Lance Armstrong: 5 Reasons Why Allegations Levied at Lance Are Baseless
Lance Armstrong is once again having to deal with steroid and performance enhancing drug allegations.
This is nothing new for the seven-time Tour de France champion, either. There have been people that have been trying to bring him and his empire down for nearly 12 years.
But for all the talk, all the rumors and all the allegations, there has never been any definitive proof that he has done anything wrong. People are going to say what they want because they are given the right of free speech, but that doesn't mean what they are saying is true.
Armstrong has not been proven to have done anything to warrant all of these allegations, aside from the fact that he dominated a sport for years. Are we really at a point where any accomplishment by any athlete is going to warrant performance enhancing drug speculation?
No athlete deserves that, no matter how much people dislike a particular athlete.
Here are five reasons that these latest allegations are nothing more than a cheap witch hunt.
Reason No. 1: Jealousy of Armstrong's Fame and Success
1 of 5
Lance Armstrong has become more than just a cyclist. He has become an entire brand. His Livestrong slogan has become a part of the lexicon in this country and around the world.
He has become the second-biggest brand among athletes in the world, just behind Michael Jordan. These people making the accusations want nothing more than to bring down everything that he has worked so hard to build up over the last 13 years.
Whenever someone achieves a level of success, people are always going to climb out of the woodwork to ruin their reputation.
Reason No. 2: The People Making the Accusations Want to Cash in
2 of 5
Given the power of the Lance Armstrong name and brand, any kind of speculation against him is instantly going to make someone an instant celebrity.
Tyler Hamilton was a nobody one week ago. Now, everyone knows his name because he was on 60 Minutes and appears to be shopping his story to a book dealer.
These people want to get a piece of the money and fame that Armstrong has gotten after years of dominating the most prestigious race in cycling.
The media is just as guilty as these people because they keep putting them on their shows and letting them tell their stories without doing the proper research.
Reason No. 3: The Cache of Bringing Down Armstrong's Empire
3 of 5
This is from a piece in the San Francisco Chronicle written by Gwen Knapp about what bringing down Armstrong would mean:
"Lance Armstrong would be the grand prize for Jeff Novitzky, the federal agent who put teeth into America's anti-doping laws. If the Los Angeles grand jury investigating Armstrong's old cycling team returns an indictment, every young athlete contemplating that first illicit injection would have to think: "Lance was the ultimate untouchable. If I do this, I'll probably get busted someday."
"
If someone can advance their career while at the same time bringing down one of the most famous athletes in the world, the motivation to get something done increases dramatically.
Jeff Novitzky has done a lot of good things for anti-doping laws, but you can't turn things into a witch hunt just to advance your career.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Reason No. 4: Lack of Definitive Proof Armstrong Doped
4 of 5
Lance Armstrong has never tested positive for anything. He is one of the most tested athletes in the world, and every time the tests come back negative.
The sport of cycling is dirty, there is no doubt about that. But that doesn't mean that every single person riding is a doper. To say that he is without any substantial proof, only the word of a few guys who have no credibility to speak of, is unfair and completely irresponsible by the media and by the fans.
You can't speculate on something just because it makes for an interesting (and tabloid-grabbing) headline.
Reason No. 5: Lack of Credibility by Any of the People Making the Accusations
5 of 5
Floyd Landis, Tyler Hamilton, Mike Anderson, and L'Équipe (a French newspaper that accused Armstrong of doping by using faulty scientific information) have all made allegations against Armstrong. And they have all shown themselves to be completely without credibility.
Landis vehemently denied using any performance enhancing drugs after he won the 2006 Tour de France. He got caught doping and then decided to throw Armstrong under the bus to take some of the stain off of his name.
Hamilton failed doping tests twice and both times he lied about using. He got an interview with 60 Minutes because he said that he would give them a big name—Armstrong—and is in the process of trying to land a book deal.
Anderson worked for Armstrong for two years. He claimed that Armstrong was using steroids and other performance enhancing drugs in 2005. The problems is the drug that Anderson accused Armstrong of using—Androstenone—is not a banned substance.
He subsequently stated that he had no knowledge of Armstrong using any banned substance.
The French have had it in for Armstrong since he won the Tour de France in 1999 because they don't want an American winning one of the most prestigious sporting events in that country.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
