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Lance Armstrong part of cycling's 'most successful doping program,' USADA says
The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency says it will release Wednesday more than 1,000 pages of evidence detailing the involvement of cyclist Lance Armstrong in what the agency calls "the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen."
Armstrong, who won an unprecedented seven Tour de France titles, announced in August that he would no longer fight doping charges that the USADA brought against him earlier in the year. The famed cyclist's decision prompted the USADA to ban the 40-year-old athlete from competition and strip him of his wins dating to 1998, though there were questions of whether the organization had the authority to take such action.
The USADA filed doping charges against Armstrong in June. Armstrong retired from professional cycling in February 2011, though he continued to compete in triathlon events.
The USADA, a quasi-government agency recognized as the official anti-doping agency for Olympic, Pan American and Paralympic sports in the United States, accused Armstrong of using, possessing, trafficking and giving to others performance-enhancing drugs, as well as covering up doping violations.
Armstrong's attorney blasted the accusations as "wrong" and "baseless," much like Armstrong has vehemently denied other such claims in the past.
Armstrong, when he announced in August that he wouldn't fight the charges, said there was "zero physical evidence" to support the USADA's claims, and that he was "finished with this nonsense" of fighting charges after fighting against such allegations for years.
"The only physical evidence there is the hundreds of controls I have passed with flying colors," Armstrong said in August. "I made myself available around the clock and around the world. In-competition. Out of competition. Blood. Urine. Whatever they asked for I provided. What is the point of all this testing if, in the end, USADA will not stand by it?"
On Wednesday, Armstrong's teammate George Hincape admitted he used banned substances.
"It is extremely difficult today to acknowledge that during a part of my career I used banned substances," Hincape said in a statement. "Early in my professional career, it became clear to me that, given the widespread use of performance enhancing drugs by cyclists at the top of the profession, it was not possible to compete at the highest level without them. I deeply regret that choice and sincerely apologize to my family, teammates and fans."
August 26, 2012: Armstrong: 'I'm more at ease now than I have been in 10 years'
August 24, 2012: Armstrong's statement about ending fight against charges
August 24, 2012: Armstrong's cancer foundation still strong
Does this accusation by the The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency change your feelings about Armstrong? Share your reaction in the comments below.
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Interesting timing that this news should break on the same day that two American chemists are awarded the Nobel Prize.
USDA where's the beef!
I think everyone knows they all cheated and it sounds like the USDA is going to release that evidence. Only the most naive really believed Armstrong to be innocent.
Gee, maybe he should be running the country ...
Well we have a dope at the helm
Sooooooooooooo.... you have not even one scoop on the report?
What do you expect from CNN, real news? truth? unbiased reports? -you're dreaming
I agree...who cares, it's cycling. They ALL cheat, Lance included.
Man, you can't say all. If you truly feel that way, then there will never be contentment in your life. Not all people cheat.
And he beat all the others who were doping, so he's still the best.
If they all cheat, then is it really cheating?
Some haev said: "Everybody cheats". If "everybody" is "cheating" than nobody is. By the ever changing definition of "performance enhancing drugs", comic book hero Captain America is a cheater because he definately had "performance enhancing drugs". Considering the fact that the FDA now considers supplements and some foods to be "drugs" there is no end to the madness. I think ultimately, history will declare that Lance Armstrong was the greatest bicyclist in history. I also think that history will note that no weasely agency can change that fact.
It's the truth. All the cyclists have support crews that show up throughout the races with bags of blood. When the crews are late the cyclists fall behind the leaders. When the bags arrive they return to the leader positions.
It's been obvious to anyone with a working brain for years that this guy is one of the all time liars and cheats. Now the entertainment comes from this fans in denial that can't handle the downfall of their poorly chosen hero.
How it has been clear? Based on news reports? Or USADA who is so incompetent that their tests did not catch him for 20 years! Lance should sue USADA? It can't act as a super agenda and entrusted with investigating, prosecuting and judicial agency?
Obvious how, he passed every test he was given and he was given multiple batteries of tests. There is not one article of proof that the US doping agency has been able to hold him against. You people on this board really are sheep to the print. What because they say it is true it must be. How about prooving it, oh yeah they have tried many, many many times without the ability to show he did it.
i'm sure your 'half a brain' was saying 'armstrong's a liar and a cheat' when he was winnimg the 7 french races? or maybe not!
i'm sure your 'working brain' was saying 'armstrong's a liar and a cheat' when he was winnimg the 7 french races? or..... maybe not!
I can't believe this made breaking news! Another quasi government agency that should lose funding because there are other more important thing in the USA that need to be taken care of! If you all care this much about doping than you are out of touch with the rest of the world.
Finally, a realistic assessment of this earth shattering news blurb.
The dopes in the Anti-Doping agency are out to get Lance whether he is guilty or not. It's just an extension of the Butthurt French's anger after an American repeatedly won "their" Tour De France. Same thing happened to LeMond. The French are the perpetual Sore Losers.
Now we know that of all the dopers, he was the best doper!
As the article says...findings are to be released.
As far as "passing the tests"...atheletes are constantly coming up with new ways to foil test results. Might be that they have saved his urine samples and now have new testing that shows evidence of doping. Why so hostile? Why not wait for the "rest of the story" before lambasting this? Geesh – talk about built in prejudices!
They said the same three months ago (findings to be release). I think they are just missing all the attention and decided to stir the pot a bit
I'm pretty sure that urine isn't going to help on a friggin BLOOD TEST!!!!
The fact that Lance Armstrong never failed a test just means that he was very good at what he did - and I'm not talking about cycling.
If Lance did doping, then he did so well at it that the current medical community could not prove he did. People are so quick to tear down someone. Like from the movie "Show me the money" now "show me the test results." If he did it so well, the the doctor who treated him should be making a lots of money doping other people because it is undetectable. May, just maybe he did not do it.
Liar, Liar, pants on fire.
I really hope their evidence is more than just "We asked 11 people who are known dopers who lost to Armstrong and they all said 'We were cheating and he still beat us. I mean, he sold us the dope. And taught us how to do it. And how to get complete blood transfusions daily.' "
he had to prove he was not gulity, they said he was gulity and he had the burden to prove other wise. that is not how our laws are suppose to work. That is why it is a fake system out to get him becuse under our laws they could NOT get him.
Armstrong is caught up in his own aura like Sandusky is in his little mind. Hang 'em high.
Wow! What "aura" are you caught up in to equate Armstrong to Sandusky? The pettiness of the Armstrong haters is astounding