USADA files charges against Armstrong
Source: Agencies |
July 1, 2012, Sunday
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FORMAL charges were filed against Lance Armstrong by the United States Anti-Doping Agency on Friday, accusing the seven-time Tour de France winner of doping throughout the best years of his career.
The agency notified Armstrong, his former team manager Johan Bruyneel and several other Armstrong team associates of the charges in a letter on Thursday.
The charges came after a USADA review panel examined evidence in the case, which now goes to an arbitration panel to decide. If found guilty, Armstrong could be stripped of the Tour de France titles he won from 1999-2005. This year's Tour began yesterday.
Armstrong maintains his innocence. Armstrong attorney Robert Luskin called the charges "wrong and baseless."
Also charged are team doctors Pedro Celaya Lezama and Luis Garcia del Moral; team trainer Pepe Marti, and consulting doctor Michele Ferrari.
Because they are so closely linked, USADA rolled all of the charges into a single case.
Armstrong and the others "(have) been part of a doping conspiracy involving team officials, employees, doctors and elite cyclists," said the USADA letter.
Banned substances
The letter accuses Armstrong of using, possessing and trafficking banned substances including the blood-booster EPO, blood transfusions and steroids. The charges date to 1998, after he had been declared cancer free but before his first Tour de France victory the following summer.
Bruyneel, who is currently the manager of the Radioshack-Nissan-Trek team recently announced he would skip this year's Tour because of the USADA investigation.
USADA says it has at least 10 former Armstrong teammates and associates who will testify against the cyclist, and blood samples from 2009 and 2010 that are "fully consistent" with blood doping.
Armstrong, 40, and the others charged have until July 9 to inform USADA if they plan to challenge the evidence before an arbitration panel.
The agency notified Armstrong, his former team manager Johan Bruyneel and several other Armstrong team associates of the charges in a letter on Thursday.
The charges came after a USADA review panel examined evidence in the case, which now goes to an arbitration panel to decide. If found guilty, Armstrong could be stripped of the Tour de France titles he won from 1999-2005. This year's Tour began yesterday.
Armstrong maintains his innocence. Armstrong attorney Robert Luskin called the charges "wrong and baseless."
Also charged are team doctors Pedro Celaya Lezama and Luis Garcia del Moral; team trainer Pepe Marti, and consulting doctor Michele Ferrari.
Because they are so closely linked, USADA rolled all of the charges into a single case.
Armstrong and the others "(have) been part of a doping conspiracy involving team officials, employees, doctors and elite cyclists," said the USADA letter.
Banned substances
The letter accuses Armstrong of using, possessing and trafficking banned substances including the blood-booster EPO, blood transfusions and steroids. The charges date to 1998, after he had been declared cancer free but before his first Tour de France victory the following summer.
Bruyneel, who is currently the manager of the Radioshack-Nissan-Trek team recently announced he would skip this year's Tour because of the USADA investigation.
USADA says it has at least 10 former Armstrong teammates and associates who will testify against the cyclist, and blood samples from 2009 and 2010 that are "fully consistent" with blood doping.
Armstrong, 40, and the others charged have until July 9 to inform USADA if they plan to challenge the evidence before an arbitration panel.
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