Dear Lance.
The long suffering, deeply infected and painful boil afflicting our beautiful sport has finally been lanced Lance.
Now is your chance Lance to come clean so that the nasty infection can be dealt to and the wound you have inflicted can heal.
Come on Lance tell us what really went on all those years in your Postal Team and in the peloton. We all need to know so that these terrible mistakes will not be repeated.
Lance you inspired millions with your battles and achievements. You can claim a big chunk of the enormous growth in popularity of cycling worldwide over the past decade. Young and old have picked up this sport because of you.
We loved it how you beat cancer and we loved it how you scaled those enormous heights in the Alps. How you time trialled in the so called “ race of truth”.
Now we want the truth.
You may have needed clever drugs to beat cancer. Not to race your bike.
Livestrong is a fantastic legacy to you and millions have gained inspiration. Cancers have been beaten because of your Livestrong Charity and many clever drugs developed by clever people.
But Lance, you have stepped over the line.
What you did was not clever. The drugs you used to win your most important fight cannot be justified on the sporting field to also win your sporting battles. That is not fair.
Sadly Lance you are now seen as a cheat. Not just any cheat but one of the worst.
That is deeply upsetting for many of us as we hailed you as a sporting genius and as a competitor beyond compare. To now call you a fraud Lance is difficult to even think about let alone say.
How do we explain what you have done Lance to all those young riders who took to this sport because of you and who wanted to emulate you. What mixed messages are they now getting?
Come on Lance it is high time to come clean. The truth always comes to the surface eventually. The sooner you front up the sooner we can move on. Tell us what you did was wrong, terribly wrong. Tell us you are remorseful.
Man up like you did when confronted with cancer.
The sport does not need this distraction any longer. The boil needs to heal.
You are still a young man Lance. You can recover from this by apologising , by explaining the big mistake you made and by continuing to do your great charity work. Many people still admire you.
You have given this sport a wonderful profile. But you are not bigger than the sport. Forget your ego. Look at the big picture. You could still be a part of it.
You run the risk of dragging it down Lance, into a big hole and keeping it there for longer than need be.
Tell us the truth Lance.
Tell us soon.
You owe us that much.
Paul van Velthooven