Lance Armstrong, while being interviewed by Oprah Winfrey.
A Texas judge has ordered Lance Armstrong to testify about his use of performance-enhancing drugs, likely setting the scene for the famed cyclist to give sworn testimony on the matter for first time, the Associated Press reports.
Acceptance Insurance Holding is trying to prove a long-running conspiracy by Armstrong and those around him to commit fraud, and is seeking answers about what allies — including his wife and lawyer — knew about Armstrong’s admitted doping and when as it looks to recover $3 million in bonuses it paid him between 1999 and 2001.
Travis County District Judge Tim Sulak recently ordered Armstrong to provide documents and written answers to questions — including queries on who paid for, administered and knew about Armstrong’s drug use — by the end of September.
Armstrong’s attorneys are arguing that Acceptance’s lawsuit is “harassing” and “malicious” since Armstrong has already acknowledged that he cheated. He made that admission earlier this year in an interview with Oprah Winfrey, after years of adamant denials that he was doping on his way to seven Tour de France titles.
[AP]