Lance Armstrong has had a heck of a year… and it’s only just started. The controversial cyclist — who recently admitted to using performance enhancing drugs after years of vehemently denying it — is about to be sued by Uncle Sam.
On Friday, the U.S. Department of Justice joined Armstrong’s fellow teammate Floyd Landis in a federal whistleblower lawsuit. The suit claims the seven-time Tour de France winner violated his agreements by hiding his drug use and ultimately defrauding his main sponsor, the United States Postal Service.
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According to the Associated Press, the U.S. Attorney who is handling the case, Ronald Machen claimed, “Lance Armstrong and his cycling team took more than $30 million from the U.S. Postal Service based on their contractual promise to play fair and abide by the rules — including the rules against doping.”
Armstrong was in talks with the U.S. government about a potential settlement but his lawyer, Robert Luskin said those negotiations have failed because “we disagree about whether the postal service was damaged. The postal service’s own studies show that the service benefited tremendously from its sponsorship — benefits totaling more than $100 million.”
It could be a while before the case goes to trial, if at all. So stay tuned for future updates.
[Photo Credit: Harpo/AP Photo]
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