Armstrong refiles lawsuit against USADA doping charges

Sydney, July 11 (ANI): Champion cyclist Lance Armstrong has re-filed a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), hours after the agency issued life bans against three of his former cycling associates.

The seven-time Tour de France winner reportedly wants a federal judge to issue a temporary injunction against the USADA, which is pushing forward with charges against him for being part of a major doping conspiracy.

Armstrong had earlier filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in his hometown of Austin, Texas, but the judge dismissed the 80-page suit without ruling on the merits of the case, saying that it 'smacked of a public relations' move rather than a 'challenge to the body' that imposes doping sanctions on US athletes.

According to the Herald Sun, the refiled version, of 25 pages, claims the USADA lacks jurisdiction in the matter, and says the International Cycling Union (UCI) should press such cases, and that the system USADA uses to judge doping challenges by athletes violates the US Constitution.

USADA could strip Armstrong of his seven Tour de France titles and impose a life ban on him if he is found guilty of the charges USADA has brought.

The moves come four months after a two-year US government probe into Armstrong ended with no criminal charges filed.

Just hours ago, the USADA issued life bans as part of the conspiracy to former US Postal doctor Luis Garcia del Moral, Armstrong's personal trainer and team consultant Michele Ferrari and coach "Pepe" Marti for what the agency termed as 'systematic doping within the team' during Armstrong's run of Tour de France triumphs from 1999 to 2005.

Armstrong, who claims to have taken more than 500 drug tests in his career without ever testing positive, could be stripped of his Tour de France triumphs and banned from the sport for life, if convicted. (ANI)