Whether Floyd's claims against Lance have any merit or not there's an interesting side to the 'whistle-blower'
claim that
Landis has now lodge in the US Federal Court.
The basis of the
claim is that because Armstrong was riding for the US Postal Service when he allegedly was doping he therefore effectively defrauded the US government. If the government decides to pursue the matter on
Landis's behalf then
Landis is entitled to 30% of whatever they ultimately recover from Armstrong. Even if the government decides not to
pursue the matter
Landis can still proceed with the matter on his own behalf of course.
Needless to say Armstrong's lawyers are saying that this is just another money grab from a self confessed liar and a cheat.
BikeRadar.com has a detailed report:
Floyd
Landis, former teammate of seven-time Tour
de France champion Lance Armstrong, has filed a federal "whistle-blower" lawsuit, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.
Citing anonymous sources, the newspaper reported that
Landis filed a suit under the US federal False Claims Act, which allows Americans to sue on behalf of the government alleging the government has been defrauded.
According to the Journal, the lawsuit is currently sealed so its exact contents are not known.
But in the article posted on its website the newspaper noted that
Landis and Armstrong were teammates on the squad sponsored by the US Postal Service, a government entity.
Landis has alleged that some of the team's riders, including himself and Armstrong, used performance enhancing drugs - a charge Armstrong has strenuously denied.
"Such a lawsuit is likely to claim a fraud was committed against the Postal Service in relation to the alleged doping," the Wall Street Journal wrote.
Landis won the Tour
de France in 2006 but was stripped of the title after testing positive for synthetic testosterone.
This year he ended years of denials and admitted he doped, and he accused Armstrong and others in the cycling world of doing the same.
Armstrong won six of his seven Tour
de France titles with the US Postal Service team.
Landis's claims have already sparked a reported probe by US authorities into doping in professional cycling.
Federal investigators, who have met with
Landis, are investigating whether Armstrong or anyone else committed fraud or conspiracy in connection with the alleged doping.
Under the whistle-blower law, the government can intervene in
Landis's suit, essentially pursuing the case on its own behalf. If it doesn't,
Landis is free to carry on the action on his own.
As a whistle-blower,
Landis could collect 30 percent of any money the government recovers if fraud is determined.
"This news that Floyd
Landis is in this for the money reconfirms everything we all knew about
Landis," Armstrong spokesman Mark
Fabiani said Friday in a statement.
"By his own admission, he is a serial liar, an epic cheater, and a swindler who raised and took almost a million dollars from his loyal fans based on his lies.
"What remains a complete mystery is why the government would devote a penny of the taxpayer's money to help Floyd
Landis further his vile, cheating ambitions. And all aimed directly at Lance Armstrong, a man who earned every victory and passed every test while working for cancer survivors all over the world."
