In a move that could cost him his seven Tour de France titles,former cyclist Lance Armstrong is now facing formal doping charges from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.
In a 15-page letter dated June 12 to Armstrong and others, the USADA said that it had the cyclist's blood samples from 2009 and 2010 and that they were consistent with "blood manipulation."
Armstrong is accused of using the blood booster EPO, blood transfusions, a human growth hormone, testosterone and steroids. Such doping would have made him a stronger and faster racer. He and his lawyer have vehemently denied that the seven-time Tour winner has ever participated in doping.
The letter also said Armstrong and five others -- including three doctors and a trainer -- had been involved in a team-wide doping program from 1998 to 2011 and that the USADA had "witnesses to the conduct."
In a statement today, Armstrong called the USADA's allegations "baseless" and "motivated by spite."
"I have never doped, and, unlike many of my accusers, I have competed as an endurance athlete for 25 years with no spike in performance, passed more than 500 drug tests and never failed one," Armstrong said.
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