Lance

[muskrat]

that's the impression I've been under from the get-go.  THis is exactly what scares the shit out of me, no concrete evidence.  No question Lance is an asshole by all accounts and acts like one too but that's not incriminating by itself.  What are people's thoughts on why he hasn't fought it?  And lets keep aside the comments of because he's guilty. 

[Raux]

that's the impression I've been under from the get-go.  THis is exactly what scares the shit out of me, no concrete evidence.  No question Lance is an asshole by all accounts and acts like one too but that's not incriminating by itself.  What are people's thoughts on why he hasn't fought it?  And lets keep aside the comments of because he's guilty. 

he said she said and no way anything Lance says will matter, he knows that. PLUS IMO his passed tests prove all he can prove.

[Speeddog]

Seen on FaceBook:

"Lance Armstrong, 7 time Tour Champion on a level playing field."

Additionally, if they keep going with this nonsense....
Nobody will give a make the beast with two backs whether the sport is clean or not,
because there will be no sponsors,
so no money,
so no television coverage,
and the sport will implode to a club-level hobby.

[fastwin]

What he said^!

[ducatigirl100]

"Lance Armstrong, 7 time Tour Champion on a level playing field."

.

exactly 

[Kaveh]

It is important to remember that Lance was investigated and brought in to a 'trial' of sorts before.  And like before there is no evidence directly linking him to this accusation, only hearsay and flimsy 'evidence', if you want to call it that.  I for one am glad that Lance has vowed to join the fight to look for Nicole Brown Simpson's Murders and won't stop until he finds them...oh wait.  Sorry, I got OJ and Lance mixed up.  Totally different. 

lulz.

[scduc]

I've just started biking, and regardless of whether he used banned performance enhancing drugs, (I do believe that he used. I do not hold it against him however.) its the responsibility of the governing body to carry out the tests in a timely matter and to discipline in the same. 7 time champ and several years later, they finally say we have enough evidence to strip him of his wins. Look at what baseball did to Ryan Braun. If a sport is going to ban a substance, then they need to be able to run tests and hold people accountable. If the testing process is flawed, you cannot hold it against the athlete. You don't tell someone to piss in a cup and then allow him to come and go as he pleases.

[ducatigirl100]

Miguel Indurain  (5 time winner of ) spoke in support of Lance   

[Stella]

And so did the Aspen Art Museum!

(I could care less one way or the other.)   

[stateprez]

It's the UCI, not a government affiliated criminal investigation.  The burden of proof is at their discretion, which all professional cyclists agree to as pro license holders.

So, if Lance is innocent and all of his teammates are guilty, why wouldn't he sit down with USADA and detail the events in question as his teammates have?

IE, "In 1999 I, Lance Armstrong, saw Tyler Hamilton take a testosterone egg," or "In 2003 I, Lance Armstrong, witnessed Floyd Landis infuse a blood bag on the 2nd rest day of the Tour."

Miguel Indurain  (5 time winner of ) spoke in support of Lance   

Indurain's preface to his comments:

The five-time Tour winner said that he had not followed the Armstrong saga closely and that “I don’t know a lot about it.”

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/indurain-thinks-armstrong-will-appeal

[ducatiz]

It's the UCI, not a government affiliated criminal investigation.  The burden of proof is at their discretion, which all professional cyclists agree to as pro license holders.

So, if Lance is innocent and all of his teammates are guilty, why wouldn't he sit down with USADA and detail the events in question as his teammates have?

My guess as an attorney? 

1.  Bad legal advice.
2.  He is just fed up with it.  With no threat of genuine legal prosecution, he probably calculated that it would eventually bring down the USADA itself for their intransigence.
3.  All of his accusers do not have clean hands -- he assumed the court of public opinion would be on his side.
4.  He did not consider that he would lose sponsors and they might sue him.

[stateprez]

My guess as an attorney? 

1.  Bad legal advice.
2.  He is just fed up with it.  With no threat of genuine legal prosecution, he probably calculated that it would eventually bring down the USADA itself for their intransigence.
3.  All of his accusers do not have clean hands -- he assumed the court of public opinion would be on his side.
4.  He did not consider that he would lose sponsors and they might sue him.

5. Perjury.

[ducatiz]

5. Perjury.

If USADA had any actual legal authority to function as a court of law, that might be relevant.  It's not.

The worst thing that USADA can do is ban him and strip his medals.. Oh, they already did that without any actual evidence and without his testimony.

[Raux]

If USADA had any actual legal authority to function as a court of law, that might be relevant.  It's not.

The worst thing that USADA can do is ban him and strip his medals.. Oh, they already did that without any actual evidence and without his testimony.

actually USADA can do neither. They are basically an advisory agency to different sports. The sporting agencies are the only ones that can do the banning etc.

[stateprez]

If USADA had any actual legal authority to function as a court of law, that might be relevant.  It's not.

The worst thing that USADA can do is ban him and strip his medals.. Oh, they already did that without any actual evidence and without his testimony.

It was all Grand Jury testimony.  I'm not an attorney, but I was under the impression lying was a federal offense under those circumstances?

Floyd Landis: After his testimony to federal law enforcement officials, he was accused of being a liar by Armstrong and his representatives.

Tyler Hamilton: After Hamilton's cooperation with federal law enforcement officials, he says he was physically accosted by Armstrong on June 11, 2011, in an Aspen, Colo., restaurant. Hamilton testified that Armstrong told him, "I'm going to make your life a living hell."

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/cycling/2012/10/10/lance-armstrong-usada-reasoned-decision-george-hincapie/1625607/