Six days after the UCI said that it was putting its own legal action against him on hold pending the outcome of an independent commission’s investigation of the Lance Armstrong affair and its conduct, Paul Kimmage has launched a counter attack through the Swiss courts.
The Irish journalist and his lawyer Cédric Aguet have today lodged a criminal complaint and denunciation against former UCI president Hein Vebruggen and current president Pat McQuaid, the two individuals who were previously suing him.
Kimmage has requested the opening of a criminal investigation for ‘slander/defamation, denigration and for strong suspicions of fraud.’
The former pro has lodged a 28 page document to the public prosecutor in Vevey in Switzerland, comprising a total of 55 exhibits he will be basing his case upon. He has complained that he was called a liar publically and said to have committed offences against the honour of McQuaid and Verbruggen via the publication of an interview with Floyd Landis.
The latter is the former US Postal Service rider who exposed widespread drug taking on the team, and who ultimately was the catalyst for the USADA investigation into Armstrong and the US Postal Service team.
Kimmage has also informed the Swiss criminal authorities of strong suspicions he has that Verbruggen ‘granted, directly or indirectly, the essential assistance which allowed Lance Armstrong to gain significant sums of money in and out of competition while he was doped.’
The Dutchman was UCI president during Armstrong’s successful Tour reign, and was in charge when the Texan was cleared of a positive test for cortisone in the 1999 Tour de France, and when he had suspicious EPO tests during 2001 and 2002.
He was also in place when L’Equipe alleged in 2005 that retests of Armstrong’s 1999 Tour samples proved that he had taken EPO to win the race.
Despite that, Verbruggen was quoted by the AD.nl website last year as saying that he was sure that the American rider had ‘never, never, never doped.’
Kimmage’s action will ratchet up the pressure on the UCI’s current and past presidents, who have been under fire since proof emerged that Armstrong had doped during the bulk of his career, and that the US Postal Service and Discovery Channel teams had systematic programmes in place, ensuring that their riders were able to evade anti-doping tests and help secure seven Tour wins.
In addition to the independent assessment which the UCI faces, it could now also have to deal with whatever evidence and witnesses which Kimmage uses to bolster his case.
The Irishman has said that his action today is primarily launched because of the whistleblowing efforts of several pro riders, including Landis and others. Many of these were dismissed by either Verbruggen or McQuaid when they came forward, but have been fully vindicated in what they said about doping in the sport.
Kimmage described them as having been ‘brave enough to speak,’ but that they were ‘dismissed as ‘liars’, ‘cowards,’ or ‘scumbags’ by Hein Verbruggen and/or Pat McQuaid.’
The Irishman has been given $85,834 to date by over two thousand contributors. They gave to a defence fund which had been set up by the NYvelocity.com and Cyclismas.com websites on September 20th, and which has had a huge response.
The full press statement is as follows:
Lausanne, 1.11.2012
By this release, the undersigned makes the public announcement that his client Paul Kimmage has sent today to the Public Prosecutor of Vevey a criminal complaint and denunciation against Hein Vebruggen, Pat McQuaid and unknown persons against whom Paul Kimmage requests the opening of a criminal investigation for slander/defamation, denigration and for strong suspicions of fraud.
By this 28 page document to which 55 exhibits are attached, Paul Kimmage complains, among other things, thtat he was dragged through the mud, that he was called a liar in public and accused in public of committing offences against the honour after he had obtained the publication of an interview by Floyd Landis in which the latter denounced the conduct of the highest officials of the International Cycling Union (UCI). In addition, Paul Kimmage informs the Swiss criminal authorities of the strong suspicions which weigh on at least Hein Vebruggen to have granted, directly or indirectly, the essential assistance which allowed Lance Armstrong to gain significant sums of money in and out of competition while he was doped.
Paul Kimmage has initiated these criminal proceedings not for himself but first of all in honour of the whistle-blowers – Stephen Swart, Frankie Andreu, Floyd Landis, Christophe Bassons, Nicolas Aubier, Giles Delion, Graham Obree and the many others – who were brave enough to speak but were dismissed as ‘liars’, ‘cowards,’ or ‘scumbags’ by Hein Verbruggen and/or Pat McQuaid.
(signed by Cédric Aguet)
Also see: Kimmage speaks about his legal action, says McQuaid and Verbruggen need to be removed immediately