Lost in the white-out coverage of Greg LeMond’s legal settlement with Trek so far has been the issue of why the lawsuit occurred in the first place.
LeMond believed that Trek had stopped supporting his line in deference to Lance Armstrong, who was out for revenge against LeMond for suggesting that Armstrong was tainted by doping.
But in the “we’re all friends now” coverage of the case settlement, the backstory never made it to press. Does the “friendship” include a reconciliation with Armstrong? Are we finally going to see America’s titans of cycling bury the hatchet and work together for the sport’s future?
We at Bike Intelligencer wish it would happen. There’s much to admire about both of these competitors, including their charitable work.
But we’re not holding our breath. Somehow the media “amnesia” over the lawsuit’s origin suggests that the subject still is sore, or at the very least not closed.
Last fall LeMond told the New York Daily News (whose piece should be required reading for anyone interested in cycling doping):
“This is not just a contract dispute,” LeMond counters. “It’s about defending myself from people that are out to destroy everything I’ve done in cycling… I want to hold John Burke accountable. I want to hold Lance Armstrong accountable.”
Within the coming days and weeks and months, we should get an idea of how successful LeMond was, and how satisfied he really truly is with this settlement.