Lance Armstrong's admission to the use of performance enhancing drugs took the sports media world by storm. After years of denial and admission of guilt was the last thing anyone expected. According to ESPN reports on Feb. 5, 2013 the latest case involving Armstrong has him refusing to repay any earnings from a certain financial backer during the Tour de France.
SCA Promotions of Texas are pursuing a case to have Armstrong repay them for $12 million in financing that they provided to him during three of his seven Tour de France victories. The wins were his fourth, fifth and sixth to see him take the yellow jersey, but according to Armstrong's Lawyer, Tim Herman, the former cyclist will do no such thing:
My only point is no athlete ever, to my understanding, has ever gone back and paid back his compensation.
Not Sean Payton [Head Coach of the New Orleans Saints] or anybody else. They were suspended, but nobody said you've got to give your paycheck back.
SCA Promotions lawyer, Jeff Tillotson, has a different perspective in that the Oprah interview with Armstrong should be used as an admission to guilt and that the company is within their right to demand a refund:
He's now told us, at least through Oprah, that he lied when he told us he was a clean rider.
He doped during all those races, and USADA and UCI have stripped him of his official title status. So under those circumstances my client naturally wants his money back.
We have made a demand for return of the $12 million and if that money is not returned to us, my client will pursue litigation. He feels Lance Armstrong neither has the legal right, nor frankly the moral right to keep those funds.
There is yet to be an official ruling but you can expect SCA to take it to the fullest extent of the law as possible.
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