Lance Armstrong Confrontation With ’60 Minutes’ Guest Reported to Federal Authorities

Lance Armstrong ran into former cycling teammate Tyler Hamilton — who recently accused him of using performance-enhancing drugs on 60 Minutes — at an Aspen, Colo. restaurant Saturday night.

According to Hamilton (in a detailed report on ESPN.com), Armstrong put his arm on his chest and asked him sarcastically how he was before launching into an expletive-filled tirade that contained threats, which Armstrong and an onlooker deny.

Hamilton’s lawyers formally notified federal authorities Monday that Armstrong made “aggressive contact” against Hamilton. Attorney Chris Manderson says Armstrong repeatedly asked Hamilton how much he’d been paid to appear on 60 Minutes last month, and said his legal team would “[expletive] destroy you,” “tear you apart on the witness stand” and “make your life a living [expletive] hell.”

Related Stories

Movies

Ben Affleck Reveals Details Around Wonder Woman's Cameo in 'The Flash'

Business

Disney Layoffs Hit ABC News, Kim Godwin Reorganizes Leadership Team

Said Manderson, “Lance Armstrong is a possible defendant in an investigation that’s been widely reported, and Tyler is a probable witness. When there’s any contact, especially aggressive contact, we as lawyers have a duty to inform the authorities. … What they will do with it, I don’t know.”

But Jodi Larner, the co-owner of the restaurant in which the run-in took place, Cache Cache, and a friend of Armstrong’s, denied the account. Larner says she did not overhear their exact words, but based on their body language, “It was not combative. It was not hostile. There were no threats. There were very few words exchanged. There was no scene made.”

“Lance never left the barstool,” Larner added. “It was like two dudes meeting serendipitously. It was not a big confrontation.” She called Hamilton’s version “fictitious.”

Armstrong’s lawyer, Mark Fabiani, declined comment. Armstrong told Outside Magazine writer Abe Streep that it was “certainly awkward for both of us” but “truly uneventful.”

Armstrong has a home in Aspen. Hamilton lives in Boulder, but was in Aspen to ride at an event sponsored by Outside magazine.

Armstrong has continued to deny using performance-enhancing drugs, and demanded an apology from 60 Minutes. The net’s news chief, Jeff Fager, says they stand by their story.