US Department of Justice to join lawsuit against Lance Armstrong

USNews ^ | Feb 22, 2013 | Pete Williams

[Baynative]

The Justice Department will notify a federal court Friday that it is joining one of his former racing teammates in suing him for using performance-enhancing drugs during the Tour de France, legal sources told NBC News.

The government is signing on to a lawsuit filed two years ago by Floyd Landis, one of Armstrong's former Tour de France teammates who has already admitted cheating. Among its claims: Landis saw Armstrong store and then re-inject his own blood to boost his performance, and Armstrong twice gave Landis banned hormones before races.

[Hot Tabasco]

They will crucify Lance. And, honestly, he has it coming

I would agree with you but only if every top ten racer and every stage winner that competed with him during all his races were given the same in depth scrutiny and testing as Armstrong endured.......

That's a fair request isn't it?

[Vision]

Ever read Anderson's story?

http://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/biking/road-biking/My-Life-With-Lance-Armstrong.html

[Baynative]

I was a slobbering Lancebot. I believe(d) that in his remarkable recovery from cancer he lost body mass that had always limited his climbing ability. AS a big man, I had to give up a lot when I raced because I was unable to compete in the hills. So, I was able to understand that difference.

When allegations came up, the simple truth was that he had passed tests even though he was tested more than anyone. Sure, we can now say he had a good technique of masking. But in all matters of criminality people should be assumed innocent until proven guilty.

[golux]

If the Tour is the greatest athletic competition in the world, which I am rather inclined to believe it is (can you name another?)there is one athlete who stands out as the greatest, Lance. And in order to go on about “he had it coming” you have to convince me that the likes of Merckx, Anquetil, Hineault, Indurain, and frankly even LeMond did not use drugs AND lie about it. The more I think about all this the more I am convinced Lance was SO good at this doping crap he took everyone’s cross.

[3clean]

I am an athelete and have been one for years, I have taken all kinds of legal but banned in sports substances. I feel they make be better, some have made me permantly better. I dont understand public outrage, I dont usderstand the legal knee jerk reactions. Lyle Alzato’s death was part of the anti-roids/dont do drugs kids stuff from the Nancy Regan era 30 years ago. The anti-aging, HGH stuff 100% of hollywood is on and has been on for the last 10 years. Look at the Governator, should the justice department sue him too cuz he also cheated on his wife and did enough pump to gag a donkey? Guys are big,bad,mean and fast before they take them...We do it because we want more, its the American way. We need to be honest with ourselves and if it was a stupid byclcist, it would have been somebody else.
Play hard and leave it all on the field.

We have forgot as Americans the George Washington story about the cherry tree....Nowaday you tell the truth and weasels and homosexual jump out of the wood work to take a peice of you, and in todays values NEVER show anger.

We have become weak and stupid as peoples.

[MinuteGal]

The Obama Injustice Department is going after Lance because he personifies the monied capitalist who made something of himself.

In Obama's marxist society, if you raise your head higher than the egalitarian masses, they'll chop it off as soon as they can.

Leni

[golux]

...and they had the guts to call themselves “freepers”

You sound like the sort of fellow who understands the dynamic nature of passing relationships and minor personal loyalties as human frailty and its consequences contrast with transhistorical truths and notions of justice and righteousness. It's just this kind of perspective we're looking for in our gang. We meet every day, all day, alone or in groups, and think of all the ways in which others are inferior and therefore less deserving of membership into almost anything we can think up. Consider joining up!

[Revolting cat!]

It didn’t take long. The Justice Dept. campaign is one thing, of course, but the slobbering Lancebots will use it only as an excuse to worship their hero, the “greatest athlete ever!!!”. Which reminds me of the posts I read when Gerry Marsden of the Gerry and the Pacemakers passed away stating that Gerry was the greatest singer ever and his music would live forever. Shore thing, Shirley!

[Vision]

Your theory makes sense until you understand that EPO, the drug which changed the sport and made Armstrong a unrelenting superstar, was only around in the late eighties or early nineties.

[Baynative]

"We have become weak and stupid as peoples."

Roger that!

[golux]

So if I go along with your notion that EPO is the only PED worth paying attention to - which I don’t, and wouldn’t - you still posit that my “theory” makes no sense because... There are no champions after - Pedro Delgado? Indurain? Love ya Vision but give me a break.

[Hot Tabasco]

Ever read Anderson's story?

I read it and saw it as being written by a vindictive bike mechanic who was pissed off because Armstrong didn't buy him a bicycle shop.......

Terms like "protection racket", blackmail and extortion immediately come to mind.......

[Vision]

Read Hamilton's book. It goes into the “era” of EPO and it's effect on the Tour- such as increasing the average speed of the peloton by 5km for a few years.

[Vision]

Well, given the come clean nature of the article, that we know know he was right about the doping, and the similarities between his story and Hamilton's...I believe him.

[Para-Ord.45]

Irrational apotheosis, suspension of rational cognitive abilities, creating alternate realities, is simply not categorized as a minor human flaw making everyone inferior .

Berating cult of personality is honourable.

Don`t like it, the DU may be the perfect site for you.

[Para-Ord.45]

Sylvester Stallone had to admit he uses HGH since he got caught trying to import huge quantities. Just by looking at him it obvious.

But, I really don`t care about personal narcissism. It`s when frauds to try pretend the won fair and square, make tens of millions in income, based on doping and cheating.

Cheat to win, F U Lance.

[Baynative]

I have always said that sports is as much entertainment as it is athletics and there should be no limits on what competitors can use because there is no place to draw the line. Like with the entertainers seen on stage and screen who are all cut, clipped, air brushed and shot full of silicone - fans want to see something special. So, give them what they want.

At some point maybe a competitive union of drug free performers will start up and the public can decide what they favor. But, judging from the success of pro wrestling I doubt straight will win out over enhancement.

In my opinion it all went to hell when the Olympic committee was afraid to stand up for amateurs and opened the door to anything goes with the pro athletes. As US hockey team coach Herb Brooks said after our boys beat the Russians and won gold at Lake Placid, "Now that we have dream teams, we have no more dreams"

[Baynative]

BTW- Welcome to Free Republic. If you are interested in cycling (beyond this issue) let me know and I’ll put you on our ping list. We have a joyous time during le Tour what with all the cyclists that join in and the people who tell us cycling is not a sport..

[golux]

I understand the part about how I believed in Lance and that makes me a left-winger, but with the rest, you’re too smart for me.

[golux]

By the way, I was in a bike shop earlier this week and saw a vintage set of profile bars... Grey with white lettering - PROFILE - on the side. "How much for those?" "Ahh, we'll give 'em to ya." Just installed them about, oh, 5 minutes ago on my old Bottecchia TSX. (new wheels though, Mavic Open Pros - built to ride hard...) So I'm gonna kick it old school Champs Elysees style on my next ride. (No splits.) LOL