Andreu Article #3/3

Armstrong Not Among Those Praising Cyclist Who Used EPO
By JULIET MACUR
The New York Times
September 13, 2006

Lance Armstrong dismissed the confessions of doping by two of his former teammates from the 1999 Tour de France, saying yesterday that the disclosures had nothing to do with him.

Frankie Andreu, a former captain of Armstrong’s United States Postal Service team, and another former teammate told The New York Times that they used the performance-enhancing drug EPO to prepare for the Tour in 1999, when Armstrong won the first of his seven consecutive titles.

That second teammate spoke on condition of anonymity because he said he was afraid of losing his job in cycling.

Armstrong did not respond yesterday to multiple interview requests through his agent, Bill Stapleton. In an interview with The Associated Press, however, Armstrong said: “To me, this is a story about Frankie Andreu. The fact that he took drugs has nothing to do with me. I think it’s a pretty nasty attempt by The New York Times to link me to doping through somebody else’s admission.”

Armstrong has vehemently denied ever using performance-enhancing drugs.

Andreu, 39, said he came forward because a code of silence in the sport had been protecting a culture of drug use. He said he wanted to do his part to unearth the truth about cycling, so that people inside the sport could address the problem.

“As hard as it is, sometimes putting something on the line is the only way to help,” Andreu said in a statement yesterday.

Andreu, who retired as a rider in 2000 but still races in master’s events, confessed that he used EPO a few times and for only one Tour de France. EPO, or erythropoietin, is a synthetic hormone used to improve stamina by increasing the body’s production of oxygen-rich red blood cells.

Andreu said he admitted to using EPO knowing that he could still be punished for it. United States Anti-Doping Agency officials said athletes who said they had previously used performance-enhancing drugs could be penalized.

Travis Tygart, general counsel for the antidoping agency, said yesterday that he encouraged athletes who had used performance-enhancing drugs to come forward because it could influence others to be clean. He said he could not comment on Andreu’s situation, or on any specific case.

Greg LeMond, a three-time Tour winner and the first rider from the United States to win the Tour, said in a telephone interview yesterday that he would be surprised if the agency penalized Andreu because of the message it would send.

“If USADA pressures a guy like Frankie for some penalty because he was honest, I think it would just reinforce the code of silence in cycling,” he said. “I think it would show that the only ones who get rewarded are the ones that continue to lie. If the message is to stay quiet, there’s no hope for the sport.”

LeMond said the sport was ready for someone like Andreu to discuss the dark side of cycling. More riders should come clean about their doping, he said, because an open discussion about it could only help the sport.

“I think it was the best thing because what Frankie did helps people understand that doping is a problem,” LeMond said. “It takes a lot of courage for him to go against the grain and go against a lot of people who want to help keep this buried.”

For Andreu and his wife, Betsy, yesterday brought relief. Betsy Andreu said more than 100 e-mail messages arrived in the couple’s account yesterday, all but a handful in support of the confession.

She said she and her husband had been worried about how people would react.

“For me and Frankie, it’s been cathartic now that it’s out,” she said. “Now he can talk about how rotten doping is in the sport and know that he was being completely honest with himself.”

In recent months, cycling has been reeling from doping scandals. Before this year’s Tour, nearly 60 cyclists were implicated in a major doping ring in Spain. Several days after the race ended, it was revealed that the winner, Floyd Landis, had tested positive for a high testosterone ratio.

Steve Johnson, the chief executive of USA Cycling, the sport’s national governing body, commended Andreu for speaking out. Andreu is a member of the USA Cycling board.

“The truth is the best policy,” Johnson said. “That’s what my mother always said.”

Jim Ochowicz, the president of the USA Cycling board, said the organization did not condone the use of performance-enhancing drugs. He said that he did not agree with Andreu’s characterization that professional cycling had secrets and that doping was a widespread problem.

“It’s not our position that people are hiding the facts,” he said. “But Frankie certainly is entitled to his opinion.”

Some cycling officials said the confessions by the two riders did not taint Armstrong’s victory in the race, which followed his remarkable recovery from testicular cancer.

Pat McQuaid, the president of the International Cycling Union, told The Associated Press that he was not sure what point Andreu was trying to make with his confession.

In a separate interview with The Times, he said the confession would have “no effect at all” on Armstrong’s legacy. He also said teammates using performance-enhancing drugs might not have helped Armstrong win.

“It’s debatable whether the lead rider is any faster because his teammates are doping,” he said. “Most of the doping is done individually, and it doesn’t mean anyone else on the team would know.”

In his statement, Andreu said that his confession of EPO use was “not meant to drag anyone down, but to raise awareness of the problems that existed and still exist.”

Armstrong Not Among Those Praising Cyclist Who Used EPO - New York Times