It hasn't been a good Thursday for Lance Armstrong.
First, disgraced cyclist Floyd Landis accused the seven-time Tour de France winner of doping, and later, Armstrong crashed in the fifth stage of the Tour of California and was taken to the hospital.
Armstrong, 38, collided with several other riders on a two-lane road outside Visalia a few miles into the race after a rider in the main group skidded on some gravel and fell, causing others, including Armstrong, to crash.
All the riders got back on their bikes and continued the race, but after a few miles Armstrong was forced to retire.
Armstrong's left cheek was bloodied in the wreck, and his left eye appeared swollen. Team spokesman Philippe Maertens says Armstrong got stitches in his left elbow and under his left eye.
He climbed into the lead RadioShack team car and was taken to the hospital for precautionary X-rays.
"I tried to give it a go but my eye was swollen so I couldn't see properly and the pain in the elbow prevented me from holding the bars for the remainder of the stage,'' Armstrong said. "It was a relief to learn there were no breaks. I will take a few days to recover and be on the bike as soon as possible.''
Earlier, Landis, who was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France title for doping, but had always denied cheating, finally admitted to it, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
Armstrong, in responding to Landis' claims about his alleged involvement in doping, said, "It's our word against his word. I like our word."
Armstrong, who has denied doping accusations in the past, addressed the allegations before Thursday’s fifth stage, saying the claims were “not even worth getting into,” adding, “I’m not going to waste my time or your time.
“This is a man that has been (under) oath several times ... this is somebody that wrote a book, under a different premise. Floyd lost his credibility a long time ago.
“The timing, the dates, the people are off. It speaks volumes to his mental state.”
Landis sent a series of emails to cycling officials and sponsors acknowledging and detailing his long-term use of banned drugs, the newspaper said.
The report said Landis wrote in the emails that he started doping in 2002, his first year racing with the U.S. Postal Service team led by Armstrong. Landis also admitted to doping in an interview with ESPN.com.
Landis also accused American riders George Hincapie, Levi Leipheimer and Dave Zabriskie and Armstrong's manager Bruyneel of involvement in doping, the Journal reported.
However, “We have nothing to hide. We have nothing to run from,” Armstrong said.
Hincapie said he was "really disappointed" by the allegations. Jim Ochowicz, a former top USA Cycling official - who was also implicated by Landis - defended himself and Hincapie.
"These allegations are not true, absolutely unfounded and unproven," said Ochowicz, now the president of BMC Racing, Hincapie's current team. "This is disappointing to anyone who works in the sport or is a fan of the sport."
International Cycling Union (UCI) president Pat McQuaid said Landis' allegations were "scandalous and mischievous."
"These guys coming out now with things like this from the past are only damaging the sport," McQuaid told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Thursday. "If they've any love for the sport, they wouldn't do it."
The governing body said it regretted that Landis accused former teammates without allowing USA Cycling and anti-doping authorities time to investigate.
"An impartial investigation is a fundamental right as Mr. Landis will understand having contested, for two years, the evidence of his breach of the anti-doping rules in 2006," UCI said in a statement.
McQuaid said it was up to USA Cycling and the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency to look into the allegations.
USA Cycling didn't respond to calls and emails seeking comment.
USADA CEO Travis Tygart released a statement Thursday morning saying he wouldn't comment on "the substance of any doping investigation."
"It is important to re-emphasize USADA's position that all athletes are innocent until, and unless, proven otherwise through the established legal process," Tygart said. "Attempts to sensationalize or exploit either the process or the athletes are a disservice to fair play, due process and to those who love clean sport."
The leaders of the IOC and World Anti-Doping Agency said Friday that Landis should provide concrete evidence to back up his allegations.
"He has to bring proof that this is true," International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge told The Associated Press. "These are accusations that need to be corroborated by proof.
"You can't condemn without proof," Rogge added. "He would be better off by giving evidence to corroborate that, otherwise he is risking a lot of libels. ... You can only sanction an athlete with tangible proof."
WADA president John Fahey said if there is any substance to Landis' allegations, either the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency or the International Cycling Union (UCI) should intervene.
"If he has evidence, he should make that evidence available to the USADA or UCI and I'm sure if there is any substance to that evidence, either of those bodies would act," Fahey said. "There will always be rumors about it."
Fahey had said earlier in a statement his organization would work with USADA and any other authorities with appropriate jurisdiction "to get to the heart of the issues raised."
The Journal said it had seen copies of three emails sent by Landis between April 30 and May 6, and that he'd copied in seven people on the messages, including officials with USA Cycling and international governing body UCI.
Landis served a two-year ban after testing positive for elevated testosterone levels at the 2006 Tour. He was the first rider stripped of a Tour de France title.
"I want to clear my conscience," Landis told ESPN.com. "I don't want to be part of the problem anymore."
He also said he was speaking out now in part because the WADA's eight-year statute of limitations was close to running out.
"If I don't say something now, then it's pointless to ever say it," Landis said.
He told ESPN.com his most difficult phone call was to his mother to tell her the truth for the first time.
Landis' parents didn't immediately return a phone message left at their home in Lancaster County, Pa. Paul and Arlene Landis, devout Mennonites, had always defended their son against doping accusations.
McQuaid questioned Landis' credibility and said he would be "a pariah" in the cycling community.
"What's his agenda?" McQuaid said. "The guy is seeking revenge. It's sad. It's sad for cycling. It's obvious he does hold a grudge."
McQuaid said he received copies of the emails sent by Landis to the U.S. Cycling Federation, but declined to comment on their contents. He said Landis' allegations were "nothing new."
"He already made those accusations in the past," McQuaid said. "Armstrong has been accused many times in the past, but nothing has been proved against him. And in this case, I have to question the guy's credibility. There is no proof of what he says. We are speaking about a guy who has been condemned for doping before a court."
In the ESPN.com interview, Landis detailed extensive use of the blood-boosting drug EPO, testosterone, human growth hormone and blood transfusions, as well as female hormones and a one-time experiment with insulin. He said the doping occurred during the years he rode for the U.S. Postal Service and Swiss-based Phonak teams.
Phonak owner Andy Rihs issued a statement saying Landis' claims were "lies" and a "last, tragic attempt" to get publicity.
"Floyd Landis personally signed that he would uphold our code and use no illegal practices when he joined our former racing group," Rihs said.
The whole team was convinced he was upholding this until his doping was revealed at the 2006 Tour.
"Neither I, nor the leadership of the team, knew that Floyd Landis doped," Rihs said.
In one of the emails seen by the Wall Street Journal, dated April 30, Landis said he flew to Girona, Spain, in 2003 and had two half-liter units of blood extracted from his body in a three-week interval to be used later during the Tour de France.
According to the newspaper, Landis claimed the blood extractions took place in Armstrong's apartment. He said blood bags belonging to Armstrong and then-teammate George Hincapie were kept in a refrigerator in Armstrong's closet, and Landis was asked to check the temperature of the blood daily.
When Armstrong left for a few weeks, he asked Landis to "make sure the electricity didn't go off and ruin the blood," according to the email quoted by The Journal.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
