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Sunday, Oct 14, 2012 9:54 PM UTC

Lance Armstrong might take polygraph, lawyer says

He'd also like the witnesses who testified against the cyclist to submit

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Topics: Doping, Tour de France, Lance Armstrong, Cycling, Sports, , ,

Lance Armstrong might take polygraph, lawyer saysLance Armstrong. (AP/Bradley C. Bower)

Lance Armstrong may take a lie detector test to clear his name after the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency labeled the cyclist a “serial cheat” who ran “the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen,” the Guardian and other news outlets reported.

Additionally, Armstrong’s lawyer Tim Herman said he would like to see the 26 witnesses who testified against Armstrong to the Usada take polygraphs as well. “A lie detector test properly administered, I’m a proponent of that frankly, just personally. I wouldn’t challenge the results of a lie detector test with good equipment, properly administered by a qualified technician. That’s a pretty simple answer.”

Herman said Armstrong might not take a lie detector, however, “Because he’s moved on. His name is never going to be clear with anyone beyond what it is today. People are fans, most of the people that I’ve talked to, this is their opinion, it is: ‘We don’t care whether he did or he didn’t.”

Armstrong became the most famous cyclist in the world after he recovered from life-threatening  testicular cancer to win the Tour de France seven times in a row, most recently in 2005. During his streak and forever after he’s been dogged by accusations of using banned performance enhancing drugs.

In August of this year he essentially guaranteed that his Tour de France titles would be stripped when he declined to contest the Usada’s arbitration process. Armstrong, who has often repeated that he has never tested positive for a banned substance called the process an “unconstitutional witch hunt” and a distraction.

This week Usada released its 200-page report of evidence against Armstrong including testimony from 11 of his former teammates.

Alex Halperin is news editor at Salon. You can follow him on Twitter @alexhalperin. More Alex Halperin.

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