THE PLOT THICKENS in the Lance Armstrong case.
The disgraced former cycling great has been given until 6 February to come clean — fully — to US Anti-Doping bosses, in the wake of his interview with Oprah last week.
And the head of USADA — Travis Tygart — says he was stunned by Armstrong’s claims in the TV broadcast that he had to look up the definition of cheating.
“It’s amazing,”Tygart said in an interview to be shown tonight.” You could go to almost any kindergarten in this country or frankly around the world and find kids playing tag or four square and ask them what cheating is. Every one of them will tell you that cheating is breaking the rules of the game.
“No real athlete has to look up the definition of cheating. It’s offensive to clean athletes who are out there working hard to play by the rules that apply to their sport.”
Asked if the Armstrong was correct in viewing his actions as just a levelling of the playing field, Tygart adds: “It’s just simply not true. The access they had to inside information — to how the tests work, what tests went in place at what time, special access to the laboratory… he was on an entirely different playing field to all the other athletes — even if you assume all the other athletes had access to some doping products.”
