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| On Winfrey’s Show, Armstrong Is Planning to Confess Drug Use | On Winfrey’s Show, Armstrong Is Planning to Confess Drug Use |
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| After nearly 15 years of vehement denials, Lance Armstrong will admit that he used performance-enhancing drugs during his cycling career when he is interviewed by Oprah Winfrey, two people with knowledge of the situation said. | After nearly 15 years of vehement denials, Lance Armstrong will admit that he used performance-enhancing drugs during his cycling career when he is interviewed by Oprah Winfrey, two people with knowledge of the situation said. |
| Armstrong, 41, will give a limited confession to Winfrey and will not provide much detail of the doping that antidoping officials have said occurred throughout his cycling career, said the two people, who did not want their names published for fear of jeopardizing their access to him. | Armstrong, 41, will give a limited confession to Winfrey and will not provide much detail of the doping that antidoping officials have said occurred throughout his cycling career, said the two people, who did not want their names published for fear of jeopardizing their access to him. |
| He is scheduled to sit down with Winfrey on Monday in his home in Austin, Tex., for the interview, which will be shown Thursday on the Oprah Winfrey Network. USA Today first reported the news late Friday. | |
| “I think Oprah understands the pressure of this interview,” Armstrong said Saturday in a telephone interview. “She’s clever. She’s seen people questioning whether she will go deep. I’ve assured her that I want her to go deep with her questions, and I’m going to answer those questions openly, honestly and with full transparency. And, quite frankly, I’m looking forward to it.” | |
| The New York Times reported Jan. 4 that Armstrong was considering admitting publicly that he had used banned drugs and blood transfusions. Last fall, after 11 of his former teammates had testified against him, he was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles for doping and for his involvement in what officials called the most sophisticated, organized and professional doping program in sports history. | The New York Times reported Jan. 4 that Armstrong was considering admitting publicly that he had used banned drugs and blood transfusions. Last fall, after 11 of his former teammates had testified against him, he was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles for doping and for his involvement in what officials called the most sophisticated, organized and professional doping program in sports history. |
| Armstrong is coming forward to discuss his past doping because he wants to persuade officials to lift his lifetime ban from Olympic sports so he can return to competing in triathlons and running events, according to people with knowledge of his plans. | Armstrong is coming forward to discuss his past doping because he wants to persuade officials to lift his lifetime ban from Olympic sports so he can return to competing in triathlons and running events, according to people with knowledge of his plans. |
| Last month, Armstrong met with Travis Tygart, chief executive of the United States Anti-Doping Agency, to begin discussing a way in which an admission from Armstrong could mitigate his punishment. Under the World Anti-Doping Code, athletes can receive up to a 75 percent reduction of a ban if they provide substantial assistance to antidoping authorities in building cases against other cheats. For his ban to be reduced, though, Armstrong will have to give information about the people who helped him in his doping. | Last month, Armstrong met with Travis Tygart, chief executive of the United States Anti-Doping Agency, to begin discussing a way in which an admission from Armstrong could mitigate his punishment. Under the World Anti-Doping Code, athletes can receive up to a 75 percent reduction of a ban if they provide substantial assistance to antidoping authorities in building cases against other cheats. For his ban to be reduced, though, Armstrong will have to give information about the people who helped him in his doping. |
| If Armstrong does confess, he is opening himself to more legal troubles than he has now. He has been named as a defendant in a federal whistle-blower case that contends that Armstrong and his associates on the United States Postal Service cycling team used taxpayer dollars to finance a systematic doping program. The government is considering joining that case as a plaintiff. | If Armstrong does confess, he is opening himself to more legal troubles than he has now. He has been named as a defendant in a federal whistle-blower case that contends that Armstrong and his associates on the United States Postal Service cycling team used taxpayer dollars to finance a systematic doping program. The government is considering joining that case as a plaintiff. |
| Armstrong may also have to repay $12 million he received from SCA Promotions, a company based in Dallas that paid him millions for winning several Tours de France. Jeffrey Tillotson, a lawyer for the company, said Friday that he was waiting to see the interview with Winfrey before filing a lawsuit asking Armstrong to return that money. | Armstrong may also have to repay $12 million he received from SCA Promotions, a company based in Dallas that paid him millions for winning several Tours de France. Jeffrey Tillotson, a lawyer for the company, said Friday that he was waiting to see the interview with Winfrey before filing a lawsuit asking Armstrong to return that money. |
| Armstrong is also being sued by The Sunday Times of London for more than $1.5 million over the settlement of a libel case. The newspaper paid Armstrong nearly $500,000 after it published claims from the book “L.A. Confidentiel” that he had used performance-enhancing drugs. | Armstrong is also being sued by The Sunday Times of London for more than $1.5 million over the settlement of a libel case. The newspaper paid Armstrong nearly $500,000 after it published claims from the book “L.A. Confidentiel” that he had used performance-enhancing drugs. |
| What worries Armstrong the most, said people with knowledge of the situation, is criminal charges that could arise from his confession. The United States attorney’s office in Los Angeles closed an investigation into Armstrong early last year regarding doping-related crimes, including fraud, money laundering and drug trafficking. Another United States attorney’s office could reopen that investigation, several lawyers involved in the case said, although that is unlikely. | What worries Armstrong the most, said people with knowledge of the situation, is criminal charges that could arise from his confession. The United States attorney’s office in Los Angeles closed an investigation into Armstrong early last year regarding doping-related crimes, including fraud, money laundering and drug trafficking. Another United States attorney’s office could reopen that investigation, several lawyers involved in the case said, although that is unlikely. |