Arrest Warrant for Landis

U.S. Cyclist Floyd Landis, who finished first in the 2006 Tour de France and then was disqualified for testing positive for doping, has now had a French arrest warrant issued for him.

Judge Thomas Cassuto, who is based in the Paris suburb of Nanterre, is seeking to question Landis about computer hacking dating back to September 2006 at the Chatenay-Malabry lab, said Astrid Granoux, spokeswoman for Nanterre's prosecutor's office. The laboratory had uncovered abnormally elevated testosterone levels in Landis' samples collected in the run-up to his 2006 Tour de France victory, leading to the eventual loss of his medal.

Earlier Monday, France's anti-doping chief Pierre Bordry had mistakenly described the arrest warrant as international. Granoux stressed that the warrant is only applicable on French soil. It is possible in such cases to issue an international warrant at a later date if needed.

It looks like he's being accused of hacking into the files for his defense in the arbitration that followed the Tour.

Comments

[st. paul]

it's interesting how the landis story gets (re)written, as the memory of the real details of the case get dimmer...knowing him from lancaster, specifically farmville/ephrata, there is no way he was ever guilty, and one of the three "judges" said as much (his case decided 2-1). of all people to be accused! -- an anabaptist!
recall that the lab, on first review, DID not find him with elevated testosterone...then they did, but only a few of 8 samples, and synthetic in the middle of the samples taken, but none positive after the date of the middle sample that was supposed to be positive...which is impossible if the sample is synthetic as it would show in ALL smaples follwing its use for at least a couple weeks...

oh well. getting things straight is as difficult as getting a straight answer from the police as to why the handle bike as they do in dc, and why dont the police stand up for bikes in dc...

[SJE]

I don't know whether Landis was doping or not, but there were very serious defects in the handling and processing of samples.

[Michael]

The French cycling and media establishment tend not to like American athletes crowding onto their turf and being successful there. I don't know if Landis was guilty or not of doping but I'm not that confident that French anti-doping authorities are unbiased.

[SJE]

Landis is on the money when he notes that the current fooferaw highlights the poor computer security at French labs.

Of course, when I say that, I sort of feel like I'm defending OJ Simpson when his defense team rightly pointed out the terrible procedures used in LA crime labs.

[Eric_W.]

Guys,

I am afraid you are trying to make this too easy. Reviving the old French-hatred syndrome is not going to get you anywhere. It's not like Landis is the only bicyclist that has ever been found to have used illegal performance enhancing substances. Quite to the contrary.

And just blaming the process is not really that convincing either, especially if you are relying on the word of a bicyclist. Experience has shown that professional bicyclists as a group almost NEVER (with maybe a couple of exceptions like Bernhard Kohl, former team Gerolstein member) admit that they doped and will swear by the grave of their mother that someone else is to blame for the results.

That reckless disregard for fair play in professional bicycling is to blame for the deterioration of the public trust in the professional bicycling scene and these useless drawn out fights will do nothing but annoy that dwindling audience further. While other sports may have their scandals (biathlon, speed skating, to stay with the current Olympic spirit), the public perceives (justifiably so, I believe), that the leadership is actually willing and capable of enforcing rules and convince athletes and their coaches to do without doping. Professional cycling is perceived as a group of people who are not willing to commit to clean rules.

[Chris]

That French hating Americans things is such a silly old chestnut. I know the Lance Armstrong PR machine used it effectively, but can we just lay that to rest, already?!

[SJE]

Eric, I used to work in a lab, and now work in the law, where questions of evidence are very much at play. I am not taking the word of Landis that he didnt cheat, but I am very disturbed that the procedures in place in the French labs were so lax and readily subject to meddling. This is not to say that meddling occurred, and one should always be skeptical of professional cyclists who seem to compete with East German olympians for novel ways to hide drug use.

That said, the whole story was odd. Landis was positive for testosterone, which is easy to test, hard to hide, and is not considered to enhance performance under the particular circumstances (from my understanding, at least). He was in a strong position in the race, and knew (or should have known) that he would have been tested every which way. If he did take testosterone, I have to wonder WHY. Its such a stupid and reckless act, and so poorly done. Not like your usual doping scandals.

[Chris]

Pro cycling is full of stories of reckless and stupid acts of doping. Sure, the smart ones hire famous Italian doctors known for their ability to hide doping, but every year, there's numerous stories from the pro peloton of guys doping in obvious and arrogant ways that just leave your head scratching. I think the Landis case fits well into this genre.