Lance Armstrong reaches $5m settlement with US federal government over use of performance-enhancing drugs

Tom Cary
Updated
Armstrong confessed in 2013 to using steroids and other drugs to win the Tour de France - AP
Armstrong confessed in 2013 to using steroids and other drugs to win the Tour de France - AP

Lance Armstrong has agreed to pay $5million to settle claims that he  defrauded the United States government by using performance-enhancing  drugs while at US Postal. 

The $100million whistleblower lawsuit, which was filed by his former  US Postal teamâ‘mate Floyd Landis and which the United States  government joined in 2013 after Armstrong confessed to having doped  during all seven of his Tour de France wins, had been due to go to  trial on May 7 in Washington DC. Landis is eligible for 25 per cent of  the settlement fee, plus $1.65 million to cover his legal fees and  expenses. 

The settlement ends five years of legal wrangling over whether the  Postal Service had actually sustained harm because of Armstrong’s  doping. Armstrong’s legal team was always adamant that the US Postal  Service actually made money out of their sponsorship of the team.   “We’ve had exactly the same view of this case forever, which was that  it was a bogus case because the Postal Service was never harmed,”  Armstrong’s lawyer Elliot Peters told The New York Times yesterday.  Nevertheless, according to the agreement, the settlement "is neither  an admission of liability by Armstrong nor a concession by the United  States or Relator [Landis] that their respective claims are not well  founded." 

Armstrong's former U.S. Postal Service teammate Floyd Landis filed the original lawsuit in 2010 - Credit: AFP
Armstrong's former U.S. Postal Service teammate Floyd Landis filed the original lawsuit in 2010 Credit: AFP

"I am particularly glad to have made peace with the Postal Service,"  Armstrong said in a press release. "While I believe that their lawsuit  against me was without merit and unfair, I have since 2013 tried to  take full responsibility for my mistakes, and make amends wherever  possible. 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." 

The settlement clears Armstrong, 46, of the most damaging legal issues  still facing the cyclist since his downfall. He had already taken huge  hits financially, losing all his major sponsors and being forced to  pay more than $20m in damages and settlements in a series of lawsuits.  The government’s lawsuit would have been the biggest by far.  In an interview with The Daily Telegraph in 2015, Armstrong had said  that the case could “ruin” him. 

Armstrong has already paid more than $20 million in damages and settlements - Credit: AFP
Armstrong has already paid more than $20 million in damages and settlements Credit: AFP

“We would not be sitting at this table anymore,” he said when asked  whether he could afford to pay. “We wouldn’t be sitting in this home  any more. We wouldn’t be sitting in any home. I don’t have $100  million.” Armstrong added, though, that he “liked” his chances of  victory. 

Armstrong – who according to the settlement has confirmed that the  payments to settle the case will not push him into insolvency - has  one year to make the payments to the government and Landis, and has  agreed to put a lien on his property in Texas as collateral. 

“I am glad to resolve this case and move forward with my life,”  Armstrong added. “I’m looking forward to devoting myself to the many  great things in my life my five kids, my wife, my podcast, several  exciting writing and film projects, my work as a cancer survivor, and  my passion for sports and competition. There is a lot to look forward  to.”