Investigator Novitzky Pursues Lance Armstrong Steroid Claims -- Printout ... http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,2005820,00.

html

Back to Article Click to Print

Thursday, Jul. 22, 2010

Lance Armstrong: Has Drug Probe

Gone Too Far?
By Sean Gregory

Jeff Novitzky, an investigator for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has been called the
Eliot Ness of the steroid era. In 2002, when he was an Internal Revenue Service special agent, he
spearheaded the landmark probe into the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO), which was
supplying performance-enhancing drugs to several high-profile athletes, including, allegedly, home-run
king Barry Bonds. The BALCO case (which also involved money laundering, which is where the IRS
comes in) thrust steroids and sports into the spotlight. The relentless Novitzky, who dove into
Dumpsters to collect evidence, earned a slice of fame too.

Novitzky contributed to the 2007 Mitchell Report, baseball's independent investigation into steroid use
among its players, by persuading former New York Mets clubhouse attendant Kurt Radomski, a supplier
of steroids to Major League players, to become an informant. He's also investigating whether former
pitcher Roger Clemens perjured himself before Congress by denying under oath that he used
performance-enhancing drugs. It's serious business: former track star Marion Jones pleaded guilty to
making false statements to Novitzky about her own steroid use and went to prison for it. "He's kind of an
amazing phenomenon," says Peter Keane, professor and dean emeritus at Golden Gate University School
of Law, who has closely followed Novitzky's work. "He's kind of a bloodhound. No matter what swamp or
tree you hide in, he's going to find you." (See the top 10 sporting cheats.)

Novitzky moved to the FDA in 2008, where another alleged steroid connection provided his biggest
target yet. That target is not hiding in a tree but riding his bike through the Pyrenees: seven-time Tour
de France winner Lance Armstrong, who has been accused by disgraced cyclist Floyd Landis of doping.

Landis, who was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France title after failing a drug test, has admitted to using
performance-enhancing drugs during his cycling career, following a somewhat pathetic campaign to
prove that he didn't cheat on the Tour. He has sensationally accused Armstrong of doping while they
both rode for the team sponsored by the U.S. Postal Service earlier in the decade. Among Landis'
allegations: the team sold some of its bikes to fund the doping program. If the team did in fact use

1 of 4 24/07/2010 10:20
Investigator Novitzky Pursues Lance Armstrong Steroid Claims -- Printout ... http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,2005820,00.html

sponsorship funds from the Postal Service to buy drugs, the government could prosecute Armstrong and
his team for fraud. Cue Novitzky. (Comment on this story.)

Novitzky has reportedly contacted several of Armstrong's former USPS teammates, and the New York
Daily News reported that the government subpoenaed three-time Tour de France champ Greg LeMond
to testify. LeMond loathes Armstrong and for years has accused him of using performance-enhancing
drugs. Armstrong has long denied taking any such substances and has never failed a drug test. He's
dismissed Landis as a proven liar and LeMond as a guy with a big chip on his shoulder. Armstrong says
he has not been subpoenaed and has yet to meet with Novitzky but will do so as long as the case doesn't
become "a witch hunt." (See the top 10 sports moments of 2009.)

In building a case against Armstrong, Novitzky isn't just taking on another big-name athlete. He's
chasing down an icon, an inspirational figure whose high-profile battle against cancer and heroic
fundraising efforts to increase research and support for cancer patients have transcended sports. "Does
the public care about drugs in sports anymore? I don't think so," says Don Catlin, a pharmacologist and
drug-testing pioneer who founded the UCLA Olympic Analytical Lab. "The public is pretty ho-hum. But
people aren't exactly ho-hum when Lance Armstrong is involved."

Novitzky is picking the biggest fight of his life. "I think we're possibly looking at BALCO Part 2," says
Victor Conte, the founder of BALCO, who pleaded guilty to steroid distribution in 2005. Novitzky, the
bald, lanky, mysterious man who emerges from the shadows only to attend steroid hearings in Congress
or the federal courtroom, actually grew up just a few miles from Conte's BALCO offices. The son of a high
school baseball coach, Novitzky excelled in sports, even clearing 7 ft. as a high school high jumper. He
played college basketball at San Jose State.

Read cancer survivors' inspirational stories.

See Walter Iooss' sports photos.

A father of three girls, Novitzky is often described as a straightlaced grinder who is so dedicated to his
profession that he has taken calls about his steroid investigations while driving his daughters to a Miley
Cyrus concert. "I've always thought of government as a bunch of bumblers," says Catlin, who has advised
Novitzky on the science of performance-enhancing drugs. According to Catlin, Novitzky has mastered the
material. "Novitzky is not a bumbler. He's the opposite of bumbler. He produces very serious, very
scholarly work."

According to his defenders, Novitzky's passion for sports drives his passion to bust the cheaters. "Jeff
represents the millions of people who value sports for the good lessons it teaches," says Travis Tygart,
chief executive of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. "What bothered him was that sports is supposed to be
this nice part of life," says Catlin. And the dopers were sullying sports. "He was incensed over that," says
Catlin. (See pictures of Lance Armstrong's career.)

2 of 4 24/07/2010 10:20
Investigator Novitzky Pursues Lance Armstrong Steroid Claims -- Printout ... http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,2005820,00.html

A bit too incensed, according to his critics. One federal judge said Novitsky and other investigators
showed "callous disregard" for the Fourth Amendment (which protects citizens from unjustified search
and seizure) when they raided the lab that housed the results from baseball's 2003 steroid-testing
program. Conte claimed that Novitzky misrepresented their conversations in written statements.
"Athletes cheat to win," says Conte. "And the government cheats to win too."

Of course, Conte, who was sentenced to four months in prison and four more in home confinement
because of Novitzky's enterprising work, is not unbiased. But given Novitzky's eight-years-and-counting
crusade against steroids — on the public dime — Conte brings up some very fair questions. "How can we
justify this expenditure in tough economic times?" asks Conte. "Should this be a priority? This is going to
continue to cost taxpayers a lot of money. Is this all in the best interest of the country?"

How much have Novitzky's steroid investigations cost taxpayers? Neither the FDA nor the IRS would
say. "The money spent pales in comparison to the annual salary of one individual player who cheated the
game," says Tygart. No matter the exact figure, Novitzky's admirers say the government has made a
worthwhile investment. "Something as culturally important as sports deserves inquiry," says Keane. "We
have someone as idealized as Lance Armstrong, and if it turns out that he is 'Shoeless' Joe Jackson,
Americans who look up to his accomplishments have a right to know." (See the top 10 disgraced
athletes.)

But even someone like Catlin, the UCLA scientist who has dedicated his professional career to fighting
doping — he identified the designer steroid produced by BALCO — cannot say with certainty that an
Armstrong probe will cover its costs. "I've been down the road on these investigations," Catlin says.
"They are expensive, they go on and on, and when they finally conclude, the athletes get a slap on the
hand." He cites the case of Tammy Thomas, a cyclist who received just six months in home confinement
after being convicted of lying to a BALCO grand jury. Troy Ellerman received the longest prison
sentence, 30 months, of anyone involved in the BALCO affair. The crime? He's a lawyer who was
punished for leaking grand-jury testimony to the media.

Further, the prosecution's chances in the long-delayed Barry Bonds perjury trial took a huge hit in June,
when the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that allegedly positive urine samples collected by
Bonds' personal trainer, Greg Anderson, were not permissible as hearsay evidence. (Anderson has been
jailed on contempt charges for refusing to testify against Bonds and vouch for the authenticity of the
tests.)

A case against Armstrong could prove even more difficult, since the government has no positive steroid
tests from the cyclist (that we know of). "Like everyone else, I want to know the truth about Lance
Armstrong," says Catlin. "But I'm not sure the truth can be known, no matter how many millions we put
into it." And if the truth is what Armstrong says it is, the U.S. will have wasted taxpayer money trying to
take down one of its heroes.

3 of 4 24/07/2010 10:20
Investigator Novitzky Pursues Lance Armstrong Steroid Claims -- Printout ... http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,2005820,00.html

See TIME's Pictures of the Week.

See the Cartoons of the Week.

Click to Print
Find this article at:
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2005820,00.html

4 of 4 24/07/2010 10:20