Today I came across an article written by Thomas Friedman on the Op-Ed page of the NY Times. I agree with the cycling aspect of his article but take exception to other ideas. Here is an excerpt:
"There is no doubt that Lance Armstrong's seventh straight victory in the Tour de France, which has prompted sportswriters to rename the whole race the Tour de Lance, makes him one of the greatest U.S. athletes of all time. What I find most impressive about Armstrong, besides his sheer willpower to triumph over cancer, is the strategic focus he brings to his work, from his prerace training regimen to the meticulous way he and his cycling team plot out every leg of the race. It is a sight to behold. I have been thinking about them lately because their abilities to meld strength and strategy - to thoughtfully plan ahead and to sacrifice today for a big gain tomorrow - seem to be such fading virtues in American life".
Yes its true Lance has done an excellent job in the last seven years. It has not been a secret that the Discovery team has prepared well. They have ridden every mile of the tour and knows the places to hold back and the places to take the lead. He and his team put in the hours of training, testing in the wind tunnel, brought vendors together for the overall benefit of the team not each individual vendor and selected the best team so that winning could be possible.
I do wonder, however, why all of the other teams have not noticed the blueprint for success and have not done their best to follow it. In viewing the coverage of the tour, it appears that many of the teams come not to win the race but to win a stage here or there or to win the green, polka-dot or white jersey. It is my opinion that sponsors deserve more than this. Sponsors deserve each team focusing on a race win. Doing all that it takes would seem to be the only logical approach. The stage and jersey wins pale in comparison to a race win.
Where I begin to take exception is this comment Friedman makes:
"Sadly, those are the virtues we now associate with China, Chinese athletes and Chinese leaders".
Friedman has obviously never been to cycling races around America. On any given night there are those weekend warriors who after putting in a full day at the office or plant stretch themselves to win local road races and crits to prepare themselves for the Saturday/Sunday events without the benefit of sponsorship. These cyclists have the best bikes they can afford, understand their physical abilities and work hard to understand the competition.
Look no further than the last Summer Olympics. Chinese athletes won medals but not nearly as many as did Americans. Heck, there has not been a Chinese team in the Tour de France. Its obvious Mr. Friedman is trying to make a point to American business leaders. But he should refrain from putting down the many American athletes who are the Lance Armstrong of their respective sports and the many American athletes who win local events so we can have other Lance Armstrong's to cheer.
Journalists try to mix the business and sports metaphors and in a few cases get it right. In this case, Thomas Friedman has missed the boat. Mr Friedman should take a lesson from Lance and do all the preparation necessary before dissing America's athletes.
Climbing off my soapbox...
Steelrider2
No comments:
Post a Comment