Would you watch?

[SlicerITST]

Since the Lance Armstrong news and reading the USADA report i was pretty sure other sports are far from clean as well. I did some research and found lots of links from "doping doctors" involved in cycling to football and tennis. We know all the top riders in the Armstrong period where doped. If we say, behind a certain line in the standings they where clean and scratch the ones that where doped the races would have been totally different. I am pretty sure they would have been boring to watch. The excitement would have been there but a lot more localised. To for example the last kilometer of a mountain.

I am wondering what would happen to football and tennis if we made a clean up there. But to make this topic more concrete i would like to ask you a specific question. Would you still watch tennis if tomorrow the top10 players got excluded from the game of tennis and the actual real top level of tennis would be on par with players that are now in the top20?

[supinesmokey13]

Since the Lance Armstrong news and reading the USADA report i was pretty sure other sports are far from clean as well. I did some research and found lots of links from "doping doctors" involved in cycling to football and tennis. We know all the top riders in the Armstrong period where doped. If we say, behind a certain line in the standings they where clean and scratch the ones that where doped the races would have been totally different. I am pretty sure they would have been boring to watch. The excitement would have been there but a lot more localised. To for example the last kilometer of a mountain.

I am wondering what would happen to football and tennis if we made a clean up there. But to make this topic more concrete i would like to ask you a specific question. Would you still watch tennis if tomorrow the top10 players got excluded from the game of tennis and the actual real top level of tennis would be on par with players that are now in the top20?

good question i would as long as there players who have an all-court game like tommy haas, starkhosky, dimitrov gasquet, youzhy, and one handed bh i'll still watch tennis .all-court tennis is beautiful watch no matter who's playing it. thats why when fed loses its a big deal close that traditional all-court game with a one hander is not in fashion case in point fed and nico are the one handers in top 10.

[JohnCurveo]

Fantastic question. I would keep watching but not with the same point of view.

[djarvik]

Very good topic Floris. Although I think the venue may not be the most representative of harsh reality. Personally, I would watch tennis just as much and maybe even more in the scenario you put forth. If anything, this will bring the "unknown" factor up which for a tennis fan is equivalent of that illusive "high", of seeing players that are just as exciting to watch (if not as perfect) as the top guys. This would be "good news" to me.

That said, the reality of tennis is quite different. It breaks down to 3 main categories (to me):

- Tennis fan first, Fan later.
- Fan first, Tennis fan later.
- Tag along.

Should the events unfold as you describe, Tennis will likely suffer a big loss. Fans whose pros are not playing will think twice before shelling out the money for the tickets, that will cost the "Tag alongs" to drop as well. The Tennis fans will of course remain and will keep supporting the sport, but personally, I think it is not enough.

That is why I think that the corporate sector as well as the organizational sector will do their best to not disclose anything "bad" related to any top player of interest. This could trigger a chain reaction that can set tennis as a sport very far back.

As for your comment Xavi, PED come in all forms and shapes. This is one of the best funded research fields out there, it is closely related to major money. I also believe that "they" are way ahead of the entity that monitors such activity in the first place. And that is disregarding the many facts being released now that such entities are actually part of the cover up.

I don't know where the truth lies, but I cannot allow myself to be so naive as to disregard the possibility or rather probability of tennis being affected.

my2c

[Moralspain]

damn!! don't know how but i deleted my post, too lazy to type it again , but yeah i would watch tennis, btw and i don't see myself beating guys that actually beating me if i took EPO, steroids or whatever, so i don't get why pros are gonna need them. I mean i'm not losing matches because i need to hit powerful shots or because i run out of fuel quickly , what i need is accuracy, do you have something for that guys? hahaha
Honestly i think that players between top 100 and top 200 are more likely to take drugs.

[Corbon]

I would still watch. I mean I am still watching sprint races and swimming events where so many athletes in the past were doped.

[JohnCurveo]

I mean i'm not losing matches because i need to hit powerful shots or because i run out of fuel quickly , what i need is accuracy, do you have something for that guys? hahaha

U have epinefrina , this can dilate your eyes and give you better view, also it helps you breathe. Mariano Puerta used this. In field archery some players used propanolol to combat tremblor

[ICEMAN_9588]

I would still watch. I mean I am still watching sprint races and swimming events where so many athletes in the past were doped.

Yes, but it's not even close to what's happening in cycling world.
I don't know if I would keep on watching tennis anyway, it's a situation I should "live" through to give a sure answer.

[Vieira151]

As long as the matches are entertaining and offer a decent-high quality level of tennis, I think tennis is worth watching. Even if your favourites are dumped out due to doping, you are bound to find new players that you enjoy watching who are still playing.

[Otlichno]

I think if the courts were playing like they were many years ago I would end up watching more tennis. But with the courts playing as slowly as they do now, most of the matches would become boring battles of attrition.

[Corbon]

I would still watch. I mean I am still watching sprint races and swimming events where so many athletes in the past were doped.

Yes, but it's not even close to what's happening in cycling world.
I don't know if I would keep on watching tennis anyway, it's a situation I should "live" through to give a sure answer.

I think doping is extremely widespread in swimming and track & field but relatively few athletes are actually exposed. Some are protected by organizations, some go to great lengths to mask their cheating. Physically, the TDF is the most demanding sports event in the world and it has become a "sport" to find out the most efficient enhancing drugs on a big and lucrative market only to be able to compete with the top guys.

And tbh, I find Nadal's appearance since USO 2010 and now his long break very suspicious. Tennis, like Football (Soccer) is one of those sports where doping isn't talked about much but it would be foolish to think that these sports are devoid of it.

[Moralspain]

I think the same about Soderling, something fishy is going on there

[SlicerITST]

TdF is indeed a demanding sports event. That being said, i think there are more comparisons between cycling and tennis in regards to the demand it takes physically. I know the comparison is tough and scewed but if i look at the intensity of a grand slam i am pretty sure its up there with the TdF. You shouldnt forget that cyclist can take cover in the peleton. Im not saying the TdF is easy but compare that to tennis players that play multiple 2+ hours tennis matches where there is absolutely not chance to hide.

[ICEMAN_9588]

I would still watch. I mean I am still watching sprint races and swimming events where so many athletes in the past were doped.

Yes, but it's not even close to what's happening in cycling world.
I don't know if I would keep on watching tennis anyway, it's a situation I should "live" through to give a sure answer.

I think doping is extremely widespread in swimming and track & field but relatively few athletes are actually exposed. Some are protected by organizations, some go to great lengths to mask their cheating. Physically, the TDF is the most demanding sports event in the world and it has become a "sport" to find out the most efficient enhancing drugs on a big and lucrative market only to be able to compete with the top guys.

And tbh, I find Nadal's appearance since USO 2010 and now his long break very suspicious. Tennis, like Football (Soccer) is one of those sports where doping isn't talked about much but it would be foolish to think that these sports are devoid of it.

Ben Johnson, Marion Jones, Justin Gatlin, BALCO, Sotomayor even my fellow countryman Schwazer...And I'm talking about Olympic Champions and World record-men.
To not mention West Germany...

Therefore, I think also athletics got some scandals.
But when I say "not even close", referred to cycling, I mean there's no sport that has got its gold books re-written like this one.
I mean, ALL Tour de France winners from 1996 to 2010 have been disqualified, condemned, or just suspected due to doping.
Same thing about 2nd and 3rd ranked ones! Ullrich, Zulle, Basso, Vinokurov...

You can't find this "level" of doping in any other sport. Yes, anti-doping in cycling is really really more advanced than other sports, I give you that, absolutely.
But there's got to be a reason to explain it.
I'm not a cycling fan, so I understand that to me it could be easier to say "How can you keep going on watching all this?" but seriously, how a normal fan can watch a race without asking himself "is this guy regular?"

And by the way, even Armstrong was protected by UCI (we all know), and look how all this thing has ended.
Of course I agree with the decision of privating him of his titles, and honestly I hope he will got radiation.
But I also know that his accusers, couldn't ignore what was going on in US Postal...

[Otlichno]

http://tennishasasteroidproblem.blogspot.com/ pretty much explains the whole problem there is in tennis. And there obviously is a doping problem.