Saturday, June 30, 2012

It's now or never for the "truth" to out in Armstrong's case

So far the evidence has seemed circumstantial at best. There hasn't been hard evidence of doping, not in his blood or urine tests, anyway. Or so it seems, as the accusations include cover-ups, don't they? And that's the problem. It's all smoke - dense smoke at that. How can we pin the truth down except by trusting the guy - or not? It's his word against a lot of hot-air opinions, so far. Yes, Armstrong worked with people like Dr Ferrari, previously named, shamed and barred from the sport.  Yes, a large number of his teammates from the US Postal era went on to get caught doping. Yes, many - if not most - of the riders he beat for his Tour titles were later found to be doping. So? It's still not proof, is it?

Yet it all adds up to a great big cloud of doubt. Hopefully this is it. The proof, one way or the other.

It's hard to imagine that anyone will ever try again if this attempt fails, surely?

Doping Charges Recommended In Armstrong Case | Cyclingnews.com
A review board has recommended that the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) file anti-doping rule violations against Lance Armstrong, it was announced today. The agency claims to have evidence that the seven-time Tour de France champion conspired to boost his and his US Postal team's performance through the use of performance enhancing drugs.

“USADA can confirm that the independent three person Anti-Doping Review Board (ADRB) has conducted a full evaluation and has made a unanimous recommendation to move forward with the adjudication process in accordance with the rules," a statement from USADA read.