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Vance Collins was one of the fastest cyclists in the world. In his prime, he was regarded as one of the greatest cyclists that the world had ever seen, but his legendary reputation came crashing down at a relatively low-level cycling tournament. Nobody could have predicted that such an insignificant event would destroy one of the world’s most respected sportspersons of his generation.
There was a cyclothon organised in a rural city close to a large metropolis. The traffic there was not too high, and there was a very low, almost negligible risk of natural disasters. Plus, the roads there were known to be very smooth and appropriate for most vehicles, including bicycles.
The event began, and many cyclists from different parts of the state participated in it. Some cyclists who had participated in national and international events also attended the event.
But undoubtedly, the highlight of the event was Vance Collins, the man, the myth, and the legend. Many people flocked to the event just to see him race that day. It was unreal; it felt like there weren’t exactly cycling fans in the event, but more like Vance Collins fans only.
Collins was almost leading the cyclothon with the exception of a few patches of land where other racers took the lead. The other cyclists sometimes got too flustered thinking about the prospect of overtaking Collins, and this would often lead them to slow down as a mark of respect. Regardless, the event was proceeding normally for the most part.
However, a thing happened not long after that that would change the way the world viewed Collins. He started lagging behind in the race and eventually fainted and fell off his bicycle. It happened so quickly that some people didn’t notice and accidentally ran him over. This caused a huge collision in the middle of the race track, and the event was about to be briefly halted. The injured Collins told the organisers to let the event continue, as he alone was not worth the time people invested in the cyclothon.
The medics took Vance Collins to a nearby tent where they treated him. He suffered non-serious bruises as a result of the cyclists trampling over him, but they weren’t too threatening. There were a few lacerations that were treated immediately, and his wounds were sterilized. The medics noticed that his breath smelled odd, so they ran a test on him.
It turns out that he was intoxicated and had been drinking not too long before participating in the cyclothon. Even worse, he had some anti-depressant drugs in his system that mixed with the alcohol and caused him to faint. This led to allegations against him, which immediately damaged his reputation. He became known as a drug addict and a possible dope user, which caused him to be banned from various sports conventions that he previously participated in.
The truth is, he wasn’t actually addicted to drugs. He was having panic-induced anxiety attacks that he wanted to get rid of. At his therapist’s recommendation, he began taking antidepressants and other drugs. He continued taking them regularly, but one chance of bad luck mixed his drugs with a short drinking session moments before a cyclothon, and that was enough for his career to come crashing down.
Sometime later, the allegations against him were proven to be false, but the damage was done. His prime was over, and his public image didn’t recover overnight. It did take some years before he was acknowledged as a once-respected athlete and still a decent human being. This teaches us a valuable lesson that years of hard work and sacrifice can be undermined by a simple mishap. It’s okay to make mistakes, but remember that a mistake can ruin everything you worked hard for in a moment.
