LANCE ARMSTRONG (3)

I never expected it to happen, but Lance Armstrong has just confessed to systematic doping throughout his career. I am not surprised that it turns out to be true - everyone was doing it and I always thought he was too - but I am surprised that he has confessed. Not least because his admission may well result in some very nasty legal consequences for him. If he had ridden for any team, then it might not matter. But he spent most of his career riding with sponsorship from the U.S. Postal Service, which is part of the U.S. Federal Government. Ripping off the Government - riding while doped was specifically against the sponsorship contract - goes down very badly in America, and their memories are long.

Oprah Winfrey, whose television channel carried the exclusive interview, treated Armstrong rather gently, and I am convinced that he was prepped in advance by his team of lawyers. But at least the core of the story is now out in the open; Lance Armstrong did not win the Tour de France seven times in a row through his own merits alone.

Walter Blotscher