Seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong is now attempting to overcome one more obstacle in his life: allegations from tour director Jean-Marie Leblanc that he used illegal drugs to enhance his performance in the races.
According to The Washington Post, a recent drug test in a Paris laboratory has shown that Armstrong was taking EPO, a drug used as a red-cell booster, before his first tour win. Until recently, there was no known procedure to test for the presence of the drug, but frozen urine samples taken from Armstrong in 1999 have tested positive, the Post reported.
While Armstrong denies the charges against him, the battle continues to rage on concerning the validity of the lab tests used to detect the substance in the samples after several years.
Third-year College student William Barratt said he thinks the charges have been brought against Armstrong because of his consistent wins.
"I think that this is just a campaign to smear his name because of all of the press he's been receiving," Barratt said.
Second-year College student Matt Towerman said he thinks the media has had a major role in gathering the evidence against Armstrong.
"This is a pretty ridiculous issue to bring up six years later," Towerman said. "The French tabloid that first published this information is notorious for spreading false information. Anyone that reaches that high a level of achievement, there is always someone interested in tearing them down."
Other students, however, said they believe the charges against Armstrong could be true because of the pressures that accompany a cycling career. Second-year student Diego Diaz said he is not surprised that these charges have arisen against the famous cyclist.
"There is so much drug abuse in cycling, so it's possible that these allegations could be true," Diaz said. "He's a great champion, but his personal character is questionable at times."
First-year College student Lauren Antle said she thinks there is a strong possibility Armstrong felt the need to enhance his abilities to continue his incredible career.
"I wouldn't be surprised if he did actually use drugs because of the pressure he is under all the time to remain successful," Antle said. "He is a great person and an incredible inspiration to everyone because of his support of cancer research. I feel that, because of his success, the media is attempting to pry into his personal business, and I think that his own affairs should remain private. The positive influence that he has had on society far outweighs any of his negative personal tendencies"
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