Bad Blood: The Secret Life of the Tour de France

by Jeremy Whittle

Jeremy Whittle’s journey from unquestioning fan to Tour de France insider and confirmed skeptic is the story of how a sport has been corrupted by commercialism, scandal and drugs. In effect, Whittle claims, the sport is destroying itself from within.

Genres: Cycling, Sports, Nonfiction

288 pages, Paperback

First published July 8, 2007

Reviews

[Kristiāna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A reliance on doping is based on ignorance. ‘The philosophy behid doping starts with thinking that everybody is doing it, that to be on a level playing field it’s necessary, and that you’re disadvantaged if you don’t do it. But in many cases the riders have very little information. They hear things, they’re told things by people that seem influential and once they start, it’s a very slippery rope. It’s very hard to change. The psychology of doping is treacherous.’

[Jeff · Rating 1 out of 5]

Congratulations to the author as he’s gotten my money for a bad book.
He constantly adds details about his own life - he also cycles- but who cares? He whines about covering the TdF as a journalist “it was difficult for us all”, uh, don’t you think it was a bit harder for the cyclists????
Mostly this comes off as a victory lap after Armstrong’s fall from grace because he was a prick to the author.

Recommend reading Tyler Hamiltons book for a far better account of this era in cycling and doping. Save yourself having to read about the life of some sad sack journalist.

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting account of doping in cycling and how it is all pervasive. Very sad and dispiriting

[Andrew Buchanan]

Great book, obviously a bit out of date now, now but interesting to see how the origins of the Armstrong scandal unfolded, a bit of cycling history

[Lydia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent.
Fascinating to read a book published in 2008 that says Armstrong was doping without saying he was doping 😀

[Przemek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written and researched.

But you will never look at cycling and otehr sports the same way...

[Alana Archer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious author with some cracking one-liners. Sad to think about how much I don't trust athletes to be clean though, not sure much has changed?

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'mAn Interesting read which follows the descent into doping..E.P.O. in particular at the later part of last century and the beginning of this..as to whether Cycling still has a problem?..well we can hope not but the whispers still abound.
Lance Armstrong at the time of my edition of the book was still vehemently denying any involvement with doping pointing out his record of 'clean' tests..however given the ambiguous nature of E.P.O testing people where evidently asking questions then and though(possibly for legal reasons) this book was unable to directly point out lance as a cheat by implication it's pretty clear he was.
It's a interesting book set in a dark era of cycling which for all its darkness was an era I remain fond of..though many of the heroics I recall where unfortunately tainted the personality and spectacle of the race still shone through.
In fairness though anti doping the book does allow through interviews other side to come through and on reflection sponsorship,packed racing calendars and harder and harder major stage races probably played as much of a part as a drive to succeed.
In some ways the war on E.P.O possibly tainted cycling which is a shame...it's only now that similar rumblings are occurring around athletics and some of the 'Doctors' in this book have worked writhing Football,Tennis and other sports.
Though it's a shame I do hope and suspect drug cheating in Cycling is much harder now due to the damage to team sponsors who will use or drop teams...the price Armstrong is paying is now a heavy one..though one it's difficult to have any sympathy with him for.
As an update I've recently reread this and seen the Lance documentary..the current Lance is far more apologetic than the Lance is this book but alas maybe not contrite enough.
It matters less that Lance cheated...the signs where always there..it's the nature of denial for so long that lost him the most favour I feel.

[Sebby Atkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Bad Blood: The Secret Life of the Tour de France" by Jeremy Whittle is a captivating and eye-opening exploration of the dark side of professional cycling. Whittle delves deep into the doping scandals and corruption that have plagued the prestigious race, revealing an intricate web of deceit and betrayal. With meticulous research and compelling storytelling, he exposes the relentless pursuit of success at any cost. The book offers a comprehensive analysis of the systemic issues within the sport, shedding light on the pressures faced by athletes and the complicity of cycling authorities. "Bad Blood" is a thought-provoking and thoughtfully written exposé that sheds light on the complex realities of professional cycling. The chapter where Jeremy whittle illustrated about the doping life of tour de France champion Lance Armstrong and what it was like to meet him and interview him really encourage me to read more throughout the book.

[Jordana Winchesterdream · Rating 4 out of 5]

As one of the few cycling fans in the world that DON'T like Lance Armstrong, it was great to read a book that vindicated all I think about him. Bad Blood laid all the facts on the table, and included a lot of information that fans don't have access to, Jeremy Whittle himself describes the cycling world as a "bubble". I noticed he was very careful never to say that Armstrong is in fact a doper (he does mention all the court cases against people who have said such things) but he does carefully point out lots of the issues that make Armstrong's persistent claims of being clean seem somewhat incredulous. A definite must read for all cycling fans. Yes it maligns a sport we all love but isn't it better to get all the 'bad blood' out in the open and try and clean our beloved Tour up?

[Garrett Burnett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whittle documents his journey from wide-eyed cycling fan and new journalist to jaded cynic. Whittle covers a whole cast of characters, but dwells the longest on Lance Armstrong and David Millar. Bad Blood is a great book on the EPO era of professional cycling--if you care about that in the least, this is your book (though there's no guarantee you'll see eye-to-eye with Whittle).

[Stuart · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the books that have surfaced in the last few years about juice in the biking, this was shortlisted for the Will Hill sports book of the year in 2008. Was good, but the structure took a little getting used to, and its obviously hugely out of date with the Lance thing having happened (although he does imply a lot about Lance without actually saying so tbf to him).

6.5/10

[Dan Cohen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good read and a decent account of the time when professional cycle road racing became corrupted by blood doping practices. The author manages to tell that story with reference to his own journey from starstruck fan to professional journalist to embittered ex-fan - the result of what he saw and heard while following the pro peleton.

[Pete Linfield · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book made me suspicious of the whole 'Tour de France' History. We don't know who took drugs. So there will be a lot of cheats. Sad Really because this is the most spectacular endurance sport on the planet.

As far as the book goes? I didn't find it particularly well written.

[Grim-Anal King · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read a lot of these pro cycling exposes and this rings truer than most because of the author's fairly nuanced, slowly shifting perspective. The writing flows well, making for a very rapid read by my ponderous standards.

[Christian Leary · Rating 4 out of 5]

easy, entertaining read. captured the ingrained attitudes and self-sustaining culture of the grand tours. shameful behaviours of those in and around cycling laid bare. would live to have seen a post-lance revelation additional chapter.

[Sebastien Martineau · Rating 4 out of 5]

It would have been a more interesting read if I read it before Lance Armstrong coonfession of doping and prior to reading Tyler Hamilton's excellent book "The Secret Race", still I give it 4 stars for fairness considering the time it was written.

[Carolyn Lochhead · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a bit of an eye-opener. I've no idea how credible it is, but it suggests that many Tour de France cyclists are using drugs to enhance their performance, and that Lance Armstrong is not as nice a guy as his publicity makes out. Interesting, if a bit depressing.

[Crharnish · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting assessment, but as always, somewhat opinion based. Good food for thought.

[Jonathan Dennis · Rating 5 out of 5]

No-one who read this was surprised to learn the truth about Big Lance

[Anthony Stell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad - bit raggedy in the story-telling and the Tyler Hamilton book cuts to the heart of the matter much better (and with more up-to-date news). But still a decent page-turner.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

An easy read about the corruption in competetive cycling, before Lance confessed all.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Account of the author’s own growing disillusion with the world of professional cycling due to the widespread doping and required complicity of journalists, particularly in the lucrative world opened up by Armstrong’s tour successes and which the UCI under Verbruggen sought to exploit. He tells of how he gradually moved from an innocent to a conspirator and then quickly to one of the cynical and ostracised “trolls”.