Governing body waiting for evidence; ‘not afraid’ to punish big names
UCI President Pat McQuaid has rejected the notion that the governing body might not be willing to act against a major name such as Lance Armstrong, the Irishman saying it will move if the evidence proves signs of wrongdoing.
The UCI has dismissed suggestions that it could shield the American, who has been accused by former team-mates of having a very close relationship with it in the past.
It has previously described as false claims that the UCI helped cover up a positive test for EPO during the 2001 Tour de Suisse.
Speaking yesterday at the Paralympic Games, McQuaid said that the UCI was waiting for information from USADA, expected to arrive midway through this month and to contain evidence it used to bring a case.
‘They’ve sent us a letter saying they will send us a reasoned decision, so we will wait for that,” he said, according to the Daily Mail.
“That was, I think about a week ago, I’m not sure exactly what day. Soon after they announced the sanctions.
‘If ultimately UCI has to sanction, we will have no problems. We have sanctioned many good riders in the past, we’ve put them out of the sport and we’re not afraid to do it with anybody.”
In June, USADA charged Armstrong and five others with serious doping offences. Armstrong sought to block this in a federal court, claiming USADA didn’t have jurisdiction, but the court ruled that the case should indeed be assessed by sporting arbitration processes.
Armstrong then surprised by saying he would fight no longer, even though USADA had made it clear he would lose his seven Tour de France wins and incur a lifetime ban.
The agency handed out that sanction last month, but the final step in the process won’t occur until such time as the UCI and WADA assess the reasoned decision. If neither decide not to appeal it to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the sanction becomes permanent.