L. A. Confidentiel
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(''L.A. Confidential: Lance Armstrong's Secrets'') is a book by
sports journalist Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in a par ...
Pierre Ballester and ''
The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...
'' sports correspondent David Walsh. The book contains circumstantial evidence of cyclist
Lance Armstrong Lance Edward Armstrong (''né'' Gunderson; born September 18, 1971) is an American former professional road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist. He achieved international fame for winning the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times fro ...
having used
performance-enhancing drugs Performance-enhancing substances (PESs), also known as performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs), are substances that are used to improve any form of activity performance in humans. Many substances, such as anabolic steroids, can be used to improve at ...
. The book has only been published in French. A key witness for the authors was Armstrong's and his teammates'
masseuse Massage is the rubbing or kneading of the body's soft tissues. Massage techniques are commonly applied with hands, fingers, elbows, knees, forearms, feet, or a device. The purpose of massage is generally for the treatment of body stress or pa ...
and soigneur Emma O'Reilly. She revealed that she has taken clandestine trips to pick up and drop off what she concluded were doping products. Many of the incidents and allegations in the book were later featured in the
USADA The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA, ) is a non-profit, non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization and the national anti-doping organization (NADO) for the United States. To protect clean competition and the integrity of sport and prevent ...
2012 report on the
US Postal Service cycling team U.S. Postal Service Pro Cycling Team was a United States–based professional road bicycle racing cycling team, team. On June 15, 2004, the Discovery Channel signed a deal to become sponsor of the team for the 2004–2007 seasons and its name ...
,The Last Word, with Matt Cooper
, Oct 22 2012, interview with Paul Kimmage on Today FM (Radio Ireland Limited T/A Today FM, Dublin), retr 2012 10 22
which led to Armstrong being stripped of most of his titles by the
UCI UCI most commonly refers to: * University of California, Irvine, a public university in Irvine, California, United States * Union Cycliste Internationale, the world governing body for the sport of cycling UCI may also refer to: * Uganda Cancer In ...
. Many 2012 news reports would feature O'Reilly and others previously reported on in the book.


Process

In the mid-1990s, Walsh had been a fan of Lance.Cycling: Big reveal of Cancer Jesus
2012 10 21, Paul Kimmage, Independent (Ireland). retr 2012 10 22
Walsh claims that what first raised doubts in his mind about Armstrong was his bullying of Christophe Bassons at the
1999 Tour de France The 1999 Tour de France was a multiple stage bicycle race held from 3 to 25 July, and the 86th edition of the Tour de France. It has no overall winner—although American cyclist Lance Armstrong originally won the event, the United States Ant ...
.David Walsh: 'It was obvious to me Lance Armstrong was doping'
Andrew Pugh, Press Gazette, 11 October 2012, retr 2012 10 20
In April 2001 he was granted an interview with Armstrong. It left Armstrong angry. In 2003 Walsh contacted former US Postal soigneur and masseuse Emma O'Reilly. She had been reluctant to talk to the press for years out of loyalty to Armstrong and the team. She claimed that she was motivated to cooperate with Walsh after she came to believe that several riders had died of blood doping. O'Reilly was paid 5,000 pounds, after reviewing several transcripts and chapter drafts and doing PR for the book for Walsh.USADA U.S. Postal Service Pro Cycling Team Investigation
Oct 2012, affidavit of Emma O'Reilly, retrieved from usada.org on 2012 10 20


Defamation lawsuits

Armstrong denied the claims. He and his lawyers filed lawsuits in various countries against the book's authors and the publisher Editions de la Martiniere, as well as against newspaper ''The Sunday Times'' which referenced the book, and the publishers of magazine ''
L'Express (, stylized in all caps) is a French weekly news magazine headquartered in Paris. The weekly stands at the political centre-right in the French media landscape, and has a lifestyle supplement, ''L'Express Styles'', and a job supplement, ''RÃ ...
'' which printed excerpts.First Edition News for June 18, 2004
French judge to hear Armstrong case, Edited by Chris Henry, 2004 jun 4, cyclingnews.com, retr 2012 10 20

By RICHARD SANDOMIR; Samuel Abt in Paris contributor, June 16, 2004, New York Times, retrieved 2012 10 20
His UK lawyers also told "every UK paper and broadcaster" to not re-state what was in the book. Armstrong also sued Emma O'Reilly.
By MARY PILON, October 12, 2012, from nytimes.com, retr 2012 10 20
Armstrong's lawyers in France included Donald Manasse and Christian Charrière-Bournazel. In the UK he retained the
Schillings Schillings (originally Schilling & Lom) is a British reputation and privacy consultancy staffed by legal, reputation, privacy, risk consulting, communications and intelligence specialists. The company is an Alternative Business Structure (ABS) ...
firm, where Gideon Benaim and Matthew HimsworthArmstrong v Sunday Times in November
Monday, Aug 1, 2005, bikeradar.com, retr 2012 10 20
worked on his libel cases.Libel star Benaim quits Schillings
8 June 2012, Sam Chadderton, retr 2012 10 20
Armstrong said the following at a news conference in 2004 regarding the suits:
... we can't really tolerate it anymore, and we're sick and tired of the allegations ... We'll do everything we can to fight them. ... It's unfortunate. It's a few journalists who took this on as a personal mission. Again, enough is enough.
Armstrong's lawyers first asked the French courts for an "emergency ruling" to insert a denial into the book, as the book was to come out shortly before the
2004 Tour de France The 2004 Tour de France was a multiple stage bicycle race held from 3 to 25 July, and the 91st edition of the Tour de France. It has no overall winner—although American cyclist Lance Armstrong originally won the event, the United States Ant ...
. Judge Catherine Bezio denied the request. According to the Associated Press, the "judge ... called Armstrong's request an "abuse" of the legal system". Armstrong then sued the UK newspaper ''The Sunday Times'' under English libel law because it published an article referencing the book. The article was ruled in pre-trial to have conveyed the impression that Armstrong was guilty of doping. Armstrong's lawyers also sued the publisher in a French court regarding eight passages which were claimed to violate French
defamation Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...
law. They wanted the passages removed or the book pulled from shelves. When Bob Hamman, president of Dallas insurer SCA Promotions, read the book, he announced that his company would not pay $5 million promised to Armstrong for winning his sixth tour until he investigated the allegations. However, an
arbitration Arbitration is a formal method of dispute resolution involving a third party neutral who makes a binding decision. The third party neutral (the 'arbitrator', 'arbiter' or 'arbitral tribunal') renders the decision in the form of an 'arbitrati ...
panel ruled that Hamman had to pay. In 2006 the lawsuits came to an end. Armstrong reached an out-of-court settlement for a large sum of money with ''The Sunday Times'', which issued an apologetic statement. Emma O'Reilly didn't have to pay, although the emotional toll on her was severe. The French defamation lawsuit was dropped in 2006, which Armstrong's lawyers claimed was due to him being already "vindicated on three different occasions" regarding the allegations. This was referring to
UCI UCI most commonly refers to: * University of California, Irvine, a public university in Irvine, California, United States * Union Cycliste Internationale, the world governing body for the sport of cycling UCI may also refer to: * Uganda Cancer In ...
's Vrijman report which exonerated Armstrong, the arbitration settlement with SCA, and the aforementioned ''The Sunday Times'' settlement.Tour de France News for June 18, 2004: French judge to hear Armstrong case
Edited by Chris Henry, cyclingnews.com, retr 2012 10 20

Associated Press, Updated 7/6/2006, via USA Today, retr 2012 10 20
Ultimately, however, the book proved to be the beginning of the end for Armstrong. While Hamman realized he would likely lose, he believed that the testimony would provide strong circumstantial evidence that Armstrong had indeed doped—strong enough that sporting authorities would be forced to launch an investigation of their own. His hunch was right; officials from the
United States Anti-Doping Agency The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA, ) is a non-profit, non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization and the national anti-doping organization (NADO) for the United States. To protect clean competition and the integrity of sport and prevent ...
(USADA) asked to review the evidence Hamman had gleaned. Six years later, USADA charged Armstrong with doping. Armstrong opted not to contest the charges, claiming the process was too one-sided. As a result, he was banned from competing in any sport whose national or international federation followed the
World Anti-Doping Code The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA; , AMA) is an international organization co-founded by the governments of over 140 nations along with the International Olympic Committee based in Canada to promote, coordinate, and monitor the fight against d ...
—effectively ending his competitive career. In October 2012, after USADA released its report on Armstrong's doping operation, ''The Sunday Times'' stated it might attempt to recover the money it lost in the suit, and might sue Armstrong for fraud. On October 22, 2012, after the UCI accepted USADA's report, SCA announced it would attempt to recover the money it lost in its arbitration settlement with Armstrong.Armstrong Will Be Asked to Repay $7.5 Million to Bonus Promoter
Mason Levinson, Bloomberg News, republished on SFGate.com, October 22, 2012


References


Publication details

*''L.A. Confidentiel - Les secrets de Lance Armstrong'' (2004) *''L.A. Officiel'' (2006) *''From Lance to Landis: Inside the American Doping Controversy at the Tour de France'' (2007)


External links


Competitor Radio - David Walsh interview
{{Doping at the Tour de France 2004 non-fiction books Doping in sport Tour de France mass media Cycling books Lance Armstrong Doping at the Tour de France Works involved in defamation lawsuits