Posted on 06/13/2012 1:19:23 PM PDT by kegger8r
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency brought formal doping charges against former cyclist Lance Armstrong in an action that could cost him his seven Tour de France titles, according to a letter sent to Armstrong and several others Tuesday.
As a result of the formal charges, Armstrong has been immediately banned from competition in triathlons, a sport he took up after his retirement from cycling in 2011.
In the 15-page charging letter obtained by The Post, USADA made previously unpublicized allegations against Armstrong, alleging it collected blood samples from Armstrong in 2009 and 2010 that were “fully consistent with blood manipulation including EPO use and/or blood transfusions.” Armstrong has never tested positive.
In February, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles ended a nearly two-year investigation into doping allegations involving Armstrong without bringing criminal charges. Armstrong’s former teammates Floyd Landis and Tyler Hamilton cooperated with federal agents in that investigation and publicly accused Armstrong of doping.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Not this 5h1t again!
They might take away the trophies but they’ll never take away the money. If he cheated he still prospered.
From the article:
“I have never doped, and, unlike many of my accusers, I have competed as an endurance athlete for 25 years with no spike in performance, passed more than 500 drug tests and never failed one,” Armstrong said in a statement released by his publicist. “That USADA ignores this fundamental distinction and charges me instead of the admitted dopers says far more about USADA, its lack of fairness and this vendetta than it does about my guilt or innocence. Any fair consideration of these allegations has and will continue to vindicate me.”
"These charges are a product of malice and spite and not evidence,” Armstrong’s Washington-based attorney Robert D. Luskin said in a telephone interview Wednesday. “Nothing else explains the fact . . . they allege an overarching doping conspiracy among four teams over 14 years and Lance is the only rider that gets charged.”
Lance, meet George Zimmerman. George, meet Scooter Libby. Scooter, I’d like to introduce you to a few members of the Duke LaCrosse team...
According to information available in a google search: From his return to cycling in the fall of 2008 through March 2009, Armstrong submitted to 24 unannounced drug tests by various anti-doping authorities. All of the tests were negative for performance-enhancing drugs
Doesn't seem to be much there in the way of evidence Armstrong actually cheated.
How many times did Barry Bonds test positive? These tests don’t really test if the athlete is juicing, they test if the athlete is doing a bad job juicing.
Is the USADA based in Florida?
Armstrong denied the charges in a statement: “I have never doped, and, unlike many of my accusers, I have competed as an endurance athlete for 25 years with no spike in performance, passed more than 500 drug tests and never failed one.”
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/06/13/us-usa-armstrong-doping-idUSBRE85C1IN20120613
Not defending Armstrong but if the above is true then he has been damn lucky in the tests or the charges are just that, charges without proof.
These whiney Europeans and Europhiles in America need to get over it. Lance is a great athlete and a genetic freak. That is why he was so good. Give it up!
Apparently, negative tests are “consistent” with a rider who has masked agents so that his tests come up negative.
If his tests were positive, then they wouldn’t have evidence that he used masking agents.
Just like witches float, and non-witches drown.
:-)
Drug Tests can be fraudulently passed.
[B]lood samples from Armstrong in 2009 and 2010 that were “fully consistent with blood manipulation including EPO use and/or blood transfusions.”
They didn’t need proof to charge Zimmerman, why do we think they need it to charge Armstrong.
Bonds was never tested by MLB. Armstrong, however, is the most tested athlete in history. Cycling has the most extensive testing procedures of any sport and have caught a number of people.
Damn lucky to have never been caught with all the drug test he was subjected to back in the Tour de France races. Either he was the best cheat around being able to fool all those test or this is a witch hunt. You may fool some of them but you are human and generally you will screw something up once in a while.
What’re they gonna do? Create a 7-year ‘hole’ atop the Tour de France rankings? Declare that German cyclist the greatest of all time since he finished 2nd on many of those Tours?
It’s like the NCAA stripping basketball & football champions years after the fact because of illegal booster activity. Nobody gives a sh—
in the decade from 1997 to 2006, you had phenomenal sports performances from Lance, Mark McGuire, Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Tiger Woods. We know these four baseball players were juicing along with about 50% MLB. Lance probably juiced in some fashion, but was competing against other juicers.
Tiger - I can argue either way. I do know achilles tendon problems show up often in steriod users - and rarely in golfers.
IF he is indeed guilty, then yes remove him from the record books. People may not care, but he sure as hell will.
And all the people cycling has caught we doping for years before they finally got caught. The fact is the whole drug test situation in ALL sports is ridiculous. There are too many drugs to take, too many masking agents, and when push comes to shove the sports themselves don’t want positive tests, they want record breaking athletes competing against each other at a high level which translates to everybody doing drugs.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.