Floyd Landis lost his final chance to retain his 2006 Tour de France title Monday, the last step of a long, multimillion-dollar process that poked holes in the anti-doping establishment but ultimately left the cyclist as just another convicted cheater. A three-person CAS panel upheld a previous panel’s decision, ruling his positive doping test during the Tour two years ago was, indeed, valid. Landis also must pay $100,000 toward the legal fees of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. The CAS panel, noting the harsh nature of much of the Landis testimony, agreed with USADA’s contention that Landis’ witnesses “crossed the line, acting for the most part as advocates for the Appelant’s cause, and not as scientists objectively assisting the Panel in the search for truth.” The decision comes just six days before the start of the 2008 Tour. Landis won the 2006 edition after a stunning comeback in Stage 17, a rally that turned out to be fueled by synthetic testosterone. The ruling upholds Landis’ two-year ban from cycling, which is due to end Jan. 30, 2009, though at this point, the ban wasn’t the real issue. Landis hoped to be exonerated and to get his title back. He also wanted to use the protracted case to shed light on procedures at USADA and the World Anti-Doping Agency, which he says are unfair and rigged against athletes who often don’t have the resources to fund their defense. “That’s always been part of the system, that they’ve always had ...
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Floyd Landis lost his final chance to retain his 2006 Tour de France title Monday, the last step of a long, multimillion-dollar process that poked holes in the anti-doping establishment but ultimately left the cyclist as just another convicted cheater. A three-person CAS panel upheld a previous panel’s decision, ruling his positive doping test during the Tour two years ago was, indeed, valid. Landis also must pay $100,000 toward the legal fees of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. The CAS panel, noting the harsh nature of much of the Landis testimony, agreed with USADA’s contention that Landis’ witnesses “crossed the line, acting for the most part as advocates for the Appelant’s cause, and not as scientists objectively assisting the Panel in the search for truth.” The decision comes just six days before the start of the 2008 Tour. Landis won the 2006 edition after a stunning comeback in Stage 17, a rally that turned out to be fueled by synthetic testosterone. The ruling upholds Landis’ two-year ban from cycling, which is due to end Jan. 30, 2009, though at this point, the ban wasn’t the real issue. Landis hoped to be exonerated and to get his title back. He also wanted to use the protracted case to shed light on procedures at USADA and the World Anti-Doping Agency, which he says are unfair and rigged against athletes who often don’t have the resources to fund their defense. “That’s always been part of the system, that they’ve always had ...