Lance Armstrong declines to meet deadline imposed by USADA to come clean under oath 
Lance Armstrong, left, and team director Johan Bruyneel celebrate the cyclist's seventh consecutive Tour de France victory, in July 2005 (Photo: Alessandro Trovati, AP) Story Highlights - The famed cyclist previously faced a Feb. 6 deadline to cooperate but received an extension until Wednesday
- USADA wanted Armstrong to come clean without holding back on some subjects the way he did with Oprah Winfrey
- Armstrong still has issues with USADA and would prefer to cooperate with an international tribunal instead
Lance Armstrong once again has decided not to cooperate with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency but said he still plans to "cooperate fully" with other anti-doping authorities instead.
For the second time in two weeks, the famed cyclist has rejected USADA's deadline to submit to a full debriefing about how he cheated on the bike and got away with it for years. If he had agreed to cooperate in time, his testimony could have paved the way for a reduction in his lifetime ban from sanctioned sporting events.
But Armstrong still has issues with USADA "for several reasons," according to a statement released Wednesday by Tim Herman, his attorney. And now he may pursue a different route, possibly through an independent international tribunal yet to be established.
DISCLOSURE: Tyler Hamilton discusses doping payments
"Lance is willing to cooperate fully and has been very clear: He will be the first man through the door, and once inside will answer every question, at an international tribunal formed to comprehensively address pro cycling, an almost exclusively European sport," Herman's statement said. "We remain hopeful that an international effort will be mounted, and we will do everything we can to facilitate that result. In the meantime, for several reasons, Lance will not participate in USADA's efforts to selectively conduct American prosecutions that only demonize selected individuals while failing to address the 95% of the sport over which USADA has no jurisdiction."
For USADA and other anti-doping authorities, the goal is full disclosure. They want Armstrong to give a confession under oath without holding back on certain subjects as he did in his televised confession last month with Oprah Winfrey. In that interview, Armstrong did not want to discuss the role of his cycling team manager Johan Bruyneel, among other key figures and incidents.
Previously, USADA imposed a deadline of Feb. 6 but granted Armstrong a two-week extension at his request – until Wednesday, which he declined to meet.
Herman told USA TODAY Sports last month that Armstrong's offer to cooperate was not contingent on having his ban reduced.
But personal mistrust and other issues got in the way of Armstrong cooperating with USADA, whose chief executive officer, Travis Tygart, has long been Armstrong's nemesis.
USADA has said Armstrong was the ringleader of the "most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen." In October, the agency released a massive evidence file against Armstrong that spelled it all out, including statements from 26 witnesses that described how Armstrong doped, avoided detection and lied about it for several years.
After being banned for life and stripped of his seven titles in the Tour de France, Armstrong finally confessed last month in his interview with Winfrey. He said he used banned drugs and blood transfusions from the mid-1990s through 2005. But he still disputed key points of USADA's case against him. He denied being a ringleader in the scheme and said he stopped doping after 2005 – statements that Tygart said were not true based on the evidence.
Not surprisingly, Armstrong preferred to cooperate with other authorities on this issue. If the goal is to clean up cycling, Herman argued that USADA was not the proper organization to handle the task because doping is a mostly a European sport.
USADA didn't have much leverage with Armstrong anyway. Though Armstrong wants to compete again in sanctioned triathlons and marathons, the best USADA might be able to offer him was a reduction in his lifetime ban to eight years, when Armstrong, 41, would be near 50.
If Armstrong were to provide substantial assistance to anti-doping officials, a lifetime ban could be reduced to no less than eight years, according to the WADA code.
"An eight-year ban, that would be a lifetime ban (for Armstrong)," Herman recently told USA TODAY Sports last month.
Lance Armstrong stands on the winners' podium after the 21st stage of the 92nd Tour de France in 2005. Joel Saget, AFP/Getty Images Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
President Bill Clinton holds up a yellow US Postal Service jersey given to him by Lance Armstrong in the Rose Garden of the White House in 1999. Vernon Bryant, USA TODAY Sports Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong poses for a 2004 photo shoot at the Royal Scandinavian Inn in Solvang, Calif. Dan MacMedan, USA TODAY Sports Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong pedals during the fifth stage of the Giro d'Italia, Tour of Italy in 2009. Alessandro Trovati, AP Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong readies for the start of the 16th stage of the 91st Tour de France cycling race in 2004, a time trial between Bourg d'Oisans and L'Alpe d'Huez. Joel Saget, AFP/Getty Images Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong holds a baby kangaroo as he speaks with the media before stage two of the 2009 Tour Down Under. Presse Sports via USA TODAY Sports Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong at the start of the ninth stage of the 90th Tour de France in 2003. Franck Fife, AFP/Getty Images Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong was awarded the Most Courageous Rider jersey by then-California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger after his 10th place finish in the Prologue of the AMGEN Tour of California in 2009. Doug Pensinger, Getty Images Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong talks to Oprah Winfrey during an interview on Jan. 14, 2013. Getty Images Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong kisses then-girlfriend Sheryl Crow at the 2004 Tour de France. Peter Dejong, AP Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong atop Mt. Bonnell in Austin in 1996. Eileen Blass, USA TODAY Sports Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong rides during training in Wilmington, Del. in 1994. Eileen Blass, USA TODAY Sports Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong in Austin in May 1998. Harry Cabluck, AP Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong acknowledges his seven career Tour de France wins in 2005. Joel Saget, AFP/Getty Images Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong crosses the finish line and wins the 17th stage of the 2004 Tour de France. Patrick Kovarik, AFP/Getty Images Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong addresses participants at The LIVESTRONG Challenge Ride at the Palmer Events Center on October 21, 2012, in Austin, Texas. Tom Pennington, Getty Images Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Ivan Basso, Lance Armstrong, Levi Leipheimer and Floyd Landis, from right, pedal up the Aubisque pass during the 16th stage of the Tour de France in 2005. Bob Edme, Associated Press Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
On July 23, 2000, Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong rides down the Champs Elysees with an American flag after the 21st and final stage of the cycling race. Laurent Rebours, AP Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong reads a French sports newspaper before a training session in Nantes, France, two days before the start of the 86th Tour de France in 1999. Joel Saget, AFP/Getty Images Related story Fullscreen ![None]()
Lance Armstrong, right, in a 1996 road race competition. Rex Perry, USA TODAY Related story Fullscreen Like this topic? You may also like these photo galleries: Replay 
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Lance Armstrong, left, and team director Johan Bruyneel celebrate the cyclist's seventh consecutive Tour de France victory, in July 2005 (Photo: Alessandro Trovati, AP) Lance Armstrong once again has decided not to cooperate with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency but said he still plans to "cooperate fully" with other anti-doping authorities instead. For the second time in two weeks, the famed cyclist has rejected USADA's deadline to submit to a full debriefing about how he cheated on the bike and got away with it for years. If he had agreed to cooperate in time, his testimony could have paved the way for a reduction in his lifetime ban from sanctioned sporting events. But Armstrong still has issues with USADA "for several reasons," according to a statement released Wednesday by Tim Herman, his attorney. And now he may pursue a different route, possibly through an independent international tribunal yet to be established. DISCLOSURE: Tyler Hamilton discusses doping payments "Lance is willing to cooperate fully and has been very clear: He will be the first man through the door, and once inside will answer every question, at an international tribunal formed to comprehensively address pro cycling, an almost exclusively European sport," Herman's statement said. "We remain hopeful that an international effort will be mounted, and we will do everything we can to facilitate that result. In the meantime, for several reasons, Lance will not participate in USADA's efforts to selectively conduct American prosecutions that only demonize selected individuals while failing to address the 95% of the sport over which USADA has no jurisdiction." For USADA and other anti-doping authorities, the goal is full disclosure. They want Armstrong to give a confession under oath without holding back on certain subjects as he did in his televised confession last month with Oprah Winfrey. In that interview, Armstrong did not want to discuss the role of his cycling team manager Johan Bruyneel, among other key figures and incidents. Previously, USADA imposed a deadline of Feb. 6 but granted Armstrong a two-week extension at his request – until Wednesday, which he declined to meet. Herman told USA TODAY Sports last month that Armstrong's offer to cooperate was not contingent on having his ban reduced. But personal mistrust and other issues got in the way of Armstrong cooperating with USADA, whose chief executive officer, Travis Tygart, has long been Armstrong's nemesis. USADA has said Armstrong was the ringleader of the "most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen." In October, the agency released a massive evidence file against Armstrong that spelled it all out, including statements from 26 witnesses that described how Armstrong doped, avoided detection and lied about it for several years. After being banned for life and stripped of his seven titles in the Tour de France, Armstrong finally confessed last month in his interview with Winfrey. He said he used banned drugs and blood transfusions from the mid-1990s through 2005. But he still disputed key points of USADA's case against him. He denied being a ringleader in the scheme and said he stopped doping after 2005 – statements that Tygart said were not true based on the evidence. Not surprisingly, Armstrong preferred to cooperate with other authorities on this issue. If the goal is to clean up cycling, Herman argued that USADA was not the proper organization to handle the task because doping is a mostly a European sport. USADA didn't have much leverage with Armstrong anyway. Though Armstrong wants to compete again in sanctioned triathlons and marathons, the best USADA might be able to offer him was a reduction in his lifetime ban to eight years, when Armstrong, 41, would be near 50. If Armstrong were to provide substantial assistance to anti-doping officials, a lifetime ban could be reduced to no less than eight years, according to the WADA code. "An eight-year ban, that would be a lifetime ban (for Armstrong)," Herman recently told USA TODAY Sports last month. Story Highlights
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Source : http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/cycling/2013/02/20/lance-armstrong-usada-deadline-again/1931793/
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