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Lab chief told feds of suspicious Armstrong test

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The director of the Swiss anti-dopinglaboratory informed federal authorities last fall that LanceArmstrong's test results from the 2001 Tour de Suisse were"suspicious" and "consistent

News 12 Staff

May 20, 2014, 6:16 PM

Updated 3,920 days ago

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LOS ANGELES (AP) - The director of the Swiss anti-dopinglaboratory informed federal authorities last fall that LanceArmstrong's test results from the 2001 Tour de Suisse were"suspicious" and "consistent with EPO use," The AssociatedPress has learned.
Martial Saugy made the statement in September, according to aperson familiar with the investigation, who spoke on condition ofanonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about thecase.
The revelation came to light Wednesday as attorneys forArmstrong demanded an on-air apology from CBS' "60 Minutes" afterSaugy told a Swiss newspaper that the lab found suspicious levelsof EPO, a blood-boosting drug, in four urine samples from the raceArmstrong won. But Saugy said he didn't know if any belonged to theseven-time Tour de France winner.
That was contrary to what he said in his statement made toofficials from the FBI, the Food and Drug Administration andanti-doping authorities, the person familiar with the investigationtold the AP. Though Saugy was not under oath, there are potentiallegal ramifications for lying to authorities working on a federalprobe.
"60 Minutes" first reported that Saugy told U.S. officials andthe FBI that there was a "suspicious" test result from the 2001Tour de Suisse. "This was confirmed by a number of internationalofficials who have linked the `suspicious' test to Armstrong," CBSNews Chairman and "60 Minutes" executive producer Jeff Fager saidin a statement.
In a letter sent to Fager, lawyer Elliot Peters said the May 22segment about the Austin cycling great was built on a series offalsehoods, and he accused the reputable CBS show of sloppyjournalism.
"In the cold light of morning your story was eitherextraordinarily shoddy, to the point of being reckless andunprofessional, or a vicious hit-and-run job," Peters wrote. "Ineither case, a categorical on-air apology is required."
Fager said the network stood by its story.