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这个星期的roadbikerider news letter标题为Armstrong Accused
L'Equipe: "The Armstrong Lie"
Yes, the French believe they finally have proof after years
of suspicions and accusations that Lance Armstrong has used
performance-enhancing drugs to win the Tour de France. The
newspaper L'Equipe just published a lengthy investigative
report detailing new evidence that Armstrong illegally used
EPO in 1999 during his first of seven consecutive Tour
victories.
Under the banner headline "The Armstrong Lie," L'Equipe
reported that six Armstrong urine samples from the '99 Tour
were found to have "characteristic, undeniable" signs of
EPO, based on a testing method that had not been devised at
the time of that race. The test was conducted on the B
(backup) samples, which were frozen six years ago.
As when previously accused, Armstrong is denying the use of
EPO (erythropoietin, which improves endurance by increasing
oxygen-carrying red blood cells) or any other banned
substance.
"Yet again, a European newspaper has reported that I have
tested positive for performance enhancing drugs," he said in
a published statement. "Unfortunately, the witch hunt
continues and the article is nothing short of tabloid
journalism. I will simply restate what I have said many
times: I have never taken performance enhancing drugs."
According to cyclingnews.com, the recent analysis of 1999
samples was done to validate the current EPO testing method,
which has come under fire for false positives. One part of
the research involved proofing the EPO test against a sample
group that had possibly used the drug without needing to
hide it. No test for EPO was used in the '99 Tour. In fact,
no test for athletes was approved until the Sydney Olympics
in 2000.
The retrospective testing was done on all of the '99 Tour's
B samples. According to L'Equipe, 12 samples were positive
for EPO and six of those belonged to Armstrong.
Jean-Marie Leblanc, the Tour director, praised L'Equipe's
report as "very complete, very professional, very
meticulous." He termed the evidence against Armstrong
"compelling." But he added that disciplinary action against
Armstrong is unlikely. The A samples were not preserved so
there can be no second test to confirm B sample results.
Even L'Equipe admits, "It cannot be regarded as a positive
test in the strict regulatory sense."
Dick Pound, head of the World Anti-Doping Agency, told the
Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, "It will be
interesting to see what the UCI [International Cycling
Union] and the American cycling federation will do and what
Lance Armstrong has to say. If the tests are credible,
Armstrong is obliged to give explanations, above all because
he has always denied taking doping substances. If something
is revealed, we can't do anything because [WADA] didn't
exist in 1999. It is, however, important that the truth be
established."
LeBlanc said it would take a decision from the UCI for
Armstrong's 1999 victory to be downgraded. "We are very
unsettled and shocked by the revelations in L'Equipe," he
said when the news broke. "We must wait for the answer from
Lance Armstrong, his doctors and advisers before making
judgments. But indisputably I feel disconcerted and
disappointed like many other sports people."
Yesterday LeBlanc sounded convinced Armstrong is guilty,
telling the Associated Press, "For the first time -- and
these are no longer rumors, or insinuations, these are
proven scientific facts -- someone has shown me that in
1999, Armstrong had a banned substance called EPO in his
body."
In Armstrong's defense, some experts have come forward to
dispute the validity of any drug test on urine samples that
have been frozen for six years. The fact that none of the
other six supposed EPO users from the '99 Tour has been
named by L'Equipe supports the "witch hunt" accusation
against the paper.
To keep up with these fast-breaking developments so critical
to Lance's legacy, here are two reputable online news
sources: http://www.cyclingnews.com and
http://www.velonews.com | 
发表于 2005-8-26 01:35:09
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