• Cycling

Armstrong stripped of Tour wins

ESPN staff
August 24, 2012
Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France on seven occasions between 1999 and 2005 © Getty Images
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Lance Armstrong has been stripped of his seven Tour de France titles and handed a lifetime ban by the United States Anti-Doping Agency.

Armstrong declared on Friday he would not contest drug charges filed against him by the US Anti-Doping Agency, insisting he was "finished with this nonsense".

USADA said a lifetime ban came into force after the seven-time Tour de France winner's revelation he no longer intended to fight the charges against him, with his results dating back to August 1, 1998, being deleted.

The 40-year-old has always maintained his innocence but admitted the accusations being levelled at him had left him feeling weary. He saw his attempt to block the charges in a US federal court fail on Monday, leaving him to curse the "witch hunt" against him.

"If I thought for one moment that by participating in USADA's process, I could confront these allegations in a fair setting and - once and for all - put these charges to rest, I would jump at the chance," he said.

It remains to be seen how the International Cycling Union (UCI) responds to the developments, the governing body is yet to make any public comments on the matter.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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