US Anti-Doping Agency charges Armstrong
- Thread starter Steve Williams
- Start date
Do you have data relating to that Greg. I don't think that's true. If that was so, BB would be dropping dead left and right.
I hate to burst everyone's hero bubble but most all pro sport athletes use some kind of PED. We live in the age of lies and money- the age of humanity.
Elite young amateurs in the Dutch development program c. early 1990s had the disconcerting habit of dying in their sleep.
I can't bring myself to read the article. Oh, say it ain't so! 50% of the Scleck brothers tainted. (100% of the family in this year's Tour.) Shall we take a poll as to which immaculate occurrence defense he'll adopt first? Tainted food? Legitimate prescription drugs? "It was a million-to-one shot, doc, million-to-one." (Seinfeld, episode "Assman.")
After crashing out of the Tour in 1999 and 2000, Christian Vande Velde made it over the Alps and over the Pyrenees in 2001. He was on the glide path to Paris when he was stung by a bee on a stage. As it happens, the sting was next to one of his eyes, which swelled shut in allergic reaction. He was forced to abandon when officials would not let him treat the area with a topical anti-inflammatory because it contained ... wait for it ... steroids.
Regulations get the details wrong and the big picture somewhat wrong.
Think that had more maybe to do with EPO. I don't know of that effect in any other sport.
Have to admit banning corticosteroids is ridiculous.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/flash/0,5860,366056,00.html
Myles those who use PED's are reluctant to admit it. When caught there is usually only one positive test. Many suspected athletes (like Florence Griiffn-Joyner) died suddenly at an early age. It was never proven she used drugs. I am sure you are well aware of the side effects of drugs like anabolic steroids. Consider this:
Alzado was one of the first major US sports figures to admit to using anabolic steroids. In the last years of his life, as he battled against the brain tumor that eventually caused his death, Alzado asserted that his steroid abuse directly led to his fatal illness.[10] According to some reports, Alzado was using natural growth hormone, harvested from human corpses, as opposed to synthetic growth hormones. However, shortly before his death, Alzado recounted his steroid abuse in an article in Sports Illustrated,
“ I started taking anabolic steroids in 1969 and never stopped. It was addicting, mentally addicting. Now I'm sick, and I'm scared. Ninety percent of the athletes I know are on the stuff. We're not born to be 300 lb (140 kg) or jump 30 ft (9.1 m). But all the time I was taking steroids, I knew they were making me play better. I became very violent on the field and off it. I did things only crazy people do. Once a guy sideswiped my car and I beat the hell out of him. Now look at me. My hair's gone, I wobble when I walk and have to hold on to someone for support, and I have trouble remembering things. My last wish? That no one else ever dies this way.[11] ”
Alzado died at age forty-three. He is buried at River View Cemetery in Portland, Oregon.[12]
I have no desire to tarnish the reputation of great athletes, I can do some research and list those who admitted or tested positive for PED's and suffered an early demise.
Since January 2003, the following eight riders have died from heart attacks:
Denis Zanette (Italy)
Died January 11 2003, aged 32
Zanette, right, collapsed after visiting the dentist. Instantly linked to the use of the blood-booster EPO, which led to an outcry in Italy and demands for stricter drug controls.
Marco Ceriani (Italy)
Died May 5, aged 16
An elite amateur, Ceriani experienced a heart attack during a race, was admitted to hospital in a coma, and failed to recover consciousness.
Fabrice Salanson (France)
Died June 3, aged 23
Died of a heart attack in his sleep. Was found by his room mate in their team hotel. Had been about to compete in the Tour of Germany.
Marco Rusconi (Italy)
Died November 14, aged 24
Rusconi was leaving the party of a friend last November when he collapsed and died in a shopping centre car park.
Jose Maria Jimenez (Spain)
Died December 6, aged 32
Died from a heart attack in a psychiatric hospital in Madrid. Had retired two years previously but consistently claimed a comeback was imminent.
Michel Zanoli (Netherlands)
Died December 29, aged 35
Zanoli, who retired in 1997, was 35 when he suffered a fatal heart attack.
Johan Sermon (Belgium)
Died February 15 2004, aged 21
Suffered an apparent heart failure in his sleep. Had reportedly gone to bed early to prepare for an eight-hour training ride.
Marco Pantani (Italy)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2004/feb/16/cycling.cycling1
Denis Zanette (Italy)
Died January 11 2003, aged 32
Zanette, right, collapsed after visiting the dentist. Instantly linked to the use of the blood-booster EPO, which led to an outcry in Italy and demands for stricter drug controls.
Marco Ceriani (Italy)
Died May 5, aged 16
An elite amateur, Ceriani experienced a heart attack during a race, was admitted to hospital in a coma, and failed to recover consciousness.
Fabrice Salanson (France)
Died June 3, aged 23
Died of a heart attack in his sleep. Was found by his room mate in their team hotel. Had been about to compete in the Tour of Germany.
Marco Rusconi (Italy)
Died November 14, aged 24
Rusconi was leaving the party of a friend last November when he collapsed and died in a shopping centre car park.
Jose Maria Jimenez (Spain)
Died December 6, aged 32
Died from a heart attack in a psychiatric hospital in Madrid. Had retired two years previously but consistently claimed a comeback was imminent.
Michel Zanoli (Netherlands)
Died December 29, aged 35
Zanoli, who retired in 1997, was 35 when he suffered a fatal heart attack.
Johan Sermon (Belgium)
Died February 15 2004, aged 21
Suffered an apparent heart failure in his sleep. Had reportedly gone to bed early to prepare for an eight-hour training ride.
Marco Pantani (Italy)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2004/feb/16/cycling.cycling1
I guess that when I first replied I was thinking about the use of anabolic steroids but obviously that's just one drug in a rider's cocktail.
I was always under the impression that these cardiac events were related to the use of EPO eg. the dose used so stimulated the producion of red blood cells that the blood became so viscous/thick that the heart couldn't work properly.
I am told by someone who is a very, very serious rider and is one rung below the guys who compete on the T de France that you're supposed to be woken up periodicaly when on EPO...you cannot sleep a full nite...it can be fatal because the blood is so thick and viscous as Myles says...and then you have to stomp around the room and try to get the blood flowing...for several minutes...and then go back to bed.
Ooh just remembered there was a great article from a very good journalist cyclist (going back a few years) that wanted to see how drugs if done correctly (but still very illegal) would improve his performance, in his article he mentioned quite a bit of the detail and the performance results.
Was very interesting.
If I can remember more will try to track down the article.
Cheers
Orb
Was very interesting.
If I can remember more will try to track down the article.
Cheers
Orb
ANABOLIC STEROIDS - A cursory review suggests the link http://www.healthmattersdrsantorablog.com/2010/01/anabolic-steroids-can-cause-heart.html between steroids and heart attack is likely and warrants further study. It is likely a combination of weakening of the heart and extreme stress during training.
EPO-I can't remember where I read it. (Google is my memory now:b)
The story goes like this- the search for EPO use is a farce. You need only walk by the riders room at night. The blood is so thick from EPO use they have to get on the bike trainer and ride to keep thier blood flowing.
EPO-I can't remember where I read it. (Google is my memory now:b)
The story goes like this- the search for EPO use is a farce. You need only walk by the riders room at night. The blood is so thick from EPO use they have to get on the bike trainer and ride to keep thier blood flowing.
Or use those saline bags.
FYI, testosterone is actually cardioprotective. Can send you if you like, about 8 or so recent studies documenting the benefits.
Sure it will come up in some threads about USADA pushing for stripping of Lance's achievements as he did not want to go to arbitration on reasons of bias by them and not providing the evidence before hand for him and his team to review.
Could be taken either way as a sign as guilt/innocence, but I do hope USADA will finally release all the evidence they say they have.
Now what is interesting is that by Lance not contesting with USADA and so no hearing, the world cycling regulations stipulate that USADA must provide a reasoned decision on their action to UCI,WADA, and Lance Armstrong.
Makes me wonder if this was his intention by not contesting and a way to try and get the evidence outside of USADA.
Quote from UCI today:
Anyway hopefully whatever happens the evidence will be fully released, and hopefully not based on circumstantial evidence or questionable testing.
Cheers
Orb
Could be taken either way as a sign as guilt/innocence, but I do hope USADA will finally release all the evidence they say they have.
Now what is interesting is that by Lance not contesting with USADA and so no hearing, the world cycling regulations stipulate that USADA must provide a reasoned decision on their action to UCI,WADA, and Lance Armstrong.
Makes me wonder if this was his intention by not contesting and a way to try and get the evidence outside of USADA.
Quote from UCI today:
Anyway hopefully whatever happens the evidence will be fully released, and hopefully not based on circumstantial evidence or questionable testing.
Cheers
Orb
I completely understand Armstrong's weariness in fighting this. If it turns out there is only witness testimony to support USADA's action, I will understand it even better. You can't win a "he said, she said" battle in a venue biased against you.
Armstrong facing loss of 7 Tour de France titles
By JIM VERTUNO, AP
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Never one to back away from a fight, Lance Armstrong is finally giving in and the cost of quitting is steep: His seven Tour de France titles could be gone as soon as Friday.
The superstar cyclist, whose stirring victories after his comeback from cancer helped him transcend sports, chose not to pursue arbitration in the drug case brought against him by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. That was his last option in his bitter fight with USADA and his decision set the stage for the titles to be stripped and his name to be all but wiped from the record books of the sport he once ruled.
Travis Tygart, USADA's chief executive, left no doubt that was the next step. He said Armstrong would lose the titles as soon as Friday and be hit with a lifetime ban, even though he is retired and turning 41 next month.
Tygart said the UCI, the sport's governing body, was ``bound to recognize our decision and impose it'' as a signer of the World Anti-Doping Code.
``They have no choice but to strip the titles under the code,'' he said.
On Friday, the International Cycling Union said not so fast. The UCI, which had backed Armstrong's legal challenge to USADA's authority, cited the same World Anti-Doping Code in saying that it wanted the USADA to explain why Armstrong should lose his titles.
The UCI said the code requires this in cases ``where no hearing occurs.''
Armstrong clearly knew his legacy would be blemished by his decision. He said he has grown tired of defending himself in a seemingly never-ending fight against charges that he doped while piling up more Tour victories than anyone ever. He has consistently pointed to the hundreds of drug tests that he passed as proof of his innocence during his extraordinary run of Tour titles from 1999 to 2005.
``There comes a point in every man's life when he has to say, `Enough is enough.' For me, that time is now,'' Armstrong said Thursday night, hours before the deadline to enter arbitration. He called the USADA investigation an ``unconstitutional witch hunt.''
``I have been dealing with claims that I cheated and had an unfair advantage in winning my seven Tours since 1999,'' he said. ``The toll this has taken on my family and my work for our foundation and on me leads me to where I am today - finished with this nonsense.''
USADA treated Armstrong's decision as an admission of guilt, hanging the label of drug cheat on an athlete who was a hero to thousands for overcoming life-threatening testicular cancer and for his foundation's support for cancer research. Armstrong could lose other awards, event titles and cash earnings, and the International Olympic Committee might look at the bronze medal he won in the 2000 Games.
``It is a sad day for all of us who love sport and athletes,'' Tygart said. ``It's a heartbreaking example of win-at-all-costs overtaking the fair and safe option. There's no success in cheating to win.''
Johan Bruyneel, Armstrong's longtime coach, said the Texan is a victim of a legal process run amok.
``Lance has never withdrawn from a fair fight in his life so his decision today underlines what an unjust process this has been,'' Bruyneel wrote on his personal website on Friday.
While Tygart said the agency can strip the Tour titles, Armstrong disputed that, insisting his decision is not an admission of guilt but a refusal to enter an arbitration process he believes is unfair.
``USADA cannot assert control of a professional international sport and attempt to strip my seven Tour de France titles,'' he said. ``I know who won those seven Tours, my teammates know who won those seven Tours, and everyone I competed against knows who won those seven Tours.''
Armstrong's comments notwithstanding, USADA has exercised its power to sanction athletes and strip their results regularly. Its website shows that it has issued 21 sanctions in 2012 so far in sports ranging from cycling to track to boxing to judo, with 17 of the athletes losing their results.
At the headquarters of Tour organizer ASO outside of Paris on Friday, spokesman Fabrice Tiano said Tour director Christian Prudhomme was not immediately available for comment because he was in urgent meetings about the case.
Armstrong walked away from the sport for good in 2011 without being charged following a two-year federal criminal investigation into many of the same accusations he faces from USADA.
The federal probe was closed in February, but USADA announced in June it had evidence Armstrong used banned substances and methods - and encouraged their use by teammates. The agency also said it had blood tests from 2009 and 2010 that were ``fully consistent'' with blood doping.
Included in USADA's evidence were emails written by Armstrong's former U.S. Postal Service teammate Floyd Landis, who was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France title after a positive drug test. Landis' emails to a USA Cycling official detailed allegations of a complex doping program on the team.
USADA also said it had 10 former Armstrong teammates ready to testify against him. Other than suggesting they include Landis and Tyler Hamilton, both of whom have admitted to doping offenses, the agency has refused to say who they are or specifically what they would say.
USADA maintains that Armstrong used banned substances as far back as 1996, including the blood-booster EPO and steroids, as well as blood transfusions.
``There is zero physical evidence to support (the) outlandish and heinous claims,'' Armstrong said. ``The only physical evidence here is the hundreds of (doping) controls I have passed with flying colors.''
Armstrong sued USADA in Austin, Texas, where he lives, in an attempt to block the case and was supported by the UCI. A judge threw out the case on Monday, siding with USADA despite questioning the agency's pursuit of Armstrong in his retirement.
``USADA's conduct raises serious questions about whether its real interest in charging Armstrong is to combat doping, or if it is acting according to less noble motives,'' such as politics or publicity, U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks wrote.
The ultra-competitive Armstrong still had the option to press his innocence in arbitration, which would have included a hearing during which evidence against him would have been presented. But the cyclist has said he believes most people have already made up their minds about whether he's a fraud or a persecuted hero.
And so he did something virtually unthinkable for him: He quit before a fight was over, a stunning move for an athlete who built his reputation on not only beating cancer, but forcing himself through grueling offseason workouts no one else could match, then crushing his rivals in the Alps and the Pyrenees.
``Today I turn the page. I will no longer address this issue, regardless of the circumstances,'' he said. ``I will commit myself to the work I began before ever winning a single Tour de France title: serving people and families affected by cancer, especially those in underserved communities.''
Although he had already been crowned a world champion and won individual stages at the Tour de France, Armstrong was still relatively unknown in the U.S. until he won the epic race for the first time in 1999. It was the ultimate comeback tale: When diagnosed with cancer, doctors had given him less than a 50 percent chance of survival before surgery and brutal cycles of chemotherapy saved his life.
Armstrong's riveting victories, his work for cancer awareness and his gossip-page romances with rocker Sheryl Crow, fashion designer Tory Burch and actress Kate Hudson made him a figure who transcended sports.
His dominance of the Tour de France elevated the sport's popularity in the U.S. to unprecedented levels. His story and success helped sell millions of the ``Livestrong'' plastic yellow wrist bracelets, and enabled him to enlist lawmakers and global policymakers to promote cancer awareness and research. His Lance Armstrong Foundation has raised nearly $500 million since its founding in 1997.
Jeffery C. Gervey, chairman of the foundation, issued a statement of support.
``Faced with a biased process whose outcome seems predetermined, Lance chose to put his family and his foundation first,'' Gervey said. ``The leadership of the Lance Armstrong Foundation remain incredibly proud of our founder's achievements, both on and off the bike.''
Questions surfaced even as Armstrong was on his way to his first Tour victory. He was leading the 1999 race when a trace amount of a banned anti-inflammatory corticosteroid was found in his urine; cycling officials said he was authorized to use a small amount of a cream to treat saddle sores.
After Armstrong's second victory in 2000, French judicial officials investigated his Postal Service team for drug use. That investigation ended with no charges, but the allegations kept coming.
Others close to Armstrong were caught up in the investigations, too: Bruyneel, the coach of Armstrong's teams, and three members of the medical staff and a consultant were also charged. Bruyneel is taking his case to arbitration, while two medical team staffers and consulting doctor Michele Ferrari didn't formally contest the charges and were issued lifetime bans by USADA. Ferrari later said he was innocent.
Armstrong was criticized for his relationship with Ferrari, who was banned by Italian authorities over doping charges in 2002. Former personal and team assistants accused Armstrong of having steroids in an apartment in Spain and disposing of syringes that were used for injections.
In 2004, a Dallas-based promotions company initially refused to pay him a $5 million bonus for winning his sixth Tour de France because it wanted to investigate allegations raised by media in Europe. Testimony in that case included former teammate Frankie Andreu and his wife, Betsy, saying Armstrong told doctors during his 1996 cancer treatments that he had taken a cornucopia of steroids and performance-enhancing drugs.
Two books published in Europe, ``L.A. Confidential'' and ``L.A. Official,'' also raised doping allegations and, in 2005, French magazine L'Equipe reported that retested urine samples from the 1999 Tour showed EPO use.
Armstrong fought every accusation with denials and, in some cases, lawsuits against media outlets that reported them.
He retired in 2005 and almost immediately considered a comeback before deciding to stay on the sidelines - in part because he didn't want to keep answering doping questions. Three years later, Armstrong was 36 and itching to ride again. He came back to finish third in the 2009 Tour de France.
Armstrong raced again in 2010 under the cloud of the federal investigation. Early last year, he quit for good, making a brief return as a triathlete until the USADA investigation shut him down.
``He had a right to contest the charges,'' WADA President John Fahey said after Armstrong's announcement. ``He chose not to. The simple fact is that his refusal to examine the evidence means the charges had substance in them.''
By JIM VERTUNO, AP
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Never one to back away from a fight, Lance Armstrong is finally giving in and the cost of quitting is steep: His seven Tour de France titles could be gone as soon as Friday.
The superstar cyclist, whose stirring victories after his comeback from cancer helped him transcend sports, chose not to pursue arbitration in the drug case brought against him by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. That was his last option in his bitter fight with USADA and his decision set the stage for the titles to be stripped and his name to be all but wiped from the record books of the sport he once ruled.
Travis Tygart, USADA's chief executive, left no doubt that was the next step. He said Armstrong would lose the titles as soon as Friday and be hit with a lifetime ban, even though he is retired and turning 41 next month.
Tygart said the UCI, the sport's governing body, was ``bound to recognize our decision and impose it'' as a signer of the World Anti-Doping Code.
``They have no choice but to strip the titles under the code,'' he said.
On Friday, the International Cycling Union said not so fast. The UCI, which had backed Armstrong's legal challenge to USADA's authority, cited the same World Anti-Doping Code in saying that it wanted the USADA to explain why Armstrong should lose his titles.
The UCI said the code requires this in cases ``where no hearing occurs.''
Armstrong clearly knew his legacy would be blemished by his decision. He said he has grown tired of defending himself in a seemingly never-ending fight against charges that he doped while piling up more Tour victories than anyone ever. He has consistently pointed to the hundreds of drug tests that he passed as proof of his innocence during his extraordinary run of Tour titles from 1999 to 2005.
``There comes a point in every man's life when he has to say, `Enough is enough.' For me, that time is now,'' Armstrong said Thursday night, hours before the deadline to enter arbitration. He called the USADA investigation an ``unconstitutional witch hunt.''
``I have been dealing with claims that I cheated and had an unfair advantage in winning my seven Tours since 1999,'' he said. ``The toll this has taken on my family and my work for our foundation and on me leads me to where I am today - finished with this nonsense.''
USADA treated Armstrong's decision as an admission of guilt, hanging the label of drug cheat on an athlete who was a hero to thousands for overcoming life-threatening testicular cancer and for his foundation's support for cancer research. Armstrong could lose other awards, event titles and cash earnings, and the International Olympic Committee might look at the bronze medal he won in the 2000 Games.
``It is a sad day for all of us who love sport and athletes,'' Tygart said. ``It's a heartbreaking example of win-at-all-costs overtaking the fair and safe option. There's no success in cheating to win.''
Johan Bruyneel, Armstrong's longtime coach, said the Texan is a victim of a legal process run amok.
``Lance has never withdrawn from a fair fight in his life so his decision today underlines what an unjust process this has been,'' Bruyneel wrote on his personal website on Friday.
While Tygart said the agency can strip the Tour titles, Armstrong disputed that, insisting his decision is not an admission of guilt but a refusal to enter an arbitration process he believes is unfair.
``USADA cannot assert control of a professional international sport and attempt to strip my seven Tour de France titles,'' he said. ``I know who won those seven Tours, my teammates know who won those seven Tours, and everyone I competed against knows who won those seven Tours.''
Armstrong's comments notwithstanding, USADA has exercised its power to sanction athletes and strip their results regularly. Its website shows that it has issued 21 sanctions in 2012 so far in sports ranging from cycling to track to boxing to judo, with 17 of the athletes losing their results.
At the headquarters of Tour organizer ASO outside of Paris on Friday, spokesman Fabrice Tiano said Tour director Christian Prudhomme was not immediately available for comment because he was in urgent meetings about the case.
Armstrong walked away from the sport for good in 2011 without being charged following a two-year federal criminal investigation into many of the same accusations he faces from USADA.
The federal probe was closed in February, but USADA announced in June it had evidence Armstrong used banned substances and methods - and encouraged their use by teammates. The agency also said it had blood tests from 2009 and 2010 that were ``fully consistent'' with blood doping.
Included in USADA's evidence were emails written by Armstrong's former U.S. Postal Service teammate Floyd Landis, who was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France title after a positive drug test. Landis' emails to a USA Cycling official detailed allegations of a complex doping program on the team.
USADA also said it had 10 former Armstrong teammates ready to testify against him. Other than suggesting they include Landis and Tyler Hamilton, both of whom have admitted to doping offenses, the agency has refused to say who they are or specifically what they would say.
USADA maintains that Armstrong used banned substances as far back as 1996, including the blood-booster EPO and steroids, as well as blood transfusions.
``There is zero physical evidence to support (the) outlandish and heinous claims,'' Armstrong said. ``The only physical evidence here is the hundreds of (doping) controls I have passed with flying colors.''
Armstrong sued USADA in Austin, Texas, where he lives, in an attempt to block the case and was supported by the UCI. A judge threw out the case on Monday, siding with USADA despite questioning the agency's pursuit of Armstrong in his retirement.
``USADA's conduct raises serious questions about whether its real interest in charging Armstrong is to combat doping, or if it is acting according to less noble motives,'' such as politics or publicity, U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks wrote.
The ultra-competitive Armstrong still had the option to press his innocence in arbitration, which would have included a hearing during which evidence against him would have been presented. But the cyclist has said he believes most people have already made up their minds about whether he's a fraud or a persecuted hero.
And so he did something virtually unthinkable for him: He quit before a fight was over, a stunning move for an athlete who built his reputation on not only beating cancer, but forcing himself through grueling offseason workouts no one else could match, then crushing his rivals in the Alps and the Pyrenees.
``Today I turn the page. I will no longer address this issue, regardless of the circumstances,'' he said. ``I will commit myself to the work I began before ever winning a single Tour de France title: serving people and families affected by cancer, especially those in underserved communities.''
Although he had already been crowned a world champion and won individual stages at the Tour de France, Armstrong was still relatively unknown in the U.S. until he won the epic race for the first time in 1999. It was the ultimate comeback tale: When diagnosed with cancer, doctors had given him less than a 50 percent chance of survival before surgery and brutal cycles of chemotherapy saved his life.
Armstrong's riveting victories, his work for cancer awareness and his gossip-page romances with rocker Sheryl Crow, fashion designer Tory Burch and actress Kate Hudson made him a figure who transcended sports.
His dominance of the Tour de France elevated the sport's popularity in the U.S. to unprecedented levels. His story and success helped sell millions of the ``Livestrong'' plastic yellow wrist bracelets, and enabled him to enlist lawmakers and global policymakers to promote cancer awareness and research. His Lance Armstrong Foundation has raised nearly $500 million since its founding in 1997.
Jeffery C. Gervey, chairman of the foundation, issued a statement of support.
``Faced with a biased process whose outcome seems predetermined, Lance chose to put his family and his foundation first,'' Gervey said. ``The leadership of the Lance Armstrong Foundation remain incredibly proud of our founder's achievements, both on and off the bike.''
Questions surfaced even as Armstrong was on his way to his first Tour victory. He was leading the 1999 race when a trace amount of a banned anti-inflammatory corticosteroid was found in his urine; cycling officials said he was authorized to use a small amount of a cream to treat saddle sores.
After Armstrong's second victory in 2000, French judicial officials investigated his Postal Service team for drug use. That investigation ended with no charges, but the allegations kept coming.
Others close to Armstrong were caught up in the investigations, too: Bruyneel, the coach of Armstrong's teams, and three members of the medical staff and a consultant were also charged. Bruyneel is taking his case to arbitration, while two medical team staffers and consulting doctor Michele Ferrari didn't formally contest the charges and were issued lifetime bans by USADA. Ferrari later said he was innocent.
Armstrong was criticized for his relationship with Ferrari, who was banned by Italian authorities over doping charges in 2002. Former personal and team assistants accused Armstrong of having steroids in an apartment in Spain and disposing of syringes that were used for injections.
In 2004, a Dallas-based promotions company initially refused to pay him a $5 million bonus for winning his sixth Tour de France because it wanted to investigate allegations raised by media in Europe. Testimony in that case included former teammate Frankie Andreu and his wife, Betsy, saying Armstrong told doctors during his 1996 cancer treatments that he had taken a cornucopia of steroids and performance-enhancing drugs.
Two books published in Europe, ``L.A. Confidential'' and ``L.A. Official,'' also raised doping allegations and, in 2005, French magazine L'Equipe reported that retested urine samples from the 1999 Tour showed EPO use.
Armstrong fought every accusation with denials and, in some cases, lawsuits against media outlets that reported them.
He retired in 2005 and almost immediately considered a comeback before deciding to stay on the sidelines - in part because he didn't want to keep answering doping questions. Three years later, Armstrong was 36 and itching to ride again. He came back to finish third in the 2009 Tour de France.
Armstrong raced again in 2010 under the cloud of the federal investigation. Early last year, he quit for good, making a brief return as a triathlete until the USADA investigation shut him down.
``He had a right to contest the charges,'' WADA President John Fahey said after Armstrong's announcement. ``He chose not to. The simple fact is that his refusal to examine the evidence means the charges had substance in them.''
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