July 28, 2006 On Thursday, July 27, less than 48 hours after being informed that he had failed a drug test at the Tour de France, Floyd Landis talked with the press via teleconference from Europe. Also joining Landis was his personal physician, Dr. Brent Kay. A noticeably emotional Landis made a short statement then opened the floor to questions from the media. Outside Online's Bruce Hildenbrand sat in on the call. Below, the complete transcript of the conference.

Landis: Hey guys, everybody who is calling in here, I just want to say I appreciate you giving me the opportunity to say my piece in the middle of all this. I do regret a few things. Number one that it took so long to get to you guys and that there was so much speculation going on before I got a chance to say anything. And, I also regret that I can't be there in person so that you can look at me and I can look at you. I would rather do it that way but, this is the best situation we got right now.

All I want to do before I take any questions is ask that everybody takes a step back. I don't know what your position is now and I wouldn't blame you if it was a bit skeptical because of what cycling has been through in the past and the way other cases have gone. All I am asking for, from me, is that I be given the chance to prove I am innocent. Cycling has a traditional way of trying people in the court of public opinion before they have a chance to do anything else. I can't stop that but I would like to be assumed innocent until proven guilty since that is the way we do things in America.

Q: Where do you go from here? When do you look at the B sample? What do you know about your positive? Did you get a testosterone to epitestosterone (T/E) ratio?

Landis: I asked for the B sample [to be tested]. I would have done it today but I was notified yesterday morning by fax so I had yesterday afternoon to try to figure out a plan to find some help. So today, all day, I have been trying to find some experts for help with people who have been through this before and that was today's process otherwise I would have asked for the B sample today. So we will ask for it tomorrow.

As far as the way the test was performed, I don't know much about how this test works. Unfortunately, I am in the same position as probably everybody listening and don't know anything about how this works. Hopefully in the next few days I can provide you with some experts who can tell you how this was. But, I know now it has not been called a positive test. It's been called an abnormal testosterone to epitestosterone ratio. Which needs to be explained one way or the other either by some outside source of testosterone or by a physiological change of some sort from something I don't know, but that is what we are trying to figure out now. Where we go from here I don't know exactly, but that is where we are right now.

Q: Did they give you a T/E number?

Landis: I don't have that information. The fax was sent to the [Phonak Cycling Team] office. I was doing a race in Holland at that time and all I got notified was that there was an abnormal reading. I assume that I will get that sometime soon.

Q: When you were notified, what was your immediate reaction?

Landis: My immediate reaction was to look for the alcohol bottle. My secondary reaction was a bit more logical. [Laughing] My immediate reaction was a disastrous feeling. It is hard to put into words. I had everything I could possibly hope for and dreamed of for the last ten years, and at the exact moment I was told, every single scenario went through my head about what was going to happen. There was no way for me to be able to tell myself that this wasn't going to be a disaster no matter what. Whether I come out of this proving I am innocent no matter what happens next I knew it was going to be a long road. So my immediate reaction was from a very, very high to a very low.

Q: I heard that if you drink beer along with cortisone that it can somehow lead to this abnormal testosterone reading. Have you heard this?

Landis: I have heard a lot of things because that is the subject right now. But, I am trying to be careful not to jump to any conclusions. I would like to hear things from experts who know exactly what they are talking about and not just speculation. I need to be careful not to jump to any conclusions, but there must be an explanation. I don't know if we will ever get an explanation because what I need to do now is to try to prove that there are variations in my testosterone and epitestosterone levels which are out of the ordinary.

As to what actually caused it on that particular day I can only speculate because when you race your bicycle every day I don't know exactly what happens.

Q: You mentioned before that you had some kind of thyroid problem. Can you talk about that? Also, did you have an exemption from the UCI for taking cortisone?

Landis: If I had not had an exemption then I would have been positive for that [cortisone] so I think that is clear. Two years ago, when I first started having trouble with my hip, we did some tests and it came up that I had a high number of thyroid stimulating hormones [TSH]. The TSH level was higher than normal. I was kind of overwhelmed with the hip situation and kind of ignored it. It didn't come up until last year in the winter when it was considerably higher than it had been the year before. So, we did some tests and it was established that I had Hashimoto's Disease. I don't know exactly how it works but, anyway, your thyroid does not function properly and you need to take, each day, a thyroid pill; a small minor inconvenience.

Anyway, I don't know if it has any implication at all on what is going on here.

Q: Do you need an exemption from the UCI for taking that [thyroid] problem?

Landis: No. No. That is not a banned substance. If something is wrong with your thyroid, you can fix it. It is not a performance-enhancing drug.

Q: Let me just get this straight. You are saying that you have never taken any performance-enhancing drugs or methods during this Tour or beforehand. That this is a total mistake.

Landis: I am saying that I don't know what the explanation is for it [high T/E ratio]. Whether it is a mistake or whether it is an occurrence from some other circumstances that go on during the race or something that I did. The explanation I am saying is that it is not from an exogenous outside source of testosterone. That is what I am saying.

Q: Have you ever taken performance-enhancing drugs before?

Landis: I will say no. The problem I have here is that most of the public has an idea about cycling because of the way things have gone in the past, so I will say "no" knowing that a lot of people are going to say that I am guilty before I have had a chance to defend myself. There you have it.

Q: You said that you are searching for experts to help you explain this. What have you found and are you confident that you will be able to clear your name or that maybe this is going to stain your career no matter what you have to say or show?

Landis: Unfortunately, I don't think it is ever going to go away no matter what happens next. From what I have seen on the news and in the headlines this appears to be a bigger story than winning the Tour so that's going to be hard to go away.

I think there is a good possibility that I can clear my name. That is what I want to do. That is my objective now. But, regardless of whether that happens or not, I don't know that this will ever really go away.

Q: Aafter the hard stage in the mountains [day he cracked] did you take an IV that night?

Landis: No.

Q: That night, did you have anything different than just a regular meal and a beer?

Landis: Maybe it didn't look like it the next day, but at that point I had decided that the chances that I was going to win the Tour were very, very small. So, ordinarily, I go and get a massage and try to organize my things and get my head ready for the next day but, in this case, the team atmosphere was completely different than before. It was a lot less focused and everybody was down. It wasn't good for anybody. So, we kind of just skipped all that and there was a little balcony/bar down the street, so we walked down there and had a beer that lasted maybe five minutes and then there were too many people around so we went back inside.

On this particular day we had a hotel with a bunch of rooms connected that shared a bathroom so it was four or five of us in the same room and somehow or another we ended up with some Jack Daniels there, so I had some of that and went to sleep. It wasn't in any way the ordinary night before the stage but, in the context of things, it was the way to get through the day.

Q: You go through that high of winning the stage and then winning the Tour and then this happens. You have seen it happen to so many cyclists before and I am sure that you have been skeptical when other guys have gone positive, so how would you like people to react to that?

Landis: Certainly you are right. That is why I said what I said before I started taking questions [at this press conference]. I think that I probably unfairly judged people without knowing the circumstances myself so, I would hope that people would react in a certain way, but I wouldn't hold it against them and I wouldn't expect them to do anything different.

Q: Do you see this as a long process?

Landis: It's a long process no matter what happens next.

Q: I just want to make sure I heard this properly. You are denying this. [taking any external testosterone in any form]?

Landis: Yes, correct.

Q: How do you explain this fabulous performance that you had the next day then on Stage 17?

Landis: Listen, there are 20 stages in the Tour and every day you see a fabulous performance, so explain the other 19.

Q: Are you going to be present for the B sample [test]?

Landis: I haven't determined that yet. I have to tell them tomorrow whether I will be there. I have to do that formally. I don't know exactly how that is done. I have never been through this before, but I will learn tomorrow whether it is necessary that I am present or not. I think at least somebody, either me or a representative of me, has to be present.

Q: In your press conference, before you took over the yellow jersey, you were asked a question about a French boy who had become a fan of Floyd Landis and the question that followed was about what you say to young riders about doping. And as I recall, your response was that it was up to every child's parents to explain to them while they are watching the race what the best decisions in life are about: "That's what my parents taught me." What has been the response from your family?

Landis: I spoke with my mom today because I think anything goes [with the press] in this situation, but one thing that did make me upset about the way things have gone the last few days was the way my parents were treated by the press. I can handle anything. I don't look for sympathy. I take what I get in life and I deal with it. But, my mom's a saint so I ask please leave her alone. That made me upset.

Q: We were over with your mom today in Farmersville and she said that you had called her and said that you had done nothing wrong, so a very pointed, forward question here. Would you ever lie to your mom?

Landis: You've met my mom. I don't think anyone has ever lied to my mom.

Q: What do you say to all your fans back home?

Landis: I think I said all I needed to say in the opening of this conversation. Again, I don't look for sympathy. All I am asking for is that I be given what I think everybody in America is accustomed to: Innocent until proven guilty, rather than the way cycling is normally treated.

Q: This is a hypothetical question but, if you are found guilty and you are stripped of this title at the end of the day, what are you planning on doing?

Landis: You know, I will have to get back to you on that because I have only had 48 hours now and very little of it went into figuring out what I am doing after tomorrow. I would like to answer that, but I can't.

Q: I want to dig a little deeper on the thyroid medicine you were talking about. Who prescribed that, and was the team aware? And have there been any tests to determine if that was going to affect your testosterone/epitestosterone ratio?

Landis: The medicine was prescribed by Brent [Dr. Brent Kay] who is on the other line here. You can talk to him about that. Certainly the team was aware from the beginning. I needed to call them to find out if it was an issue with the UCI as to whether I could take thyroid hormone and as far as I know it is not a performance-enhancing drug.

Dr. Brent Kay: Floyd was diagnosed with hypothyroidism, which is a very common medical condition and is simply treated with thyroid hormone replacement medication, which he has been on now for, like he said, the last couple of years. We followed his levels throughout this time and throughout this year he remained in a normal range. That's all been stable and pretty straightforward. Thyroid is in no way any type of performance-enhancing drug or medication. It is not banned. It is a perfectly straightforward medical therapeutic medication.

Q: Has there been any research at all if that can affect the testosterone/ epitestosterone ratio?

Dr. Brent Kay: We are consulting with a number of the world's experts so that we don't speculate at this point. Particularly since the testing process is not even complete. We are just really stuck here with this elevated testosterone to epitestosterone level. We are getting the experts involved to give us a detailed explanation and to look at all the possible scenarios.

This test has been criticized for years. It has a long documented history in the scientific literature with its problems due to inaccuracy. Even if you go to the WADA [World Anti-Doping Agency] Web site and you pull up their technical document on this test, on page one, even they say we should bear in mind that there are significant variations between individuals and the normal level for one individual may, in another individual, be elevated.

So, that's kind of the route we are taking. We don't want to speculate. We want experts involved to tell us really what's going on here and what potential factors may be playing a role.

Q: Was the testosterone to epitestosterone ratio monitored by the Phonak team throughout the Tour?

Dr. Brent Kay: I have never checked this ratio nor have I had any reason to check it. I don't think it is a standard medical test that would be performed.

Landis: The team does not check that ever nor have they ever.

Q: With all the experts you talked to, how many reasonable explanations do you think there are for testing positive after what turned out to be the Tour-winning stage for you? Can Jack Daniels cause a positive test?

Landis: I know that's absurd and that is why I have not gone out of my way to even imply that. If you are asking me for how may reasonable explanations we have, other than Jack Daniels, I have to sort through the opinions we feel are credible so I can't tell you which ones are reasonable or not but, nonetheless, I have plenty of opinions.

To read more about Floyd Landis's failed Tour de France drug test and to vote on whether or not you think he's guilty of doping, click here.

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