me  thinks some people's partners are miffed because they cannot beat her.... CSA and SAID must do their testing ( we know that they also do not have the funds to test so catch 22)

 

https://mtbdata.com/riders/yolande-de-villiers

They have the funds to test some riders like 4 times a year with visits and then test after nationals and Herald. Maybe you just need to pick the right events. 

33 minutes ago, Sid the Sloth said:

They have the funds to test some riders like 4 times a year with visits and then test after nationals and Herald. Maybe you just need to pick the right events. 

Good thing she skipped the tour de PPa then...  

All you people who think just because someone is good at what they do they surely must be cheating. I rode with Yolande 2 weeks ago in the 72km race. We finished same time. The route had a total elevation of 360m. Now that speaks of a very fast race. I passed 3 other women along the way and at the speed they were doing they could have been on a Sunday afternoon ride. So why is someone cheating/doping just because they pedal a bit harder and put in more effort than the other people. Maybe the guys that won also might have been cheating because they rode so much faster than the other guys.

There are people out there that are just in another class. No matter what age they are.

So why is no one calling out Annemiek van Vleuten, she only trains with the men, that's why she is so much stronger than her fellow cyclists

6 minutes ago, zeerpuD1 said:

All you people who think just because someone is good at what they do they surely must be cheating. I rode with Yolande 2 weeks ago in the 72km race. We finished same time. The route had a total elevation of 360m. Now that speaks of a very fast race. I passed 3 other women along the way and at the speed they were doing they could have been on a Sunday afternoon ride. So why is someone cheating/doping just because they pedal a bit harder and put in more effort than the other people. Maybe the guys that won also might have been cheating because they rode so much faster than the other guys.

There are people out there that are just in another class. No matter what age they are.

Mate, if the top guys had previous doping violations the speculation would be justified. But they don’t… I ride with most of them, consider some of them good friends who I have spent a LOT of time talking about this issue with and I really believe they’re clean. Apples and oranges. 

2 minutes ago, Comrade J said:

So why is no one calling out Annemiek van Vleuten, she only trains with the men, that's why she is so much stronger than her fellow cyclists

Has she served a doping ban before? 

Just now, Sid the Sloth said:

Has she served a doping ban before? 

💥

7 minutes ago, Comrade J said:

So why is no one calling out Annemiek van Vleuten, she only trains with the men, that's why she is so much stronger than her fellow cyclists

Maybe because Annemiek is still allowed to ride the epic?

On the SA vs the world doping issue, don't we have HEAPS of doping violations in schoolboy rugby, bodybuilding, power lifting etc?

I know at one point a whole heap of Craven week kids were bust.

All I want to know is whether Shan Wilson's number is saved on Yolande's phone.... 

20 hours ago, Danger Dassie said:

Don't agree, we have a relatively large population index and geography, along with one of the biggest growth rates in cycling sport.  As far as doping goes SA has to date approximately 20-30 published cases max over the last ten years. Across all cycling disciplines and sanctions.

There are some Euro nations with a smaller population sample and cycling population that could be argued as worse. 
Then if we look at Spain, Belgium, Italy, etc as examples, the number of cases is pretty scary, particularly among amateurs. In many respects nowhere near as transparent either. 
So please define "very very very bad" and "astounding." 

So lets look at past MTB pros who dominated the early days of MTB stage racing like Sani in SA : George, Evans, Stewart, Knox, Wilson, Croeser, all tested positive and banned/sanctioned. A lot of podium positions would have been very different. And that's only the "pros"s that got caught. That's a significant amount of positives for such a small sample of pro mtb riders. And how many wannabee vets and masters racers were doping during that time who were never tested ......

15 minutes ago, bolt67 said:

So lets look at past MTB pros who dominated the early days of MTB stage racing like Sani in SA : George, Evans, Stewart, Knox, Wilson, Croeser, all tested positive and banned/sanctioned. A lot of podium positions would have been very different. And that's only the "pros"s that got caught. That's a significant amount of positives for such a small sample of pro mtb riders. And how many wannabee vets and masters racers were doping during that time who were never tested ......

This actually makes more sense than an annual accounting.

If we look at the number of TOP *male* SA cyclists over the years, it is quite something to see just how many of them were on the juice. (I specify gender as we have had some fantastic, unsanctioned ladies).

Of those who raced World Cups, won SA champs events and/or went to the Olympics, only a few were never sanctioned in some way.

I wonder if Kevin Evans ha to give back all his Maccabiah Games medals?

15 minutes ago, bolt67 said:

So lets look at past MTB pros who dominated the early days of MTB stage racing like Sani in SA : George, Evans, Stewart, Knox, Wilson, Croeser, all tested positive and banned/sanctioned. A lot of podium positions would have been very different. And that's only the "pros"s that got caught. That's a significant amount of positives for such a small sample of pro mtb riders. And how many wannabee vets and masters racers were doping during that time who were never tested ......

Out of interest of those 6 you mentioned only George, Knox and Wilson showed a level of sophistication in the way they went about doping (at least in relation to the way they got caught). With Evans, Stewart and Croeser it was like a doping version of dumb and dumber, I don't think they had the ability to be clever dopers, in my biased opinion likely they only doped for a short time before they got caught. And both Evans and Stewart were pretty useless at the end of the careers by the time they got caught despite the doping.

17 minutes ago, Skubarra said:

Out of interest of those 6 you mentioned only George, Knox and Wilson showed a level of sophistication in the way they went about doping (at least in relation to the way they got caught). With Evans, Stewart and Croeser it was like a doping version of dumb and dumber, I don't think they had the ability to be clever dopers, in my biased opinion likely they only doped for a short time before they got caught. And both Evans and Stewart were pretty useless at the end of the careers by the time they got caught despite the doping.

 

was Evans not caught with white sniffable dope? 

19 hours ago, binxc said:

She beat both at SA XCM Champs 2021, as well as Hayley Preen, Sarah Hill and Theresa Ralph (Robyn was disqualified due to a route error). Also narrowly lost to Robyn in a sprint finish at Race to the Sun one year, if I recall. I think the comment earlier in the thread about lack of depth in the ultra fields is fair but it isn't just at this level she is winning. I don't think anyone at the ultras ever gets tested in either the men's 

 

That is why looking at her GC position at all the race she does raises eyebrows? Ladies field too small. But regular Top 10 at events that include serious male contenders....🤔

22 hours ago, Spafsack said:

I regularly see her name pop up in the news, amazing how she does it. To be that quick, top 6, men and woman, that is scary fit. I don't know what to say to be honest, maybe she trains everyday and is super fit. But she does basically beat any other woman racer almost every time hands down. And to do that at 50 is remarkable. 

AND with a heart condition😳. AND she beats pro men on GC. Remarkable indeed! Shows you what can be done with proper training and talent. (Just forget about the previous convictions)

17 hours ago, babse said:

Good thing she skipped the tour de PPa then...  

Rumour in the A-group was the anti-doping trokkie was there on a tip-off since it's so expensive to test... So... Anyone see who got sent to the porta-loo with a cup...?

4 minutes ago, bleedToWin said:

Rumour in the A-group was the anti-doping trokkie was there on a tip-off since it's so expensive to test... So... Anyone see who got sent to the porta-loo with a cup...?

Believe the podium got sent to the porta-pisinnacup... I spoke to gent who picked up 3rd, after his test. 

The level of ladies cycling and especially mtb in South Africa currently is far from the high quality as a overall peloton/group compared to recent years. 

I guess only she knows, any good cyclist is always a suspect!

If you're 100% clean it must be a little bit cool to see random internet people assuming you're doping, with only your results as proof!

7 minutes ago, Shebeen said:

I guess only she knows, any good cyclist is always a suspect!

 

If you're 100% clean it must be a little bit cool to see random internet people assuming you're doping, with only your results as proof!

 

I would think it would be frustrating. IF you're 100% clean and have worked your butt off to get to the level you are on and random keyboard warriors assume you took the "easy" route.

I have no skin in this game. I perhaps naively like to think that athletes are clean, but I've been proved wrong  many times (hello Lance). 

1 hour ago, KeenMTBer said:

AND with a heart condition😳. AND she beats pro men on GC. Remarkable indeed! Shows you what can be done with proper training and talent. (Just forget about the previous convictions)

Please name and shame - who are these pro men being beaten by a 50 year-old lady doper?!

Hahaha, people, not even Lawn Bowls is clean.

Come now, its not if, its more like when someone gets popped in most professional sports. No accusations from my side on any athlete until proven guilty but normally when a performance is unbeliveable it usually is.

Sport is a form of theater, enjoy the show and dont ask questions....

3 hours ago, babse said:

Believe the podium got sent to the porta-pisinnacup... I spoke to gent who picked up 3rd, after his test. 

Thought you were joking!!!

2 hours ago, The Ouzo said:

I would think it would be frustrating. IF you're 100% clean and have worked your butt off to get to the level you are on and random keyboard warriors assume you took the "easy" route.

 

I have no skin in this game. I perhaps naively like to think that athletes are clean, but I've been proved wrong  many times (hello Lance). 

yes that's a given. I'm sure even Lance took some joy out of having to lie through his teeth to the same old questions, but then he was a psychopath. I think it sucks the most if you're 100% clean and not achieving podiums as the dopers are on them, but if you're winning then there must be a little bit of extra satisfaction there.

Was Burry 100% clean, nobody will ever know for sure? (He never got caught). Pretty much all the local guys chasing his back wheel got bust with the sauce at one point or another. If he was clean as a whistle, then it must have been double satisfying to know the guys behind you are not catching you despite their cheating. (my timeline might be wrong, but the highest profile example of this was DG doing EPO chasing that maiden epic title, Burry was surely around then still?).

*I know it's in quote marks, but winning with doping still is not "easy". a shortcut maybe.