Armstrong Won’t Fight USADA Case

by Andy Shen

Ding Dong

Well, unless you’ve been living in a hole, Lance Armstrong announced last night that he wouldn’t fight USADA’s charges against him. Here’s some quick reactions.

Shane Stokes interviewed Travis Tygart last night.

David Walsh radio interview. Here’s Walsh on Cyclingnews. Here’s my interview with him 3 years ago.

Paul Kimmage and Jeremy Whittle radio interview, where they correctly point out that the UCI must now be taken to task. And here’s my interview with Kimmage 3 years ago.

From Emma O’Reilly: "This is almost like a victory for the small people, throw as much money as you like at a problem but the truth never changes or goes away."

Here’s Nightline’s report, where they use Tim Herman’s own words against him.

From Betsy Andreu: "This is the biggest fraud in the history of sport. For good reason Lance doesn’t want this information coming out." She declined my request for a cookie recipe (because she was too busy stuffing her face with bonbons).

Frankie Andreu: "Lance fights everything so I’m surprised he chose not to fight the charges. His press release sounds like a broken record repeating the same lines we have already heard hundreds of times from him. Usada has shown some true grit by not backing down from a popular and wealthy athlete – showing that clean sport is a right for every athlete. If Lance really wants to help his foundation and help people with cancer, he should admit to the past, apologize and move forward with a clear conscience."

Lupica on Armstrong.

Google translation of a French interview with Betsy. Lots of ‘balls’ and a great final paragraph.

A great summary on the Inner Ring Blog.

Bonnie Ford and TJ Quinn of ESPN discuss.

James Startt: "I have know Betsy and Frankie for years. They are good people. They don’t lie."

"There can be no other interpretation. To refuse the charges can only leave the interpretation that he is a cheat." John Fahey of WADA.

Here’s a massive compilation of charges against Armstrong over the years on Cyclingnews.

Matt Seaton’s editorial.

Official USADA release.

Here’s Mike Anderson’s ‘statement’

More to come throughout the day.

94 Comments

Simone Tubie

Watching US Pro challenge. The US crowds are embarrassing. A bunch of idiots running along side. One more reason to dislike Lamce. Douche.

Rinieri Brifter

I came to this site via CNN, not sure what I would find. As a former collegiate and competitive cyclist, I have watched the Armstrong debacle for years. There has been no “proof” of doping. If there were, and it was clear…this would have been over years ago. Armstrong is the most tested athlete in history. The witnesses are all perfect examples of classic “guilt knowledge” defense….they have worked deals to keep from going to jail or otherwise. Again…cheaters and dopers fit certain profiles. Armstrong does not. The Feds dropped their case because lack of evidence and credible witnesses. The Feds. These are the guys who will take Mother Theresa to task over mis-reporting how many cookies she made. Regardless…the key, is his performance. He didnt win any races by some miracle time or performance. He lost races. He performed poorly on occasion. He never had a “spike” in performance which is the clear indication of doping. In a court of law, the evidence is just not there. No credible witnesses, no real proof in the labs….the guys been fighting accusations for a decade with NO PROOF against him. He simply has done what any man would do at this point: dismiss his accusers.
Anyhow, if any of you haters who think flatlander cycling is real cycling…come visit me in the Rockies. Me and my mountains will eat you alive….just like Lance did to the guys who didnt train hard enough and who blame everyone but themselves for their poor performances. Good lord, haters are pathetic.
Love,
Montana Two Wheel Beast

Bryan Stiff

Lance won’t fight it because when it goes to court all the details will come out and he will be disgraced. Right now he’s acting like he’s taking the higher road by not fighting. What a fraud! This guy has a future opening up his own PR firm to support the GOP.

twoyacks

I think not fighting it will only delay the release of evidence. WADA may release the information that USADA provides them when they rule. If WADA and the UCI attempt to usurp USADA’s ruling, could that lead to suits amongst these entities? Will Bruyneel really go to arbitration? If he does, the beans will be spilt. Maybe Bruyneel is waiting for Lance to PayPal him enough $$$ to retire on so he will also refuse to contest and accept a ban? Tyler’s tell all is coming out. Will Lance sue for libel? Not likely as that case would parade all the usual suspects onto the witness stand. What happens if one of Lance’s Former teammates starts having health problems that are attributable to years of organized doping? Is there a “duty of care” or unsafe work environment lawsuit on the horizon?

Cunt

twoyacks — WADA doesn’t get to “rule” on anything. You don’t appear to understand the arbitration process. The UCI’s only options are to appeal to CAS or enforce the ban. They do not get to decline to enforce it.

twoyacks

Thanks….I am a bit confused about the process. I know the other governing bodies seem skeptical of USADA’s enforcement in this case.

Leblanc

Like many observers, Leblanc was concerned that the fight against doping in sport seemed to focus largely on cycling. “The American Anti-Doping Agency has enough evidence to jeopardise Lance Armstrong. OK. But if this is so, why is this not done in other sports? In American Football, there are a lot of athletes who should get their titles taken away from them,” Leblanc deplored.

Alessio Grips

suck it up buddy!!!!……..chappeau to USADA…..they had the balls to deal with it when everyone else “caved” in> Hope they clean out that swamp UCI too….

Vincent Limit Screw

@leblanc. The reason theose other US sports don’t test as much as cycling is because those players unions are MUCH richer and and much stronger. It’s sad because they need testing more than cycling does.

mikeweb

Correct. If you want a look at the next generation of performance enhancement, just watch the movie ‘Bladerunner’.

zzzzzzzz

If you are going back in history w\ wikipedia to find out who now won that year’s Tour so you can put it here…. Stop….. You are a tool.

Jelle Crank

i hope lancie-pants hires mean & nasty very expensive private dicks to dig up all the dirt imaginable on tygart, usoc, et al, then brings it all to the cas table in a few months or so. that’ll be awesome to see unfold.

Sacha Flange

Next, USADA will be going after the NFL, since there’s a veritable gold mine of dopers there. Right? *crickets*

Sad that bike racing must always be the anti-doping fall guy every time. The American public gives approximately two shits about this sport and our media only cares to cover it when yet another doping accusation has dropped.

Jerry Maguire

The NFL is all about business. They are $mart. NFL… MBL… NHL… NBA… FIFA… USPTA… PGA all know where their bread is buttered. Providing spectacle for the fans.

mehi

I’m sure Levi, George, DZ, and the rest of the gang are breathing a sigh of relief.

Wondering how exactly this helps the sport.

BigTimeBikeRacer

How much $ did USADA spend on the Armstrong witchhunt? What if they had let that go since it was in the past and instead used that $ to test, say Cat 1,2,3’s at the top regional races like Battenkill, GMSR, Catskills. I mean, maybe I’m listing the wrong races so let’s not get too caught up in the specifics, but my point is they spent alot of $ on an issue that happened a long time ago and imho that money would have been better spent on curbing the problem that’s happening TODAY and catching the CURRENT dopers.

Feedback?

Alessio Grips

If you are so concerned about tax payer dollars being spent by USADA ( good cause ) then maybe you could tell me why USPS spent so much of our tax dollars racing bikes in Europe where you can’t even purchase a US stamp?

Leblanc

Crazy thought: I for one am happy to pay taxes to live in a country with a justice system to catch cheats and liars, you think it would be a better country without one? But yes by all means lets draw attention away from lance..

mehi

I wish all these reports would end by saying what’s obvious to us, Cycling tests at a level that no other sport even comes close too.

I hope this will put a little focus on the other sports.

Blow

The problem is LA is good with words. He also have a great team behind him to assist him.
And that most people are dumb – we hear the same thing repeatedly a million times and we start to believe in it.
That’s American marketing – Tax money, witch hunt blah blah blah.

LA and his team went after innocent people who spoke the truth.
They after them one by one “witch” hunting.

LA made his money deceit whether via racing or endorsements or Livestrong.com!
Money of innocent (naive?) people who believed in him – millions of dollars.

500 testing ? People, read – his tests have come back positive.

Other racers doped and no one deserves those tour wins that LA will be stripped off of.
LA’s doping went far beyond him going to Mexico, buying 10k worth of EPO and injecting in his own belly.
He and his team of doctors and directors etc had an organized ring to buy, transport, inject, conceal and bribe.

Bryan Chamois

Greed and ego have screwed all major professional sports – except maybe golf (which isn’t a sport anyway). The doping is one step ahead. DNA doping is no joke either. The ability to modify the gene that makes red blood cells will make any testing impossible. The science behind this is known and in hand.

Ironically then, every athlete will be doped and it will have the same effect as allowing doping.

AFanWhoBelieved

The lack of due process claims are a smoke screen.
If there was a (another?) positive doping control he would have attacked the Lab and it’s procedure and said they’ve always been out to get him.
A fighter of the magnitude that Lance is would have made it his unequivocal business to go after every doper in the peloton. He would have been a beast against doping. A nightmare for anyone who was on the fence about doping. If he were clean. What he did instead was chase down riders who were the most vocal for a clean sport.
Yes, his profile, achievements on and off the bike are without equal.
But this move is a giant f*** you to the next generation of cyclists.

Vincent Limit Screw

@Goro. I think you mean ball, not balls. If you took a minute off from licking his package and looked a bit further down, you would see that.

Undinist

Anyone got a spare? Andy, how about getting some more? Or maybe design a new one – the Cancer Loving Douche Club…the Simeoni Gap Preservation Committee…the Hincapie Truth and Reconciliation Commission…the Paul Sherwen Money Laundry…the Movement to Retire Phil Liggett…the Landis Refrigerated Delivery Service…the Johan Bruyneel Needle Exchange…the Hein Verbruggen Spaghetti Collective…

Blow

I wish people like you would go to Washington and start marching around the Congress or make a pay a visit to Bush and ask he we spent billions of money and lives to go to a war for no real reason other than oil and ego?

LA’s case is more than just him.

I imagined you have been enlightened of that by now.
It’s worth the money – gotta clean up the mess first.
No one cares about football or baseball in a big scheme of dope usage and the corporate like organization that was behind it.

Kevin Brazeon

“Greed and ego have screwed all major professional sports – except maybe golf (which isn’t a sport anyway).”

They take ADD drugs to calm them down. Seriously.

Mark Twain

There will, however, undoubtedly be many who continue to believe in the great Lance Armstrong myth.

It’s easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled. – Mark Twain

Arthur Liner

How many riders back would they have to go to find a bona fide clean rider? ’05 Cadel is the only one I see

Cunt

Tom Ziptie — If USADA only has jurisdiction in the U.S., how come they were able to disqualify Floyd Landis from his Tour de France win? Wow, you really don’t even understand what USADA or WADA is, do you?

Cunt

Tom Ziptie — Italy banned Valverde for 2 years because his blood matched a bag in Operacion Puerto. Italy’s jurisdiction over foreign riders was upheld by CAS. Stop being a douchebag.

for real

lance’s thoughts right now:

1. that comeback was kind of a bad idea
2. floyd sure is a hater
3. is DA’s company hiring?

Wout Wave Ring

“The most important lesson of the Lance Armstrong story, though, is the hardest to prepare for and guard against: our own gullibility and willing complicity. What is astounding and disturbing is that one man – a dominant personality as well as a dominant athlete – was able to enforce his will, isolate, bully and silence his doubters and critics, and win the world’s top cycling event year after year and make people believe in him, despite there being, apparently, dozens of witnesses to its utter phoniness. Too many people had too much invested in the Lance Armstrong story, and the power of persuasion followed the money.”

Fantastic Mr. Fox

If you truly believe that Lance Armstrong is guilty, then all you probably need for proof is an attitude like Andy Chen:

“He did ride at a speed that has pretty much been shown to be impossible without drug enhancement.”

Really? What does “pretty much” mean, Andy? Your guts says yes, but your brain says, “Stick to cycling. Journalism really isn’t working out for you. At least the grassy knoll was more interesting.” But that’s not it! (We won’t even quibble over the fact that he just throws that out there without trying to substantiate it.) Here’s another little gem:

“There’s been evidence of his doping. They had retroactively looked at his blood samples from 1999 and found traces of EPO in them.”

Really? Again? What “evidence” Andy? EPO cannot be reliably tested, dolt. They have to look for elevated levels of hemoglobin and hemocrit. Why won’t the USADA release their testing records? And have YOU seen these tests? Another gem from ol’ Andy:

“There’s so much evidence over time that you have to be pretty delusional to think that he was clean.”

Annnnd…really? WHAT EVIDENCE? Someone pointing their finger is not exactly evidence, Andy. The FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, with tons of resources at it’s disposal, didn’t find enough to indict Armstrong, even AFTER reviewing the USADA’s so-called evidence. And their one semi-reliable “witness” isn’t even (oops, my bad grammar…) RELIABLE. Hence the reason that dolts like you that get so worked up over a non-issue.

Armstrong came to his decision because it simply wasn’t worth the effort (or cost) to fight a so-called “official” agency like the USADA. Get a grip.

Tom Ziptie

It boggles my mind that people defend Lance against doping. I totally understand arguing to let sleeping dogs lie, but that he didn’t dope? And similarly, that he just gave up because he wast tired? Please. Newsflash: his decision will cost him his titles and requires him to return a lot of dough. Millions. And a lot of it will go to the Kaiser. Who, btw, also never tested positive.

hey guys!

that maybe he is sparing all his friends from testifying against him? Maybe he isn’t a dick after all?

IT Director

$5 says that if you do a IP address check, you will find the Lance love coming from Austin where the PR interns are working overtime.

Mohamed Polished

Really?!?!?! Come on now, you can’t be serious!
Do you believe in Santa and the Tooth Fairy too?

Doffo Chamois

These Lance Armstrong supporters are hilarious. They only believe what Lance says. Keep wearing your USPS jerseys and yellow bracelets

Lenny Chamois

By the way, you are insignificant. And your use of captcha is moronic. Then again, you write about ridding bikes for a living sooo…

Tom Ziptie

US Riders isn’t the same as the US. Read the Inner Ring Blog if you’d like to understand how that jurisdiction over US “riders” translates to US riders being stripped of non-US titles.

Cunt

Tom Ziptie — Floyd was stripped of his Tour de France title by a USADA prosecution. Why would Lance be any different? And if you want me to read something, send a link. I don’t go on wild goose chases.

Elliot Chainline

Montana Two Wheel Beast to Mengoni.

You get your cycling news from CNN and start smack talking your mad mountain climbing skillz on an anonymous chat forum in NYC?

I swear, you can’t make this shit up.

hey guys!

think Lance is easily proven guilty, etc etc…then how lame have all the investigations been leading up to this and what does that say about others?

the dude

if i were falsely accused of doping, and was facing being stripped of my 7th place and 9th place in the spring series four years ago, i would fight it till death. so why the fuck would anyone let themselves be stripped of 7 tours and title as one of the greatest racers ever if their goose wasn’t cooked. that’s all you need to know to know which way the wind blows.

hey guys!

Are you suggesting Lance is responsible for possible health problems of postal teammates? That’s beyond ludicrous.

Pussy Riot

is responsible for all of the worlds problems, down to global warming and the rise of the Tea Party. There, “hey guys”!

Diego Saddlebag

carmichael will burn in hell for the stuff he did to juniors.

karma will rear its ugly head.

and no high cadence climbing to get outta that hole, you sack of &%!!!

shootthegap

No he won’t. Those juniors knew what they were doing when Carmichael put the injection in thier ass. Give those kids more credit than that. They just want to join the LA circus and get a quick check.

Tom Ziptie

I think you aren’t following what I wrote. USADA has jurisdiction on US riders – it can strip them. It can’t go after the other non-US riders who will see their palmeres improve.

Cunt

Tom Ziptie – For the last time, you stupid jackass….the Italian anti-doping authority sanctioned Valverde (a Spanish rider) for blood doping, and the CAS upheld it. So yes, USADA can go after foreign cyclists if it wants. Notice how Bruyneel is not from the U.S. and yet USADA is also going after him. Same with Ferrari. If USADA had evidence they could. Whether they choose to go after foreign cyclists or not is a different thing. Travis Tygart likely tries to limit his investigations to U.S. cyclists, but that is a function of his budget and not his jurisdictional limits.

Anita Patchkit

Yesterday’s French newspaper lists who “truly” won LA’s 7 Tours…

1999: Daniele Nardello (7th)
2000: Daniele Nardello (10th)
2001: Andre Kivilev (4th)
2002: Carlos Sastre (10th)
2003: Haimar Zubeldia (5th)
2004: Carlos Sastre (8th)
2005: Cadel Evans (7th)

Theo Post

nardello rode for mapei and telekom through the 90’s and early 2000’s. sastre rode for bjarne riis, evans for saeco, mapei, telekom…

Tom Ziptie

Valverde was banned in *Italy* by *Italy* – he received a global ban from the UCI and WADA. Italy got him when him when he was in Italy.

bikesoverthemoon

…of le tour de lance…

1st- damn !!!…dudes got cancer – hope he makes it…
2nd- fuck cofidis for dropping him when he needs support…
3rd- man, that’s serious shit…golf ball size tumors…
4th- awesome…inspirational…dudes back on a bike !!!…
5th- holy shit !!!…he’s gonna race the tour !!!…
6th- you believe this ???…omg, fucking incredible…
7th- nahhh, he wouldn’t “use” after what he’s been through…
8th- nope, i don’t believe that talk, he’s just a badass…
9th- betsy n’ frankie & that crew…they’ve all got issues…

…rest break…

10th- no way, man…dudes just determined & focused…
11th- he’s the sports most tested athlete & not one positive…
12th- yes, he used epo – it was created for cancer patients…
13th- well, if he is, they’re all doin’ it, ya ???…
14th- i like floyd & i like greg but WTF is up, guys ???…
15th- shit, ya, whatever…even anquetil said everybody did it…

…rest break…

16th- ya, ya, i figure / know he is but he’s still a badass…
17th- wow, okay, now he & his lawyers are being nasty pricks…
18th- “livewrong” to 7 tour wins…fucking over everybody…
19th- pointing daggers at everyone else & “deny, deny, deny”…
20th- holy shit !!!…the uci was complicit all this time…
21st- ugly fact…the gen-pop are still hugely in his corner…

…i let cancer jesus pull the wool over my eyes for a long time & while 7 tours de france are quite incredible & yep, he has raised awareness of a nasty disease, he lied & cheated his way into the hearts & minds of the cycling & cancer communities to make his point…

…the flowers are dried out, the podium has collapsed & le tour de lance is off the calendar…

…but he’ll tell ya “it’s all good”…

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