Kevin L Michel

Sociology of Sport Kevin L Michel

A standard case in the study of Sociology of Sport is the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) v. Lance Armstrong. Cycling, and specifically the Tour de France, due to its physically grueling nature, has a history of doping that stretches back even before the turn of the 20th century. When US cyclist Lance Armstrong joined the Tour in the mid-1990s, cyclists were faced with the choice of using performance enhancing drugs and other cheats, or racing at a significant competitive disadvantage. Armstrong transformed himself from a 35th place Tour finisher in 1995, and an individual with late stage testicular cancer in 1996, to a seven time Tour de France winner from 1999 to 2005. Armstrong's performance, by all appearances, was the archetypal hero's journey. He battled failure and death, faced slings and arrows of whisper campaigns accusing him and his US cycling team of advanced and evasive doping, only for him to rise up as the hero and dominate 7 consecutive Tours. USADA's investigation into Armstrong's doping, would ultimately succeed where other investigations failed. Revealing the Armstrong hero story as false, and showing that Armstrong and his team were indeed engaged in sophisticated, systematic, and sustained doping. This work is an academic look at the case, considering the political, cultural, economic, and social factors.