Lance Armstrong agreed to pay the U.S. government $5 million to settle a fraud lawsuit seeking $100 million in damages from the former professional cyclist whose seven Tour de France titles were stripped from him after he confessed to using performance-enhancing drugs during his career.
The Justice Department made the announcement Thursday, saying the settlement shows that sponsored athletes who “cheat the government” will not escape the law.
“No one is above the law,” said Chad Readler, acting assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s civil division. “A competitor who intentionally uses illegal PEDs not only deceives fellow competitors and fans, but also sponsors, who help make sporting competitions possible. This settlement demonstrates that those who cheat the government will be held accountable.”
The federal government had been seeking millions of dollars in false claims for sponsorship payments to the U.S. Postal Service, which sponsored Armstrong’s team during six of the years he won the Tour de France.
Armstrong told the Associated Press that while he is spending a lot of money to resolve a “meritless” lawsuit, he is happy to have “made peace with the Postal Service.”
“While I believe that their lawsuit against me was meritless and unfair, and while I am spending a lot of money to resolve it, I have since 2013 tried to take full responsibility for my mistakes and inappropriate conduct, and make amends wherever possible,” Armstrong said. “I rode my heart out for the Postal cycling team, and was always especially proud to wear the red, white and blue eagle on my chest when competing in the Tour de France. Those memories are very real and mean a lot to me.”
After the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency issued a report in 2012 that found Armstrong and his USPS teammates had been doping, the athlete was stripped of his titles. Armstrong admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs during a TV interview with Oprah Winfrey in January 2013.
Prior to his downfall, Armstrong had obtained international acclaim with his inspiring story of overcoming testicular cancer, building the Lance Armstrong Foundation, and winning seven Tour de France titles.
