Cyclist Floyd Landis loses CAS appeal
A three-person panel at the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld a previous panel's decision, ruling his positive doping test during the Tour two years ago was, indeed, valid. Landis also must pay $100,000 toward the legal fees of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.
"I am saddened by today's decision," Landis said in a statement. "I am looking into my legal options and deciding on the best way to proceed."
He has 30 days to appeal to the Swiss Federal Court.
In its 58-page decision, the panel at sports' highest court said the lab that analyzed Landis' positive test results used some "less than ideal laboratory practices, but not lies, fraud, forgery or cover-ups," the way the Landis camp had alleged.
In the end, the panel saved its harshest criticism for Landis, who it said essentially tried to muddle the evidence and embarrass the French lab, and continued on that course even after the evidence was shown not to exist.
The decision comes just six days before the start of the 2008 Tour. Landis won the 2006 edition after a stunning comeback in Stage 17, a rally that turned out to be fueled by synthetic testosterone.
"We are pleased that justice was served and that Mr. Landis was not able to escape the consequences of his doping or his effort to attack those who protect the rights of clean athletes," said USADA chief executive officer Travis Tygart.
The ruling upholds Landis' two-year ban from cycling, which is due to end Jan. 29, 2009, though at this point, the ban wasn't the real issue.
Landis hoped to be exonerated and to get his title back. He also wanted to use the protracted case to shed light on procedures at USADA and the World Anti-Doping Agency, which he says are unfair and rigged against athletes who often don't have the resources to fund their defense.
"That's always been part of the system, that they've always had more resources than the athlete. This is the first time it's even been close," Landis' attorney, Maurice Suh, said in an interview last year.
Bankrolled through several private sources, including a fundraising campaign he launched on his own, Landis forced a case that cost more than $2 million — a burden on him, but also a strain on the bottom lines of both USADA and WADA, which shared the cost of prosecuting the case.
Recent comments
When it is estimated that over 80% of the tour cyclist dope in some...
Agreed | June 30, 2008 at 11:51 p.m.
Most likely the sad truth is the most of the cyclists of the last...
Anonymous | June 30, 2008 at 7:11 p.m.
Would be nice if the USADA were held to the same standard as the...
White | June 30, 2008 at 7:11 p.m.
