French spectators along the route of the Tour d France spat at American Lance Armstrong as he rode to victory once again. Even Reuters,  the heavily left wing—biased British news agency, has written about the disgraceful behavior of the French fans. 

Not the New York Times, though. For the Times, it is a matter of celebrating achievement with graciousness.

...the French did celebrate cycling and the Tour de France, as well as a man wearing yellow, in the middle of the pack, named Lance Armstrong.

For French people of a certain age, Armstrong is no Jacques Anquetil or Bernard Hinault, yet he is a six—time champion of a sport they love and respect, so they cheered as the cyclists swooped past them, eight times, up and down, past buildings and monuments and parks that make you feel weak over their beauty and their history.

Gracious hosts, the people applauded all the cyclists, including Armstrong, ignoring his touchy relationship with French courts and part of the French news media. If there were any whistles, catcalls, banners, gestures, I missed them.

Posted by Ed  07 26 04