OT: USADA files doping charges against Lance Armstrong

[dash]

The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency has filed formal charges against the seven-time Tour de France winner, threatening to strip him of his victories in the storied cycling race.

Armstrong, who forcefully denied the accusations, could face a lifetime ban from the sport if he is found to have used performance-enhancing drugs. The move by USADA immediately bans him from competing in triathlons, which he turned to after he retired from cycling last year.

Armstrong has been dogged by doping allegations since his first Tour victory in 1999, but had hoped his fight to be viewed as a clean champion was finally won after U.S. federal prosecutors closed a two-year criminal probe in February without bringing any charges. Armstrong has said the investigation took a heavy emotional toll and he was relieved when it ended.

But USADA officials insisted they would continue to pursue their own probe into Armstrong and his former teams and doctors, and notified him of the charges in a 15-page letter on Tuesday. Unlike federal prosecutors, USADA isn't burdened by proving a crime occurred, just that there was use of performance-enhancing drugs.

In its letter, USADA said its investigation included evidence dating back to 1996. It also included the new charge that Armstrong blood samples taken in 2009 and 2010 are "fully consistent with blood manipulation including EPO use and/or blood transfusions." Armstrong came out of his first retirement to race in the Tour de France those two years.


U.S. Anti-Doping Agency charges Armstrong with drug use

 

[Comeds]

Shocking!

Sadly its not. I do not follow the sport well but everyone I know who does takes it as a given that Lance, and virtually all the top names, are dopers of some sort.

 

[Winged_Wheel88]

I've not followed this case in years. What magical proof do they have to stick Lance with that they've not found before?

 

[Winged_Wheel88]

Now that I've posted, maybe I'll read the article.

 

[DChero]

Who cares? The guy already retired from a long career. This sounds like such a waste of money.

 

[dash]

Who cares? The guy already retired from a long career. This sounds like such a waste of money.

It is quite surprising to me how many former teammates, friends, associates etc. have come out against Lance Armstrong over the years though. Whether it's just envy, vindictiveness, or actual evidence, I have no idea. The guy has yet to fail a drug test to my knowledge, yet would the USADA be pursuing this if they weren't confident that they could win the case?

 

[mattola]

what does this mean. he has had many accusations against him from so many other sources. does the USADA kinda put the nail in the coffin for him or is it same old for accusations only?

 

[dash]

what does this mean. he has had many accusations against him from so many other sources. does the USADA kinda put the nail in the coffin for him or is it same old for accusations only?

I don't know matty, but I think it's wrong that Armstrong can't compete in triathlons due to the USADA filing these charges.

 

[DChero]

I don't know matty, but I think it's wrong that Armstrong can't compete in triathlons due to the USADA filing these charges.

Guilty until proven innocent, sir.

 

[Comeds]

It is quite surprising to me how many former teammates, friends, associates etc. have come out against Lance Armstrong over the years though. Whether it's just envy, vindictiveness, or actual evidence, I have no idea. The guy has yet to fail a drug test to my knowledge, yet would the USADA be pursuing this if they weren't confident that they could win the case?

His reputation is that he is quite the ass.
I do agree with DChero, while I believe he was doping, I do not see any real benefit to pursue it now.

 

[forty_three]

It is quite surprising to me how many former teammates, friends, associates etc. have come out against Lance Armstrong over the years though. Whether it's just envy, vindictiveness, or actual evidence, I have no idea. The guy has yet to fail a drug test to my knowledge, yet would the USADA be pursuing this if they weren't confident that they could win the case?

Couple things:
1) The center of the "Case" is testimony from two banned, discredited former winners of the tour, both of which have perjured themselves in the past.
2) It is not a criminal case, but a civil one. The burden of proof is on a much lower threshold.
3) For all 7 wins, he was tested after every single stage, when most other riders were tested once during the entire tour and there was never a positive test. Granted, that could mean that he simply used better stuff, but by his last three tours they were no longer just testing for certain chemicals, but anomalies of any kind in his blood. Nothing.
4) It's all a HUGE waste of money and only meant to drag his name through the mud, and UCI (the international cycling organization) has had a hard-on to find him cheating since his second win. They went after Greg LeMond the same way. They fucking HATE Americans that beat them at "their" sport.

Bottom line is this; even if he was doping and the top 40% of all pros were also doping HE STILL FUCKING BEAT THEM. And he did it after having one of his nuts cut out because of CANCER.

Most strenuous thing any dickwad at UCI or USADA has ever done is type a press release.

So what's the end game? We have a tour this year that is shrouded in something unrelated and we go and have an Olympic under the same thing and a guy who created a foundation that has raised BILLIONS for cancer research gets publicly ridiculed? And maybe his foundation folds?

All on the word of Floyd Landis?

All this has done is make me not give a shit if he cheated. I feel sorry for the asshole.

 

[Darkstone42]

Couple things:
1) The center of the "Case" is testimony from two banned, discredited former winners of the tour, both of which have perjured themselves in the past.
2) It is not a criminal case, but a civil one. The burden of proof is on a much lower threshold.
3) For all 7 wins, he was tested after every single stage, when most other riders were tested once during the entire tour and there was never a positive test. Granted, that could mean that he simply used better stuff, but by his last three tours they were no longer just testing for certain chemicals, but anomalies of any kind in his blood. Nothing.
4) It's all a HUGE waste of money and only meant to drag his name through the mud, and UCI (the international cycling organization) has had a hard-on to find him cheating since his second win. They went after Greg LeMond the same way. They fucking HATE Americans that beat them at "their" sport.

Bottom line is this; even if he was doping and the top 40% of all pros were also doping HE STILL FUCKING BEAT THEM. And he did it after having one of his nuts cut out because of CANCER.

Most strenuous thing any dickwad at UCI or USADA has ever done is type a press release.

So what's the end game? We have a tour this year that is shrouded in something unrelated and we go and have an Olympic under the same thing and a guy who created a foundation that has raised BILLIONS for cancer research gets publicly ridiculed? And maybe his foundation folds?

All on the word of Floyd Landis?

All this has done is make me not give a shit if he cheated. I feel sorry for the asshole.

I tend to agree with this. If he was actually so skilled at doping that he could create that many false negative tests, then he almost deserves to get away with it.

In any case, testimony of folks already convicted of a crime, without any tangible proof, is pretty empty. There's too much motivation to bring down a superior athlete with you when you get caught to take the testimony as gospel truth.

 

[BF4L]

Well here is how I see it.

Do I think that Lance was a steroid user? Well yes I do.

Do I think that the top 50 cyclist's used steroids? Yes I do

Did Sammy Sosa use steroids? Yes he did.

Did Mark McGuire use steroids? Yes he did

Did Roger Clemons use steroids? Yes he did

Did Barry Bonds use steroids? Yes he did

Face facts. All the top athletes in the 80's and 90's had the juice. I dont care who it was but they all did it.

I dont care. They are all cheaters in my mind. You cannot take back what they did and we all need to move on and let the Pro's test them all and make sure it does not happen again.

Barry Bonds is the HR leader in baseball. You cannot take it back now due to the obvious facts that he was juiced up. Same goes for Lance.

 

[Dacks]

I paid a little more attention because this was the US anti-doping agency, and not the French. The French, I get that they might just be vindictive, but why would USADA want to bring down Armstrong?

Anyway, like everyone else here, I think Lance probably doped, but so did all his other rivals. Dopers being dopers. It diminishes his legacy, but I don't think it's one of those cases where other legit clean athletes got screwed because one guy was doping. Same thing as McGuire / Bonds / Sosa.... tainted legacies/records, but they were still the best of their eras.

 

[Winged_Wheel88]

I'm not going to throw the baby out with the bath water. Someone's gotta prove to me he cheated.

 

[elocomotive]

Barry Bonds is the HR leader in baseball. You cannot take it back now due to the obvious facts that he was juiced up. Same goes for Lance.

Here's how I see it...

Bonds/McGuire were trying to take records away from athletes that played by the rules and only SOME of their contemporaries. Their records shouldn't count and I wouldn't let them in the Hall.

Armstrong pissed off the French and was only doing what EVERY top cyclist was doing. So if he did it, he only did what everyone was doing to win, not just some. If he didn't, he's freakin' Superman. Either way, he pissed off the French. So fuck it, bulletproof in my eyes. Go Lance!