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Updated: USADA Report Details Doping Evidence in Armstrong Case as Ex Teammates Come Forth

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In the photo above: Eight of the 11 teammates of Armstrong who testified for USADA. Clockwise, from top right: Lance Armstrong (Getty); Tyler Hamilton (Getty); Christian Vande Velde (Wil Matthews); Frankie Andreu (James Startt); Jonathan Vaughters (Getty); Dave Zabriskie (Wil Matthews); Levi Leipheimer (Wil Matthews); George Hincapie (James Startt); Floyd Landis (Getty).

In a special Boulder Report, we’re following the news related to today’s publication of the United States Anti-Doping Agency’s edited version of its “Reasoned Decision” file detailing the evidence it used to sanction Lance Armstrong.

By JOE LINDSEY and DANIEL McMAHON

Update: 9:20 p.m. ET: There are varying degrees of evidence, and amounts of it. But it can be hard to put into words the depth and detail of the mountain of evidence the United States Anti-Doping Agency released today in the Lance Armstrong case.

The agency’s “Reasoned Decision,” or the basis for its sanction of Armstrong, ran to 202 pages. The accompanying documents—affidavits from 26 witnesses, detailed laboratory evidence, and documentation such as financial transactions between Armstrong and a coach widely known to be an expert on doping—run to hundreds, even thousands of pages more.

The question of whether Armstrong doped has, from the beginning, not been given to a snap answer, and no single piece of evidence in USADA’s file—even numerous eyewitness accounts of Armstrong using drugs—has the weight of a positive laboratory test.

But it is impossible to give the report even a glancing read and come away with any conclusion other than that Armstrong systematically doped for a great portion of his extraordinary career, that he enlisted teammates and staff in the effort, and that he aggressively went to great lengths to conceal it.

All the more impressive is that USADA gathered all the evidence on its own, and quickly. USADA says that none of the evidence in its files came from the now-closed federal criminal investigation. Despite several requests, the Department of Justice has not provided a single piece of evidence.

And USADA assembled the evidence mostly over a relatively short period. In short, the agency accomplished in little more than three months what had eluded authorities and journalists on two continents for a decade: convincing proof that Armstrong doped.

USADA detailed the depth of doping during Armstrong’s run of seven Tour de France wins (20 of 21 podium finishers from the 1999 to 2005 Tours have been convincingly tied to doping); the drugs Armstrong did (EPO, testosterone, cortisone, blood transfusions) and the cost (over a million dollars to Michele Ferrari, who numerous witnesses say was a doping expert); how he eluded testers; and finally his efforts to suppress the truth, including witness intimidation, false affidavits, and perjury.

In the past, Armstrong has discredited his accusers singly, but with 11 former teammates arrayed against him, that was of little use today. Armstrong himself was silent, but attorney Tim Herman offered only a feeble and, in the literal sense of the word, incredible defense in an appearance on ESPN’s “Outside the Lines.”

Armstrong continues to have his backers—the noted author Buzz Bissinger, who penned a cover story for Newsweek last month saying he still believed, remained defiant on his not-safe-for-work Twitter account—but overall, any doubt that Armstrong doped has utterly evaporated.

In its place were the public statements of no fewer than six former Armstrong teammates—George Hincapie, Levi Leipheimer, Michael Barry, Christian Vande Velde, Dave Zabriskie, and Tom Danielson—who all admitted their own doping.

All spoke of hoping to forge a new path for cycling where today’s riders would not have to face the kind of choice that they did, a choice that Leipheimer, in an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal, admitted he made wrong.

Leipheimer wrote of a future where his “admission could be part of a bigger plan that would make the positive changes we’ve seen in recent years permanent.” It remains to be seen if that future will come to pass; USADA’s report raised troubling questions about the role of the UCI as an impartial overseer of the sport, among other issues. But it appears closer today than perhaps at any point in the last two decades.

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Update: 6:11 p.m. ET: Levi Leipheimer, who earlier today admitted he has doped during his professional career, has been suspended, or placed on “non-active status,” by his Omega Pharma–Quick-Step team.

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The team said in a statement late Wednesday:

“Following the information released by USADA regarding Levi Leipheimer, Omega Pharma-Quick-Step Cycling Team announces that the rider has been placed on non-active status. The Team takes the decision of USADA and the consequent statement of Mr. Leipheimer very seriously. The Team wants to review and consider all the information now being made available and speak personally with the rider before a final decision is made.

“The Team would like to point out that the battle against doping has always been a guiding principle of the team’s activities and work ethic. The suspension imposed by the USADA refers to a period of time when the athlete was not part of Omega Pharma-Quick-Step Cycling Team.”

Stay tuned to BICYCLING.com for further news and analysis.

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Update: 5:30 p.m. ET: As reported by the AFP, in its case file released today, USADA cited emails, lab test results, scientific data, and financial records that included “more than $1 million in documented payments from Armstrong to a Swiss company run by doctor Michele Ferrari, who purportedly advised him on doping.”

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Dr. Michele Ferrari. (Getty Images)

Also in its report, USADA defended its investigation—one that some critics labeled a “witch hunt”—saying the “evidence in the case is beyond strong. It is as strong as or stronger than that presented in any case brought by USADA.”

Read the full story here.

Stay tuned to BICYCLING.com for further news and analysis.

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Update: 3:00 p.m. ET: Levi Leipheimer has published a statement—titled “Why I Doped”—about his involvement in the USADA case via The Wall Street Journal.

In his admission of guilt, Leipheimer writes: “Today, I accept responsibility and USADA’s sanctions for participating in the dirty past of cycling. I’ve been racing clean for more than 5 years in a changed and much cleaner sport. I hope that my admission will help to make these changes permanent.”

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Levi Leipheimer before the start of the 2012 Tour de France. (Photo by James Startt)

Stay tuned to BICYCLING.com for further news and analysis.

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Update: 2:45 p.m. ET: Following, in alphabetical order, are statements from Tom Danielson, Christian Vande Velde, and David Zabriskie, along with a statement from Slipstream Sports, all in their entirety.

TOM DANIELSON STATEMENT

“I don’t remember a time when I didn’t want to be a professional cyclist. It has always been my dream. Along the road to following my dream, I’ve had several ups and downs, but I stuck with it because I love the sport. I never set out thinking I would cross a line, I set out simply wanting to compete, to race my bike and do what I love. And that is exactly what I did, clean. Then, after years of doing things the right way, I was presented with a choice that to me, did not feel like a choice at all. In the environment that I was in, it felt like something I had to do in order to continue following my dream. I crossed the line and that is something I will always be sorry for. I accept responsibility for my choices and apologize to everyone in my life for them—in and out of the sport.

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Tom Danielson. (Photo by Bicycling)

“When I heard about the team Jonathan Vaughters was creating, I knew that his team was exactly what cycling needed—it was exactly what I needed and I wanted to be a part of it. Even though I made the choice to compete clean before Slipstream’s inception, I’ve seen both worlds, and I believe that today, cycling is in a good place, and that organizations like Slipstream have helped change the sport. I believe, too, that it’s time to confront cycling’s past, so that we can continue to build its future. That’s what I’ve done, and I promise it’s what I’ll continue to do.”
 
CHRISTIAN VANDE VELDE STATEMENT

“I love cycling, it is and always has been a huge part of who I am. As the son of a track cycling Olympian I was practically born on the bike and my dream, ever since I can remember, was always to be a professional cyclist. I have failed and I have succeeded in one of the most humbling sports in the world. And today is the most humbling moment of my life.

“As a young pro rider I competed drug free, not winning but holding my own and achieving decent results. Then, one day, I was presented with a choice that to me, at the time, seemed like the only way to continue to follow my dream at the highest level of the sport. I gave in and crossed the line, a decision that I deeply regret. I was wrong to think I didn’t have a choice—the fact is that I did, and I chose wrong. I won races before doping and after doping. Ironically, I never won while doping, I was more or less just treading water. This does not make it OK. I saw the line and I crossed it, myself. I am deeply sorry for the decisions I made in the past—to my family, my fans, my peers, to the sport that I love and those in and out of it—I’m sorry. I always will be.

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Christian Vande Velde. (Photo by Wil Matthews)

“I decided to change what I was doing and started racing clean again well before Slipstream, but I chose to come to Slipstream because I believed in its unbending mission of clean sport. Today, I am proud of the steps that I and cycling have have made to improve the future of the sport that I love so much. I am proud to be a part of an organization that implemented a no-needle policy. I am proud that I published my blood values for all of the world to see after almost reaching the podium at the 2008 Tour de France; showing first and foremost myself that it was possible to and then, confirming it for the rest of the world. I continue to be proud of the strides the sport has taken to clean itself up, and the actions our organization has taken to help shape the sport that I love.”
 
“We’re in a good place now, young riders of the new generation have not had to face the choices that I did, and this needs to continue. By looking at the mistakes of cycling’s history, we have an opportunity to continue to shape its future.
 
“I’m very sorry for the mistakes I made in my past and I know that forgiveness is a lot to ask for. I know that I have to earn it and I will try, every day, to deserve it—as I have, every day, since making the choice to compete clean. I will never give up on this sport, and I will never stop fighting for its future.”
 
DAVID ZABRISKIE STATEMENT
 
“Cycling was a refuge for me. Long, hard training rides were cathartic and provided an escape from the difficult home life associated with a parent with an addiction. My father had a long history of substance use and addiction. Seeing what happened to my father from his substance abuse, I vowed never to take drugs. I viewed cycling as a healthy and wholesome outlet that would keep me far away from a world I abhorred.

“In 1996, soon after joining a local cycling club and winning a state championship, I qualified to participate in training at the U.S. Olympic Training Center. After winning the GP Des Nation under 23 category in 2000, I was invited onto a pro-level team. Ironically, the sport I had turned to for escaping drugs turned out to be rampant with doping. I chose not to focus on that. I was young, everyone was telling me I had a great future—and I knew I could do it clean. From the beginning, I always had.

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Dave Zabriskie. (Photo by James Startt)

“After distinguishing myself in an important race, management presented me with drugs and instructed me on how to proceed. I was devastated. I was shocked. I had never used drugs and never intended to. I questioned, I resisted, but in the end, I felt cornered and succumbed to the pressure. After one week I stopped. I subsequently succumbed in less than a handful of confined instances never making it a systematic part of my training practices or race routines. But it happened and I couldn’t be sorrier. It was a violation—a violation not only of the code I was subject to, but my personal and moral compass that I had set out to follow. I accept full responsibility and was happy to come forward and tell USADA my whole story; I want to do my share to help bring this entire issue to the fore and ensure a safe, healthy, and clean future for cycling.

“I returned to being 100% clean long before the Anti-Doping Commitment was issued for riders to sign in 2007. I was one of the first to sign. I embraced complete transparency. When Slipstream surfaced I was eager to join for all that it stands for and its unwavering commitment to clean cycling. I only wish a team like this had existed when I was a neo pro. Cycling started out as a refuge for me and I want to play my part in making it the sport I had always hoped it would be and know that it can be.”

STATEMENT FROM SLIPSTREAM SPORTS

“We created Slipstream Sports because we wanted to create a team where cyclists could compete 100% clean. We understood cycling’s history and we were determined to create a different environment for riders; to give them a place to come where they did not have to make the difficult and heartbreaking choices of the past. We built our organization based on the core values of honesty, fairness and optimism. We built it on the belief in our ability to contribute to changing the sport’s future through a persistent commitment to the present. We implemented the most progressive independent anti-doping system in all of professional sport and the first-ever no needle policy in professional cycling. We made anti-doping not just a strict policy and mission, but part of every conversation.

“Today, we are very encouraged to see the incredible strides cycling has taken to clean itself up. But, while it is important to acknowledge pride in the fact that cycling has never been cleaner, we find ourselves at a critical moment in cycling’s evolution: confronting its history.

“The founding concepts of Slipstream Sports were put in place for riders committed to competing clean during their time at Slipstream Sports. Every athlete who comes to us knows exactly who we are and what we stand for and when they come here, they make the choice to compete 100 percent clean.
 
“While Christian, David and Tom made their mistakes the better part of a decade ago, they also made the choice to stop. To change what they were doing. To face the past, in their own way, and to start competing clean. In January 2008, they made another important choice—the choice to join our organization—because they believed in our mission and wanted a better future for the sport they love.
 
“They have made another brave choice, to speak honestly and openly with the appropriate authorities, to confront their own pasts and cycling’s past and to accept the consequences, all in a continued effort to help the sport evolve.
 
“Nothing can erase what has happened in cycling’s history, but we can learn from it. We can look back and say: never again. We can look forward to the crop of young athletes coming up not just on our team but on other teams and have confidence that the future of the sport is here.
 
“Slipstream Sports, the small team that took to the Pro Tour ranks in 2008 with a huge anti-doping mission continues to help shape cycling’s future. We have consistently placed riders in the top ten of the Tour de France every year since our inception, clean. In 2011, we won Paris-Roubix, clean. We won our first Grand Tour in 2012, clean. We won the 2012 USA Pro Challenge, clean. But for Slipstream, its never been about winning.  The real victory is showing the world that clean sport is a reality, and we are devoted to it. We firmly believe that these moments, and all the moments where we don’t win, but animate racing around the world, speak volumes about where the sport is today. Cycling has never been cleaner and we will work, every day, to help it continue to progress.
 
“We support and believe in Christian, David and Tom one hundred percent. By coming forward and sharing their history, they have lived up to the promise that we as an organization made to the world when we founded Slipstream. We hope that fans and sponsors throughout the world can understand that despite the mistakes they made in their pasts, they are a critical part of the future. We hope you can believe, as we do, that this step, while painful, contributes to building a better future.”

Stay tuned to BICYCLING.com for further news and analysis.

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Update: 2:15 p.m. ET: The United States Anti-Doping Agency published an edited version of its “Reasoned Decision” file this afternoon detailing the evidence it used to sanction Lance Armstrong.

The 202-page file includes a chronological review of Armstrong’s doping, beginning with EPO use at the 1998 Vuelta Espana, where he finished fourth overall and first hinted of his prowess as a stage racer.

It continues with evidence on the alleged coverup of a doping positive at the 2001 Tour of Switzerland and use of various doping substances and methods, including testosterone, blood transfusions, and how Armstrong and the US Postal Service team avoided positive drug tests by using undetectable substances and methods, and systematically avoiding and delaying drug testers.

(continued)


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