Armstrong Cleared, French Guilty of Misconduct
Wed, May 31, 2006 at 9:35:08 am PDT
Cycling phenomenon Lance Armstrong has been cleared of all doping charges, and the French national anti-doping laboratory may have violated the law in their quest to smear the American champion. (Hat tip: LGF readers.)
Dutch investigators cleared Lance Armstrong of doping in the 1999 Tour de France on Wednesday, and blamed anti-doping authorities for misconduct in dealing with the American cyclist.
A 132-page report recommended convening a tribunal to discuss possible legal and ethical violations by the World Anti-Doping Agency and to consider “appropriate sanctions to remedy the violations.” ...
The International Cycling Union appointed Dutch lawyer Emile Vrijman last October to investigate the handling of urine tests from the 1999 Tour by the French national anti-doping laboratory, known by its French acronym LNDD. Vrijman said Wednesday his report “exonerates Lance Armstrong completely with respect to alleged use of doping in the 1999 Tour de France.” ...
The report said WADA and the LNDD may have “behaved in ways that are completely inconsistent with the rules and regulations of international anti-doping control testing,” and may also have been against the law.
