Lance Armstrong loses US$10 million arbitration ruling

[webfact]

Lance Armstrong loses $10 million arbitration ruling
By JIM VERTUNO

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — An arbitration panel ordered Lance Armstrong and Tailwind Sports Corp. to pay $10 million in a fraud dispute with a promotions company for what it called an "unparalleled pageant of international perjury, fraud and conspiracy" that covered up his use of performance-enhancing drugs.

Dallas-based SCA Promotions announced the 2-1 decision against the former cyclist when its lawyers said Monday they had asked Texas' 116th Civil District Court in Dallas to confirm the arbitration ruling, dated Feb. 4. The panel included a neutral chairman, who ruled in favor of SCA, and one person selected by each side.

Tim Herman, a lawyer for Armstrong, insisted the ruling is contrary to Texas law and predicted it will be overturned by a judge.

SCA paid Armstrong and Tailwind, the since-dissolved team management company, about $12 million in bonuses during Armstrong's career, when he won seven Tour de France titles. Those victories were stripped after Armstrong and his U.S. Postal Service teams were found to have used banned performance-enhancing drugs.

SCA disputed the bonuses in arbitration in 2005, and the case produced the foundation of the doping evidence later used against him. Despite allegations of cheating, Armstrong continued to deny doping and the company settled with Armstrong and paid him $7 million in 2006.

The company sued Armstrong to get its money back after Armstrong's cheating was exposed by a report from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency and a televised confession interview with Oprah Winfrey.

The case was sent back to the original arbitration panel of independent chairman Richard Faulkner, SCA selection Richard Chernick and Armstrong pick Ted Lyon.

In the 2005 arbitration hearings, Armstrong testified under oath that he did not use performance-enhancing drugs.

"Perjury must never be profitable," the majority wrote in the new decision. "Tailwind Sports Corp. and Lance Armstrong have justly earned wide public condemnation. That is an inadequate deterrent. Deception demands real, meaningful sanctions."

SCA President and founder Bob Hamman praised the ruling.

"It is hard to describe how much harm Lance Armstrong's web of lies caused SCA but this is a good first start toward repairing that damage," Hamman said.

Armstrong argued his original settlement could not be overturned under state law. The arbitration majority said the $10 million was a penalty for Armstrong's lying and efforts to intimidate or coerce witnesses in the previous case.

"This award is unprecedented," Herman said.

Herman noted Lyon's dissent said the panel was not deceived in the original settlement when it signed off on a voluntary agreement entered by SCA.

"There is no Texas case or statute that allows for this type of sanctions motion nine years after the award was given," Lyon wrote in his dissent.

Lyon's dissent also attacked SCA, writing that in 2005 the arbitration panel had found the company to have engaged in selling insurance in Texas without a license, which could have exposed it to more than $22 million in damages under Armstrong's original claims.

"No party in this case came here with clean hands," Lyon wrote.

"The final decision by the panel reminds me about the 'do right rule.' It doesn't matter what the law is, let's just do what is right," Lyon wrote. "Arbitrators, like judges, don't have that luxury, and the Panel exceeded its authority by indulging itself here."

Armstrong also is being sued by the federal government and former teammate Floyd Landis in a whistleblower fraud action over his team's sponsorship contract with the Postal Service. That case is not set to go to trial before 2016.


-- (c) Associated Press 2015-02-17 AP

[bendejo]

Pretty impressive how much this guy has gotten away with since he was 'busted.'

No criminal charges.

He's managed to bully his way through all these suits with no hint of remorse until now. Looks like his stars are realigning.

Supposedly these things they juice on shrivel up the testicles. Whatever this guy has left are pure brass.

[lungmi]

He won 7 times the Tour de France. The Party of Mr.T. the elections in Thailand. Same, same, but different?

[robblok]

Pretty impressive how much this guy has gotten away with since he was 'busted.'

No criminal charges.

He's managed to bully his way through all these suits with no hint of remorse until now. Looks like his stars are realigning.

Supposedly these things they juice on shrivel up the testicles. Whatever this guy has left are pure brass.

Supposedly you have no idea what you are talking about. The kind of doping a guy like that would take is totally different from steroids (who if the user is a total idiot and does not take counter measures could shrivel the testicles up). Guys like this would have been using EPO and stuff like that.. totally different.

But even if he had taken steroids its quite easy to counter the testicle problem but I doubt he would be taking high enough doses to even get close.

[Ulysses G.]

I find it difficult to get worked up one way, or the other. if he was getting away with this, how many others were too? It seems like it was very common.

[F430murci]

Pretty impressive how much this guy has gotten away with since he was 'busted.'

No criminal charges.

He's managed to bully his way through all these suits with no hint of remorse until now. Looks like his stars are realigning.

Supposedly these things they juice on shrivel up the testicles. Whatever this guy has left are pure brass.

Supposedly you have no idea what you are talking about. The kind of doping a guy like that would take is totally different from steroids (who if the user is a total idiot and does not take counter measures could shrivel the testicles up). Guys like this would have been using EPO and stuff like that.. totally different.

But even if he had taken steroids its quite easy to counter the testicle problem but I doubt he would be taking high enough doses to even get close.

Yes. Very true. Over the years I have become close friends with Patrick Arnold of BALCO fame. Testing has gotten better since BALCO and Armstring days, but chemist like Patrick Arnold could create analogues and PHs that can beat any testing. Athletes paid big money for the talent of these guys. Pat also paid a pretty big price for his role in BALCO.

Lance was using EPO to increase red blood cells and doing blood transfusions to increase oxygen carrying capacity. I believe his use of HGH and very low amounts of test was for recovery. Testing for low recovery doses was formerly very difficult as both are naturally occurring in the body. Testing for HGG looks to IGF-1 now as the actually HGH spike rapidly and quickly wane. The ratios were only recently really understood.

[robblok]

I find it difficult to get worked up one way, or the other. if he was getting away with this, how many others were too? It seems like it was very common.

Agreed.. all in top sports steroids are used, and he certainly was not the only one.

[rickirs]

"Armstrong argued his original settlement could not be overturned under state law."

I tend to agree but it depends on the language of the settlement. Usually settlements are final and not subject to post-agreement reviews. If Armstrong had good attorneys, they would insure that language to the effect that whatever motivated either side to a settlement was irrelevant and unarguable. Therefore, any subsequent discovered misrepresentation by either side could not negate the settlement.

In fact it seems that the arbitration decision wasn't a reversal of the original settlement, but a penalty imposed on Armstrong for achieving a settlement, albeit through deception. Such a decision does seem to go beyond the authority of an arbitrator and denies Armstrong due process of law. Under a judicial proceeding plaintiffs might have difficulty establishing legal standing, again depending on the language of the settlement, to get a court to accept a lawsuit.

[NickJ]

I would love to see more boring records crushed....I for one think the public has been misguided by the performance enhancing bandwagon......do what I do and try training as hard as I do at age 50 without testoterone replcament therapy.... I Fixed my eyes so I could shoot better. I take test to recover from injuries......test as a drug is rhe same as an anti-inflam.........

[mania]

I find it difficult to get worked up one way, or the other. if he was getting away with this, how many others were too? It seems like it was very common.

True & not just then but even now.

Or even All the way back to Eddy Merckx or even Jacques Anquetil

Back in 1924 French riders Henri Pélissier, Francis Pélissier,

Said " Francis is reported as saying "In short, we run on dynamite." Henri is reported as saying

"Do you know how we keep going? Look, this is cocaine, chloroform, too. And pills? You want to see pills? Here are three boxes - We run on dynamite"

This is due to the superhuman feats asked of these riders.

No man no matter how trained can do 3 weeks with these mountain passes at these speeds without ever having a bad day & blowing up

loosing so much time as to be out of contention. If you do not finish a stage within a additional 10% time the leader finished for the day

your kicked out of the Tour

Yet look at the average speeds since the supposed drug crack downs...no difference & at times faster.

There have been many stories written by riders who went & later quit as they knew they

had to choose...drugs or never be competitive.

In the days of folks like Greg Lemond you saw he was clean as you saw him blow spectacularly some days

almost unable to finish the race. So some were successful even clean? but another thing is folks presume those who take

drugs or even recycle their blood at night with blood oxygen rich taken at an earlier time & stored which is boosting & illegal....

somehow makes them super human but it is not true.

Drugs are often used mainly during training to allow more capacity for training & gain an edge there

Because the top 3 & some random riders are always checked at the finish line of each stage immediately after crossing the line.

So most at the time of finish are clean or on a new drug not yet detectable.

They should check the slaves or what they call the domestiques.

These riders go all the way to the back of the pack grab 10 or more bottles of water & race to the front to give it to their leaders

These are the ones who are boosted during the race & capable of such feats.

Anyway...Yeah Lance was caught & made it worse by denying it. Most caught serve their 2 years off & come right back.

But he kind of rubbed the wrong French noses in it & was good at hiding his doping. He paid a lot of money

to the doctors who helped him etc.

[Rod Wallop]

He's got $115m left

[Wat dee]

I find it difficult to get worked up one way, or the other. if he was getting away with this, how many others were too? It seems like it was very common.

Not just "was"

[Wat dee]

He probably has a deal with Oprah. What ever He looses Oprah pays back and some.

[thaibeachlovers]

The above says it all about the reason I have ZERO interest in professional sport. There is nothing laudable about people that spend all day building their bodies into a money making machine. Far better the days of the amateur that did for the competition and not the paycheck.