Flandis

Stolen from RoadBikeRider.com

Today in Paris and somewhere in the U.S. on May 14 are two key dates in Floyd Landis's life. The French Anti-Doping Agency (AFLD) is moving ahead with its hearing on Landis today. A decision by the nine-member panel could mean a ban from racing on French soil (i.e., in the Tour de France) for as long as two years. Or the hearing might determine that Landis is innocent, that he did not use a banned substance, testosterone, while winning the 2006 Tour. The agency could also postpone its ruling, which is what Landis's lawyers are requesting. Then in mid May, Landis will at long last have his appeal heard by a three-member arbitration panel in the U.S. This is the big one. If his legal team fails to convince the panel that his testosterone irregularities in the 17th stage were due to sloppy procedures by the French national doping lab, Landis stands to lose his Tour title and all prize money. He would be banned from sanctioned competition for two years and ProTour team membership for four years. Those penalties could mean that Landis, 31, is finished in pro racing. He underscored the likelihood in December when he said, "If I'm banned for four years and stripped of my title and prize-money, I'll never race again. My desire for it would have been obliterated." AFLD president Phillipe Bourdry told the Associated Press that Landis can be assured of a fair hearing today even though the rider won't attend. "It's not because someone is positive that he must be automatically suspended," said Bourdry. "The rights of the defense are very important." Landis's lawyers have asked the AFLD to delay its ruling until a decision has been reached in the U.S. The May hearing apparently will be open to the public at Floyd's request. He's said he wants his defense understood by everyone. His legal team is still trying to obtain lab reports on his other urine samples at the Tour, all of which showed no illegal drugs in his system and especially not the synthetic testosterone he was found positive for after stage 17. Landis claims that test was flawed for various reasons. Arnie Baker, M.D., the RBR eBook author who has coached and advised Landis for years, is leading a group of medical experts that contends it has found flaws in the French doping lab's procedures. "The results are not reliable," said Baker. "The whole document is riddled with errors. The sample was clearly contaminated and mislabeled. I'm not sure whose urine I'm looking at here. "This whole thing is so full of errors I don't know what to think except I can't call it a positive test," Baker added. "I don't think the [U.S. Anti-doping Agency] should be looking at sanctions. I think [the World Anti-Doping Agency] should be looking to improve practices." There will be no USADA reaction to any defense charges until the May hearing, said the agency's general counsel, Travis Tygartfrom. "Unfortunately, as a case gets played out in the media, people will only ever see one side of that story," he said in November. "Our rules don't allow us to comment." However, if the May hearing is indeed public, everyone will get the chance to observe the arguments firsthand. Landis is thought to be the only U.S. athlete ever to request that his doping trial be aired in the sunshine. Depending on the arbitration panel's verdict, either Landis or the USADA could appeal the result to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Its decision would be final. ______________________________________ Tour de Finance Floyd Landis spoke at his second fundraiser last night, this one in Brooklyn. About 200 people paid $35 apiece to hear him, according to the New York Times. The money is earmarked for Landis's legal defense, which is said to have cost him about $500,000 so far. Landis told the supportive crowd that "in the 2006 Tour de France, and for that matter the rest of my career, I never used performance-enhancing substances." His talk was preceded by a PowerPoint presentation from Dr. Arnie Baker that detailed Landis's defense. "There are so many mistakes," Baker said. "If there should be sanctions, it should be on the lab." The crowd cheered loudly at the end of Baker's presentation, according to the Times, and gave Landis a standing ovation.

Personally, I hope he's innocent but we'll see.