Armstrong punishment could be 'legal minefield'

25 Aug 2012, 10:31 am   -   Source: AFP
Share This
0 
+ Comment
0
Lance Armstrong. (AAP)

Lance Armstrong. (AAP)

American anti-doping chiefs may be confident of their power to strip Lance Armstrong of his seven Tour de France titles, but they could find themselves trapped in a legal minefield over jurisdiction.

RELATED

American anti-doping chiefs may be confident of their power to strip Lance Armstrong of his seven Tour de France titles, but they could find themselves trapped in a legal minefield over jurisdiction.
  
Armstrong was officially branded a drugs cheat Friday by the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) and was also banned from cycling for life by the agency, which said his decision not to pursue arbitration in an effort to clear himself of doping charges levelled in June triggered the action.
  
But legal experts say the USADA are at risk of over-reaching themselves.
  
"Not only does the USADA only have jurisdiction for its own territory but the role of an anti-doping agency is to determine if an athlete has doped or not," said Denis Oswald, the director of the Centre for International Sports Studies.
  
"The sanctions are the preserve in principle of the international federations.
  
"The Tour de France is an international competition, placed under the authority of the UCI (the International Cycling Union).
  
"And the eventual sanctions that can emanate in the event of a doping case must be taken by those concerned -- the UCI and the management of the Tour de France", added Oswald, who is also a leading figure at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
  
But for the USADA, to leave the international federations to rule on the Armstrong case is like having "the fox guarding the hen-house".
  
The UCI, in return, has reproached the American authorities for "having no respect for the rules and principles of regulatory procedure", demanding that the affair be the responsibility of an independent body.
  
On Friday, the UCI said it would wait for the USADA to reveal its findings before commenting on the matter.
  
One source close to the UCI said the federation felt like it had been caught in the "crossfire".
  
"Their (the UCI) interest is to shed light on the matter, but their duty to their athletes is to ensure that the rules are respected," added Oswald.
  
Another sticking point is the duration of suspension.
  
The world anti-doping code states that an athlete can be banned for life from all competitions only in the case of repeat offences; if not, the maximum suspension is four years.
  
Armstrong has always protested his innocence and has never tested positive despite undergoing hundreds of tests in his career.
  
Until Friday, he had never been sanctioned in a doping case.
  

Cycling Doping , Lance Armstrong

  • Follow us: 
  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • Follow us on Youtube

Join the Discussion

Name
City / Suburb E.g. Artarmon, Sydney
Title
Comment
You have characters remaining.
Validation
What's this?
This is a captcha-picture. It is used to prevent mass-access by robots.
All submitted comments become the property of SBS. They are moderated, so we reserve the right to edit comments and remove HTML tags. Not all submitted comments will be published. Publication does not mean we endorse the opinions expressed. Please read our terms and conditions for more information.