Lance Armstrong Stripped of Tour de France Titles

[gunnar hendershow]

http://espn.go.com/olympics/cycling/story/_/id/8298135/usada-ban-lance-armstrong-life-strip-seven-tour-de-france-titles-charges-used-performance-enhancing-drugs-cycling-career

Lance Armstrong won't fight charges

AUSTIN, Texas -- U.S. Anti-Doping Agency chief executive Travis Tygart says the agency will ban Lance Armstrong from cycling for life and strip him of his seven Tour de France titles for doping.

Armstrong on Thursday night dropped any further challenges to USADA's allegations that he took performance-enhancing drugs to win cycling's premier event from 1999-2005.

Armstrong says USADA doesn't have the authority to vacate his Tour titles. However, Tygart told The Associated Press that USADA can do it.

Tygart called the Armstrong case a "heartbreaking" example of a win-at-all costs approach to sports.

Armstrong, who retired last year, declined to enter arbitration -- his last option -- because he said he was weary of fighting accusations that have dogged him for years. He has consistently pointed to the hundreds of drug tests that he has passed as proof of his innocence.

"There comes a point in every man's life when he has to say, 'Enough is enough.' For me, that time is now," Armstrong said in a statement sent to The Associated Press. He called the USADA investigation an "unconstitutional witch hunt."

"I have been dealing with claims that I cheated and had an unfair advantage in winning my seven Tours since 1999," he said. "The toll this has taken on my family and my work for our foundation and on me leads me to where I am today -- finished with this nonsense."

Armstrong insisted his decision is not an admission of drug use, but a refusal to enter an arbitration process he believes is improper and unfair to athletes facing charges.

"USADA cannot assert control of a professional international sport and attempt to strip my seven Tour de France titles," he said. "I know who won those seven Tours, my teammates know who won those seven Tours, and everyone I competed against knows who won those seven Tours."

USADA maintains that Armstrong has used banned substances as far back as 1996, including the blood-booster EPO and steroids as well as blood transfusions -- all to boost his performance.

The 40-year-old Armstrong walked away from the sport in 2011 without being charged after a two-year federal criminal investigation into many of the same accusations he faces from USADA. The federal probe was closed in February, but USADA announced in June it had evidence Armstrong used banned substances and methods -- and encouraged their use by teammates. The agency also said it had blood tests from 2009 and 2010 that were "fully consistent" with blood doping.

Included in USADA's evidence were emails written by Armstrong's former U.S. Postal Service teammate Floyd Landis, who was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France title after a positive drug test. Landis' emails to a USA Cycling official detailed allegations of a complex doping program on the team.

Landis, who lost his 2006 Tour title to a doping conviction, will be arraigned Friday morning in U.S. District Court in San Diego on a single count of wire fraud related to fundraising for his legal defense, but under an agreement with the U.S. Attorney's Office, his case will be dismissed if he repays donors within three years.

The USADA also said it had 10 former Armstrong teammates ready to testify against him. Other than suggesting they include Landis and Tyler Hamilton, both of whom have admitted to doping offenses, the agency has refused to say who they are or specifically what they would say.

"There is zero physical evidence to support (the) outlandish and heinous claims. The only physical evidence here is the hundreds of (doping) controls I have passed with flying colors," Armstrong said.

Armstrong sued USADA in Austin, where he lives, in an attempt to block the case and was supported by the UCI, the sport's governing body. A judge threw out the case on Monday, siding with USADA despite questioning the agency's pursuit of Armstrong in his retirement.

"USADA's conduct raises serious questions about whether its real interest in charging Armstrong is to combat doping, or if it is acting according to less noble motives," such as politics or publicity, U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks wrote.

Now the ultra-competitive Armstrong has done something virtually unthinkable for him: He has quit before a fight is over.

"Today I turn the page. I will no longer address this issue, regardless of the circumstances. I will commit myself to the work I began before ever winning a single Tour de France title: serving people and families affected by cancer, especially those in underserved communities," Armstrong said.

Armstrong could have pressed his innocence in USADA's arbitration process, but the cyclist has said he believes most people already have made up their minds about whether he's a fraud or a persecuted hero.

It's a stunning move for an athlete who built his reputation on not only beating cancer, but forcing himself through grueling offseason workouts no one else could match, then crushing his rivals in the Alps and the Pyrenees.

Although he already had been crowned a world champion and won individual stages at the Tour de France, Armstrong was still relatively unknown in the U.S. until he won the epic race for the first time in 1999. It was the ultimate comeback tale: When diagnosed with cancer, doctors had given him less than a 50 percent chance of survival before surgery and brutal cycles of chemotherapy saved his life.

Armstrong's riveting victories, his work for cancer awareness and his gossip-page romances with rocker Sheryl Crow, fashion designer Tory Burch and actress Kate Hudson made him a figure who transcended sports.

His dominance of the Tour de France elevated the sport's popularity in America to unprecedented levels. His story and success helped sell millions of the "Livestrong" plastic yellow wrist bracelets, and enabled him to enlist lawmakers and global policymakers to promote cancer awareness and research. His Lance Armstrong Foundation has raised nearly $500 million since its founding in 1997.

Created in 2000, USADA is recognized by Congress as the official anti-doping agency for Olympic sports in the United States. Its investigators joined U.S. agents during the federal probe, and USADA chief executive Travis Tygart had dismissed Armstrong's lawsuit as an attempt at "concealing the truth." He said the agency is motivated by one goal -- exposing cheaters in sport.

Others close to Armstrong were caught up in the charges: Johan Bruyneel, the coach of Armstrong's teams, and three members of the medical staff and a consultant were also charged. Bruyneel is taking his case to arbitration, while two medical team staffers and consulting doctor Michele Ferrari didn't formally contest the charges and were issued lifetime bans by USADA. Ferrari later said he was innocent.

In a sport rife with cheaters, Armstrong has been under constant suspicion since the 1990s from those who refused to believe he was a clean rider winning cycling's premier event against a field of doped-up competition.

He had tense public disputes with USADA, the World Anti-Doping Agency, some former teammates and assistants and even Greg LeMond, the first American to win the Tour de France.

Through it all, Armstrong vigorously denied any and all hints, rumors and direct accusations he was cheating. He had the blazing personality, celebrity and personal wealth needed to fight back with legal and public relations battles to clear his name -- and he did, time after time.

Armstrong won his first Tour at a time when doping scandals had rocked the race. He was leading the race when a trace amount of a banned anti-inflammatory corticosteroid was found in his urine; cycling officials said he was authorized to use a small amount of a cream to treat saddle sores.

After Armstrong's second victory in 2000, French judicial officials investigated his Postal Service team for drug use. That investigation ended with no charges, but the allegations kept coming.

Armstrong was criticized for his relationship with Ferrari, who was banned by Italian authorities over doping charges in 2002. Former personal and team assistants accused Armstrong of having steroids in an apartment in Spain and disposing of syringes that were used for injections.

In 2004, a Dallas-based promotions company initially refused to pay him a $5 million bonus for winning his sixth Tour de France because it wanted to investigate allegations raised by media in Europe. Testimony in that case included former teammate Frankie Andreu and his wife, Betsy, saying Armstrong told doctors during his 1996 cancer treatments that he had taken a cornucopia of steroids and performance-enhancing drugs.

Two books published in Europe, "L.A. Confidential" and "L.A. Official," also raised doping allegations and, in 2005, French magazine L'Equipe reported that retested urine samples from the 1999 Tour showed EPO use.

Armstrong fought every accusation with denials and, in some cases, lawsuits against the European media outlets that reported them.

But he showed signs that he was tiring of the never-ending questions. Armstrong retired (for the first time) in 2005 and almost immediately considered a comeback before deciding to stay on the sidelines, in part, because he didn't want to keep answering doping questions.

"I'm sick of this," Armstrong said in 2005. "Sitting here today, dealing with all this stuff again, knowing if I were to go back, there's no way I could get a fair shake -- on the roadside, in doping control, or the labs."

But three years later, Armstrong was 36 and itching to ride again. He came back to finish third in the 2009 Tour de France.

Armstrong raced in the Tour again in 2010, under the cloud of the federal criminal investigation. Early last year, he quit the sport for good, but made a brief return as a triathlete until the USADA investigation shut him down.

During his sworn testimony in the dispute over the $5 million bonus, Armstrong said he wouldn't take performance enhancing drugs because he had too much to lose.

"(The) faith of all the cancer survivors around the world. Everything I do off the bike would go away, too," Armstrong said then. "And don't think for a second I don't understand that. It's not about money for me. Everything. It's also about the faith that people have put in me over the years. So all of that would be erased."

Real big news coming out. I have no idea what to think as he's never tested positive but the links have been so intense for years, sometimes people claim to have the smoking gun and it fizzles out, then others do, and all the scrutiny he's been under. Maybe the legal fees were too much for Lance? I don't know.

Discuss.

[naiwf]

It defied logic that he never cheated, although it seems like he never truly got caught. It seems like EVERYONE else he was competing against was doping, and considering the fact he wasn't superhuman before he developed cancer it was one of those things that never quite added up. There are many other top athletes that looked like they took PEDs, but few of the performance spikes stood out as much as Lance's did. I've liked some athletes who I assumed cheated, but I've always been in favor of stripping them of everything they ever won/achieved if they get caught, or pull a McGwire.

[The Buscher]

The USADA better damn well release their evidence on Armstrong. Even if his peak defied logic, the fact is he was never caught. Right now it just seems like a clear case of guilty until proven innocent. If they do reveal conclusive evidence, then fine - the ban is justified. But right now this just seems ridiculous.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

He still refuses to admit he doped though. The problem is that the UCI won't speak out against him as he's "donated" a LOT of money to them over the years. Even his loving teammates from yesteryear have come out to admit that doping was rife in the US Postal team - these guys would be the last to say anything (like Hincapie). Guys like Jonathan Vaughters have admitted it and this guy is now seen as squeaky clean in his current guise. Everything poinjts to Armstrong doping - he was going up mountains at a ridiculous speed compared to the current riders, powering away from guys like Pantani (proven doper), Basso (admitted to doping), Virenque (high profile doping), Ullrich (accepted a ban) etc etc. All the top guys were doping back then. speed and time differences as well as the blood oxygen and haemoglobin levels were crazy in the late 90s.

If Armstrong was Italian or Spanish then this would not be such an issue in the news but cos he's from Amurikuuuuh everyone is up in arms. The evidence (both hard - his levels, and hearsay - reports of seeing him dope from teammates etc) point towards the fact that he has cheated...and worse, remains totally unrepentant and unapologetic about it. He is the worst kind of doper, hiding behind red tape and a legal team. I have much more respect for the guys who throw up their hands and say "fair enough, I doped, the pressure from team bosses was unbearable but it was still my choice to dope, I'm sorry, I'm going to make a change, never feel bad for me, I was a scumbag..." like Millar and Vaughters.

Armstrong, Valverde, Contador, Vinokourov etc can piss off.

[SeanDMan]

They don't have the authority to strip Lance Armstrong of medals they haven'l awarded him. Their only interest is assassinating him in the public eye. Considering how sue happy he's been in the past and how much has been thrown at him that never stuck, they're in for a long fight.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

The UCI have the power to strip his titles but USADA don't. He's been very chummy with the UCI for a long time so it's gonna be difficult for it to happen.

I can see this going on for some more time yet.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

Turns out that Jan Ullrich won four Tour de France races after all!

[SRN]

Don't worry, he'll be charged for doping as well.

Honestly, does news like this even surprise anyone anymore?

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

Well Ullrich had his post-2005 titles stripped from him but not before. It's all a big mess.

Though Ullrich's first Tour win (the one that's always actually been his) was a proper display of brilliance and a shining light after having to help the dope-tastic Bjarne Riis the year before.

If other sports were as strict on drug testing as cycling I think a lot of people would end up extremely disillusioned.

Ultimately, I've been thinking and feel that some massive corruption and coverup is going to be found within the UCI and things are going to get worse before they get better.

[Dan]

I say: Let them go at it with drugs, let them all do it then it'll create a new level playing field and the only people they're harming is themselves.

[HailtotheYo]

I say: Let them go at it with drugs, let them all do it then it'll create a new level playing field and the only people they're harming is themselves.

That's pretty much exactly what happened.

People are just mad at Lance because he did it better than everyone and they simply can't pin him down.

[Adam]

Can we at least change the thread title here for now? Armstrong hasn't been stripped of anything at all yet.

I hope he isn't. I don't think I could stomach his entire career being erased due to doping offences. The USADA absolutely must make public their supposed evidence as soon as is feasibly possible, and I certainly hope they have more than the word of some ex-riders 'blowing the whistle' on him.

If he has doped, and won his 7 titles off the back of that doping, then shame on him and shame on anybody covering it up, from Johan Bruyneel right up to UCI themselves, who surely cannot have gone unawares to it throughout all that time. If he is innocent, then the USADA wants stringing up from a pole for dragging Lance Armstrong's name through the mud on no justification, as well as a sport already trying to recover from hefty blows in regards to doping.

As he never tested positive for anything and as yet there has been no evidence forthcoming to prove the doping claims, I remain for now in the 'innocent until proven guilty' section but I think people are right in saying there is a lot to this story still to be revealed.

[Colly]

I hope our overpaid professional footballers can learn from the squeaky clean actions of road cyclists.

[naiwf]

Can we at least change the thread title here for now? Armstrong hasn't been stripped of anything at all yet.

It's official now.

[Fudge]

Can't be arsed reading all of that, but it's not like they can take his wins away from him. He's already won the races, it's not like they're gonna go back in time and re-do them, so what's the point. Just ban him if he's guilty.

[Cymbols]

Can't be arsed reading all of that, but it's not like they can take his wins away from him. He's already won the races, it's not like they're gonna go back in time and re-do them, so what's the point. Just ban him if he's guilty.

He's already retired though. My guess is that they will do what they did to Jan Ulrich. He came third in 2005 but in 2011 he was found guilty of doping and got disqualified from the 2005 race. There was no third place rider in that year and I guess there will be no winners from 99 to 2005.

EDIT- What Eddie said below makes more sense I guess. It would look better for the sport to have 7winners as opposed to 7 years with no winners.

[EddieG]

No, they're not gonna re-do the races, but his name is just going to be scratched from the history books, so whoever was #2, will be #1 .. simple enough, right?

[Adam]

Can we at least change the thread title here for now? Armstrong hasn't been stripped of anything at all yet.

It's official now.

Fair enough, as you were then.

Who has stripped him of these titles, the USADA or the UCI?

[Your Mom]

This is depressing. Call me naive if you like but I was always pretty inspired by what he managed to do especially after beating Cancer. Doesn't seem quite as heroic now.

[Colly]

That bit in Dodgeball is now far less inspirational.