World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) president Dick Pound said it is "highly probable" that seven-times Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong did test positive for the banned blood booster EPO (erythropoietin).

Armstrong, who retired after his seventh yellow jersey victory last month, has been forced on the defensive since a damaging report by French newspaper L'Equipe two weeks ago detailed test results from the Tour de France in 1999.

The paper alleged Armstrong had tested positive six times for EPO in that year's race, his first success on the Tour. At the time the test for EPO did not exist and retroactive testing on the samples from 1999, and those of 1998, only began in 2004.

Pound, who has crossed swords with Armstrong in the past over doping issues concerning cyclists and WADA's role, has studied the results from the Paris laboratory from where the information on the 1999 samples pertaining to Armstrong was released.

"After studying all the evidence from this affair I'm of the opinion that there is evidence of doping," the WADA chief and lawyer told the internet edition of the Netzeitung on Monday.

He added: "WADA did not receive details of the riders involved. All we got was the results of the test analyses from the French laboratory that don't include any names.

L'Equipe's report on Armstrong has put a huge question mark over the man who dramatically recovered from cancer to come back and win the world's biggest bike race a record seven times - amassing a huge personal fortune in the process.

The International Cycling Union (UCI) is expected to make a statement in the coming days, however the allegations have split opinions worldwide.

While many people in the United States feel Armstrong is victim of a French conspiracy, there has been a steady stream of detractors who claim the 33-year-old American, who has never tested positive, did use illicit means throughout his career.

On Sunday Dutchman Ron Jongen, who worked with Armstrong's former team US Postal in 1999, claimed he witnessed "strange occurrences" during the 1999 Tour, claiming that three Spanish "doctors" discreetly visited the cycling team on a regular basis at their hotels.

The Dutchman even claims he overheard Armstrong's team manager Johan Bruyneel, who is still manager of the Discovery Channel team talking about his riders' red blood cell (haematocrit) level before the 1999 Tour de France.

Using EPO, a naturally-occurring hormone which is also synthetically produced and has the advantage of increasing the volume of oxygen-rich red blood cells in the blood, also automatically raises the haematocrit level.

Last week a former anti-doping expert in Italy went so far as to say Armstrong would have had recourse to other illegal drugs and not just EPO.

Alessandro Donati, a specialist in the fight against doping in sport, suggested Armstrong's performances suggest he used a range of banned substances, including anabolic steroids.

"There have been clear indications for years as to how Armstrong has been so successful," Donati, who was formerly in charge of the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) research centre, said.

"No one could achieve what Armstrong has achieved taking EPO on its own. EPO improves your breathing capacity. But you also need other substances, such as anabolics, testosterone and a lot of others," he stressed.

Armstrong has vehemently denied ever taking performance-enhancing drugs, and attacked WADA and Pound last week on prime time American television.

Source: China Daily