In This Episode
In a sport where doping was known to be virtually ubiquitous, why was Lance Armstrong singled out for the most intense and costly doping investigation in cycling history, and then given the harshest punishment possible?
International anti-doping policy expert, Professor Paul Dimeo, and I discuss the circumstances surrounding the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency’s “reasoned decision” to punish Lance Armstrong with a lifetime ban from competition, and strip him of his seven Tour de France medals.
We also examine the inconsistencies and ambiguities in World Anti-Doping Policy, and its devastating effects on the athletes it polices.
About Our Guest
Dr. Paul Dimeo is a professor from the School of Sport at the University of Stirling, in Stirling, Scotland.
Dr. Dimeo was a Fulbright Commission Scholar at the University of Texas, Austin. His major research interest is doping in sport, and the development of anti-doping policies. He lectures on sports policy, including the use of drugs in sport at the School of Sport at the University of Stirling, in Stirling Scotland [UK].
He is the author of numerous scholarly publications related to sports doping, including “A History of Drug Use in Sport, 1876-1976: Beyond Good and Evil” and “Why Lance Armstrong? Historical Context and Key Turning Points in the ‘Cleaning Up’ of Professional Cycling.”