Lance Amrstrong
© AFP/File Stan Honda

PARIS (AFP) - The seven-time Tour de France champion is now retired, but a second book by Pierre Ballester and David Walsh - authors of the controversial "LA Confidentiel" two and a half years ago - claims to shed new light on their allegations that Armstrong's feats came through the use of doping products.

Extracts of "LA Officiel", which like the first book has been written only in French, will appear in Thursday's edition of Le Monde newspaper.

The book is centred mainly around an October 2005 legal dispute between Armstrong and an American insurance company, SCA.

On the basis of allegations in the first book by the pair, "LA Confidentiel", SCA tried to pull out of a contract they had made with Armstrong in 2001, and according to which they would pay him 9.5 million dollars if he went on to win the Tour in 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004.

SCA went on to lose the dispute with Armstrong, who in the face of several allegations over the years has always vigourously denied cheating.

A man reads Pierre Ballester and David Walsh's "LA Confidentiel"
© AFP/File Franck Fife

In the new book the testimony of Australian doctor Michael Ashenden, a former Australian Institute of Sport scientist who is credited with creating a blood test to uncover blood boosting drug EPO (erythropoietin), suggests otherwise.

Some doctors had previously stated that the American's recovery from cancer, his change of morphology and his extraordinary lung and heart capacities were the key to Armstrong's almost superhuman endeavours.

However Ashenden says in the book that Armstrong's lung and heart capacities are not "exceptionally high", and added: "There's no doubt: he (Armstrong) used doping products."

The book also uses the testimony of Frankie Andreu, a former teammate of Armstrong's who recently claimed he used EPO in 1999 when riding with Motorola.

Andreu's wife Betsy also appears. She was also a key witness in SCA's dispute with Armstrong, whom she claimed to have heard admitting that he had used banned doping products prior to contracting cancer, in 1996.

Lance Armstrong
© AFP/File Stan Honda

The book's co-author, Pierre Ballester, said their aim was not a relentless pursuit of Armstrong.

"It's a vital addition to an inquiry which throws the spotlight back on claims which in the past tried to reveal Armstrong's personality," Ballester told AFP.

"(He is) a rider whose career has been characterised by lies and cheating, but who nonetheless left the sport unsanctioned, unblemished and untouchable."

The 236 pages of "L.A. Officiel", which will go on sale Thursday in France, are bound to cause controversy.

However it remains to be seen if Armstrong takes any legal action for defamation.

The 35-year-old American, who is set to run the New York marathon in November, pulled out of an initial threat to sue the authors in France over their first book.

©AFP