Doping clouds still hang over Armstrong, Pound says

NEW YORK: Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong's return to competitive cycling will not erase doping allegations that have dogged his career, the former head of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said on Wednesday.

Dick Pound, who had a long-running feud with Armstrong during his time as WADA chief, was not among those impressed by the 37-year-old's comeback and said the Texan was returning to the peloton with the same doping clouds hanging over him.

"If he thinks coming back now will erase all the questions marks that are out there and been identified by the former French sports minister and Tour organizers ... he's still got all those questions out there and they remain unanswered," Pound told Reuters.

"The comeback raises at least as many questions as it answers.

"He has yet to answer how six of his samples tested positive for EPO. The UCI (International Cycling Union) refuses to deal with it."

While Armstrong never tested positive for a banned substance, he was thrust into the doping spotlight when French newspaper L'Equipe reported that six urine samples provided during the 1999 Tour showed traces of the banned blood-boosting agent EPO (erythropoietin).

An independent investigation later cleared Armstrong of any doping violations and accused anti-doping authorities of violating testing rules.

While announcing his comeback, Armstrong acknowledged the doping allegations that have continued to dog him and unveiled a rigorous, independent testing programme developed and headed up by US anti-doping expert Don Catlin that he will undergo during his return to competition.

"I think this will be the most advanced anti-doping program in the world," Armstrong told reporters. "I've won the event (Tour de France) seven times and I know there's been some controversy over some of those victories.

"I would ask and refer people to the independent commission that cleared up the issues of 1999.

"I would also remind them of the federal investigation in France in the year 2000 when all samples were retroactively tested and declared, I think the words were - 'pure as the driven snow'."

Pound dismissed Armstrong's plan as irrelevant, saying it would prove little unless the testing was carried out by an IOC (International Olympic Committee) or WADA accredited lab.

Agencies

(China Daily 09/26/2008 page24)