Floyd Landis
stripped of 2006 Tour de France title for doping
The winner of the 2006 Tour de
France, Floyd Landis, has been stripped from the title after his
appeal fails.
The
United States Anti-Doping Agency announced on Thursday that
Floyd Landis has been stripped of his 2006 Tour de France title,
after losing his appeal in the doping case. An independent panel
found 2-1 votes that the sample Floyd Landis gave after Stage 17
of the 2006 Tour de France tested positive for exogenous
testosterone and upheld the 2-year ban on Landis, which will
expire on January 2009.
A statement from the United States
Anti-Doping Agency read: "USADA brought the case against Mr.
Landis because, as the independent panel confirmed today, the
scientific evidence established that he had committed a doping
violation. Here, despite the intense public pressure applied by
Mr. Landis and his high-priced legal and public relations team,
we knew that doing what was right required staying the course
and fulfilling our duty to clean athletes. This ruling is a
victory for all clean athletes and everyone who values fair and
honest competition. This case is really just another sad example
of the crisis of character which plagues some of today's
athletes and undermines the honest achievements of all those who
compete with integrity."
Floyd Landis has 30 days to file another
appeal. If Landis forgoes the appeal, the runner-up in 2006, the
Spaniard Oscar Pereiro, will be credited with the 2006 Tour de
France title. Oscar Pereiro has also had brushes with the doping
commission in 2006. Pereiro proved earlier this year that he had
been cleared to use Ventolin, an inhaler prescribed to ease
asthma, which he used during the competition.
Published on 09/20/2007
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