Shimagnolo

Interesting. From Wikipedia:

Voet's book Massacre á la Chaine (translated as "Breaking The Chain") was released in 1999. In it, he claims to have revealed all that he knew regarding doping practices in the cycling world. Voet says he worked with the Festina team doctor, Eric Rykaert, whose opinion was that drug-taking could not be eliminated from cycling and that it would be better therefore to see that doping happened with medical supervision. Rykaert died soon after the Festina trial and Voet left the sport to become a bus driver. He has been declared persona non grata by the Tour de France management and been asked to stay away from the race even as a private individual.

If there is anyone we don't want near the TdF, it is someone who tells the truth.

Skewer

This story of going after Lance hard, with the intention of stripping all his titles, while only sanctioning Hincappie, Levi, Vaughters, VanDeVelde and Zabriskie with a six month suspension to be served during the next off season, sounds unreasonable to me by virtue of the incredibly wide variance of punishment. Those guys all have plenty of titles too. But I guess all they are interested in is seeing how hard they can smack the biggest fish.

colombo357

I saw him dope with my own eyes.

Shimagnolo

I saw it too.

canam73

I'm Spartacus.

Jay68442

The Dutch report sounds way too fishy. I can’t imagine USADA allowing confessed dopers to compete in this year’s tour for their testimony. What kind of example would that set? You can dope and compete as long as you support our efforts to get Lance. The whole thing stinks.

sleepy

When Lance has his little entourage and an army of starstruck Trek riding fanbois who follow the sport only on July willing to take a bullet for him, ya gotta sweeten the deal somehow.

Don't you people watch cop shows?

Jonathandavid

The example this will set is that even if you win a lot, you will not get away. That was the idea in going after Virenque, Pantani, Ullrich and Contador, and it is the idea in the vendetta against Armstrong. And there is indeed a vendetta - he is right that they're after him more than anyone else. But in the end, this is because of his doping habits.

bikepro

Latest development:

https://www.dallasnews.com/sports/hea...ng-charges.ece

Surfer34

I watched a legal anaylist on TV today talking about the issue and he said Armstrong has a great case in regards to jurisdiction and due process. He said if the USADA wins then this would make a great test case for SCOTUS.

himespau 

So basically, since he couldn't bribe them the way he did the UCI he doesn't think it's fair for them to judge him and the UCI should instead. Assuming this is the procedure that other athletes have gone through before, one would think that if the judgement phase were problematic someone else would have already challenged it in the first 12 years of its existence. The only think where I think he might have a point is that his first two wins came before the USADA was formed, so I can see how they might not have jurisdiction over those.

Surfer34

In related news, Hope Solo just tested positive for a banned substance and was given a "warning" by the USADA and is going to be allowed to compete in the Oympics.

When is the USADA going to release the failed tests results from Armstrong ?

Picchio Special

Why on earth would USADA "release" them? His bio passport data is part of the case that may be due to be shared with Lance's legal team. Why ask when USADA is going to "release" test results? This is either a nonsense question, or purely polemical. In any case, the Federal judge Lance appealed to today apparently dismissed his legal challenge to USADA as a bad PR joke.
The continued "test results" chorus from the Lance camp has become merely an old, stale, bad joke: to which I can only reply (as ever): Marion Jones, Marco Pantani - never failed a test either. Except that Jones later confessed - oops!
And what will the "never failed a test" folks say when George, Levi, Christian, Jonathan, David admit to doping as part of the case ... tick, tock, tick, tock ...

Picchio Special

Lance popped positives for EPO in the Tour in '99, only there was no test at the time ...
He probably also had a positive at the Tour de Suisse ...
tick, tock, tick, tock ...

Picchio Special

Most people don't understand how biological passport data can be just as damning as a positive dope test, and Lance wants to keep it that way with his "most tested athlete" mantra ...
tick, tock, tick, tock ...

canam73

She used the "female problems" excuse. It's just like high school, they say that and get out of tests.

Howard

For those without the urge to read the news:
On Monday, 9 July, lawyers for Armstrong filed in Austin for a restraining order against the USADA.
It was 80 pages long or thereabouts.

Six hours later, the Judge threw it out, saying "This Court is not inclined to indulge Armstrong's desire for publicity, self-aggrandizement, or vilification of Defendants, by sifting through eighty mostly unnecessary pages in search of the few kernels of factual material relevant to his claims."
And also saying "Note 1: Contrary to Armstrong's apparent belief, pleadings filed in the United States District Courts are not press releases, internet blogs, or pieces of investigative journalism. All parties, and their lawyers, are expected to comply with the rules of this Court, and face potential sanctions if they do not."

He has 20 days to re-file, but the USADA deadline is in 4 days. He's announced that he will re-file, and one suspects his lawyers are keenly aware of that last sentence in the above quote.

Jed19

I understand Hope Solo fully cooperated with USADA by telling them exactly what she ingested, why and the name of the physician who prescribed it. That kind of openess should get you some brownie points.

Surfer34

There is a thing in America called due process, its a constitutional RIGHT. Part of due process is the accused parties access to information. That is called discovery.

I know the USADA is just another unconstitutional government agency but they should at least try to play by the rules of fairness and transparency.

Hapsmo911

I liked watching Lance win back in the day. It was some great TDF. Most of the guys he was competing against were doping by their own admission. I am unsure if he doped or not, I hope he didnt, so I can say I witnessed a freak of nature beat cancer, and kick every ones ass in the tour. But now that I sit back years later and watch all these idiots go after him years later I could care less. If they take his wins away, so what. I watched the races and they were cool. Now Im watching a whole new era of kids competing and its just as fun to watch. So I say whatever!! Lets see the next wave of kids kick some ass and give us some good racing to watch.

sleepy

Those commie bureaucrats keeping his doping ways down! Unamerican! Someone call a Congressional Hearing about this.
Quick! To the Waaaambulance!

Surfer34

I think that was AFTER she got busted.

Picchio Special

You do realize that "due process" as a constitutional RIGHT applies only to legal processes, right? Right.
Also, USADA is not a "government agency" - though it is supported by Congress and appointed to oversee anti-doping in Olympic competition. Not sure how it's "unconstitutional" - no wait, that's just more rhetoric you learned from Lance's attorneys of the kind that got his lawsuit dismissed yesterday.
And by "release them" you apparently meant release them to Lance's attorneys. They should indeed do this, in the interests of fairness. That they haven't yet done so doesn't mean they won't.
I think I might have a little more sympathy for all the shrill cries for "due process" if Lance's defense all along hadn't consisted primarily of disdain, threats, and character assassination. What goes around ...

Picchio Special

The substance she was busted for carries a possible reduced sanction. It is apparently a diuretic. EPO and blood transfusions are not diuretics and do not carry reduced sanctions, but rather lengthy bans and loss of results. Apples and oranges.

Kurt Erlenbach

Diuretics can be used to mask PEDs, but they're also used for may other purposes. It sounds like Solo was prescribed the drug for other reasons and possibly didn't know what was in it. The diuretic alone has no performance-improving effect, and certainly should be allowed if needed for other medical purposes.