Thursday, September 2, 2010

Disputed Admission of PED Use by Lance Armstrong May be Reevaluated in Light of New Evidence

VeloNation reports that a disputed admission of PED use by Lance Armstrong may need be reconsidered in light of new evidence submitted by former teammate Frankie Andreu and Andreu's wife Betsy.  First, the disputed admission:
The Andreus have long claimed that they were present in a hospital room in 1996 when Armstrong reportedly admitting using performance enhancing drugs before contracting cancer. They claimed that when asked by doctors if he had used any banned products, he had answered “growth hormone, cortisone, EPO, steroids and testosterone.” They testified to this effect during the SCA hearing in 2004, when an insurance company tried to fight the granting of a bonus to Armstrong for winning six Tours. 
Stephanie McIlvain, an Oakley representative, was allegedly present when the disputed confession was made by Armstrong.  However, McIlvain denied having heard any such admission from Armstrong when testifying under oath.  Now, the LA Times is reporting that Betsy Andreu gave investigators voicemails from her answering machine that allegedly show McIlvain lied about Armstrong's disputed confession.  What does this mean for the Lance Armstrong investigation?  According VeloNation:
If these latest recordings mentioned by the LA Times are indeed what it is claimed they are, it would put McIlvain in a very difficult position. Novitzky will make it clear that lying under oath is an offence; if she decides to co-operate with the inquiry and back the Andreu’s version of events, it would be a significant blow for Armstrong in that it would lend credibility to Floyd Landis’ claims. 

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