UPDATE 4-US Anti-Doping Agency strips Armstrong of titles for cheating

* "Enough is enough", says seven-times Tour de France winner

* Debate begins on whether cyclist is guilty

* His endorsement opportunities may dry up

LOS ANGELES, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Lance Armstrong was stripped

of his record seven Tour de France wins and handed a lifetime

ban by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) on Friday,

but he remained defiant as supporters rallied around the

American cyclist.

Saying, "enough is enough", Armstrong sent out a statement

late on Thursday indicating that he would not challenge USADA's

charges he had doped throughout his career, though he continued

to deny he ever used performance-enhancing drugs.

While the USADA can remove Armstrong's titles, such a

decision could ultimately rest with the Court of Arbitration for

Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland, should the International Cycling

Union (UCI) challenge the USADA's ruling.

But weary from years of denial, legal battles, skirmishes

with former-team mates and anti-doping chiefs, it is a fight

Armstrong says he no longer has the stomach for.

"Today I will turn the page," Armstrong said. "I will no

longer address this issue regardless of the circumstances."

Armstrong may have turned the page but the story is far from

over.

One of the sporting world's most polarizing figures,

Armstrong remains a hero to millions of cancer survivors for

beating the disease and coming back to win the Tour de France a

record seven times. To others, he is a drug cheat and fraud.

World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) chief John Fahey said that

Armstrong's decision not to contest the allegations adds up to

nothing more than an admission of guilt.

"He had the right to rip up those charges, but he elected

n ot to. Therefore the only interpretation in these circumstances

is that there was substance in those charges," Fahey told

Reuters in a telephone interview on Friday.

The debate over Armstrong's guilt will now rage, with some

heavy hitters like longtime sponsor Nike, the world's biggest

sportswear maker, lining up alongside the disgraced cyclist,

while anti-doping crusaders proudly claim victory.

Since 2004, Nike has helped Livestrong, Armstrong's

organization to help cancer survivors, raise over $100 million

for cancer research and created the Livestrong yellow wristbands

that became a global phenomenon with over 84 million bands

distributed.

CONTROVERSIAL CYCLIST

"Lance has stated his innocence and has been unwavering on

this position. Nike plans to continue to support Lance and the

Lance Armstrong Foundation, a foundation that Lance created to

serve cancer survivors," Nike said in a statement.

Armstrong, 40, has been one of the most successful and

controversial cyclists of all time, returning to the sport after

beating cancer to win the Tour de France seven straight times,

from 1999 to 2005.

Livestrong takes its inspiration from his achievements and

recovery from testicular cancer that also made him a hero to

many and boosted the sport's popularity in the United States.

The cyclist also made many enemies throughout his career,

with several of his former teammates and colleagues allegedly

ready to testify he doped.

Former teammate and deposed Tour de France winner Floyd

Landis accused Armstrong in 2010 of using performance-enhancing

drugs and teaching others how to avoid being caught.

But Armstrong also has his loyalists, outside and inside the

sport, such as Jim Ochowicz, director of the BMC cycling team

and a long-time friend who helped him when he was an amateur

rider and young professional.

"As a friend of Lance's, I support his decision to call it

an end," said Ochowicz. "He has done so much for our sport over

the years, and I am sad at what has transpired.

"I love him. I know he still has a big fight ahead of him

and his battle of trying to find a cure for cancer and help

survivors and carry on with the Lance Armstrong foundation.

"I think he has earned every victory he's had," he said.

The USADA, however, believes it has enough compelling

evidence to prove Armstrong did not claim his victories fairly.

A quasi-governmental agency created by the U.S. Congress in

2000, the USADA formally charged Armstrong in June with doping

and taking part in a conspiracy with members of his championship

teams.

EVIDENCE AGAINST ARMSTRONG IN HAND

The agency said in a letter to Armstrong that it has blood

samples from 2009 and 2010 that are "fully consistent" with

doping.

Michael McCann, an expert in sports law at Vermont Law

School, said that Armstrong's decision to not contest the USADA

charges in arbitration might have been the cyclist's best option

in the face of mounting circumstantial evidence.

"This gives his supporters reason to support him," McCann

told Reuters. "Whereas if he had gone to arbitration and lost -

which I think almost definitely would have happened - from a

public relations standpoint, that would have been much more

harmful."

In losing his titles, Armstrong joins Canadian Ben Johnson

and American Marion Jones as the highest-profile athletes to

lose championships as a result of doping sanctions.

Johnson was stripped of the 1988 Seoul Olympics 100 metres

title after testing positive for a steroid, while Jones lost her

2000 Sydney Olympics 100, 200 and 4x400 metres relay gold medals

when she confessed she had been taking drugs at the time.

Armstrong may not be able to simply turn his back on the

saga and walk away with his head held high.

There is the possibility he could face legal action from

promoters and race organizers looking to recover prize money.

"My sense is they're not going to sue (him) for the money

because it would be an expensive piece of litigation," said

Brian Getz, a criminal defense attorney who represented an

American sprinter against doping allegations. "It may not be

worth it to the organization trying to recover the funds."

It also remains to be seen what impact the USADA's action

will have on Armstrong's endorsement potential and ability to

continue to raise funds for his foundation.

Despite having his reputation tarnished, Armstrong's triumph

over cancer and fundraising efforts make him a valuable

pitchman, say marketing experts.

While Nike was quick to stand by Armstrong, his other

sponsors, including RadioShack ; exercise bike maker

Johnson Health Tech ; sunglass maker Oakley, owned by

Italy's Luxottica ; and Michelob, made by Anheuser-Busch

InBev, have not leapt to his defence.

Robert Boland, professor of sports management at New York

University, said Armstrong's extensive work on cancer will help

blunt the impact of the lost titles.

"His story has not been diminished. Here's a guy who

essentially was at death's door with cancer and came back. That

example still makes him very compelling," he said.

Still, Boland said it would be difficult for Armstrong to

continue to endorse bicycles or bicycle equipment, since he is

now banned from competitions.

"If he can't show up at certain events, how do you use him?"

With the possibility that each of his seven Tour de France

crowns could go to other riders, Armstrong maintained that no

matter what the USADA has ruled, those he competed with and

against will always know he was the true winner.

Spain's Fernando Escartin, who will rise from third to

second in the 1999 Tour de France following the USADA's

decision, said the American would always be the champion.

"For me, Lance Armstrong remains the 1999 Tour winner, second

Zulle and third, me," the now-retired Escartin told

Reuters at the Vuelta a Espana race on Friday.

"It's 13 years now since this all happened. It seems

completely illogical and unreal. I don't want to even think

about it."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/1-armstrong-ends-fight-against-doping-charges-titles-102839707--finance.html

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