Lance Armstrong’s spectacular fall from grace continues with the news that three major sponsors have cancelled their deals with him. Trek, Nike and Anheuser-Busch (brewers of Budweiser) have all now formally announced the end of their association with the 41-year-old Texan in the wake of the damning USADA report into doping. Both Trek and Nike are to terminate their deals with immediate effect – Nike’s statement saying, ‘due to the seemingly insurmountable evidence that Armstrong participated in doping… we have terminated his contract’ – whilst Anheuser-Busch will see out the year but will not renew beyond 2012. Nike’s new position is likely to come as a particular blow less than a week after they vowed to stand by Armstrong and his charity, the Lance Armstrong Foundation.
Oakley, another of the seven-times Tour de France winner’s sponsors, have taken a slightly different tack, promising to stand by him until charges are proven conclusively; their statement reads: ‘As we have stated in the past, Oakley does not approve in any way the use of illegal substances for enhancing performance in sports… Our policy with our athletes is to support them until proven guilty by the highest governing body of sport or court of law. We are reviewing the extensive report from the Usada, as well as our relationship with Lance, and will await final decision-making by the International Cycling Union…’
For his part Armstrong has announced that he is stepping down as chairman of his cancer charity, saying he wished to, ‘spare the foundation any negative effects as a result of controversy surrounding my cycling career.’
