Canadian cyclist Michael Barry says peer pressure in Lance Armstrong’s cycling team caused him to do something he promised never to do: dope to win.
“I caved in, I caved in to peer pressure,” Barry told CTV News Channel in a Skype interview from Spain.
“I was pushed to my physical limits and I turned to doping because it was acceptable to the team in that environment.”
The Toronto native made the admission after the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency revealed he testified against former teammate Lance Armstrong in a doping investigation.
“There were many, many ways that we could justify (doping), but in the end we were cheating and we were doing something wrong that I promised myself and many other people that I would never do,” Barry said. “I look back on that period with regret. It was a very difficult period in my life and one that I’m ashamed of.”
The USADA has said 11 cyclists testified against Armstrong. The organization has banned Armstrong for life and said his seven Tour de France victories are nullified.
Barry said he doped while a member of the Armstrong-led United States Postal Service team. He stopped in 2006.
The 36-year-old cyclist retired at the end of the season.
In another interview with The Canadian Press, Barry said coming clean on his past doping is both emotional and liberating.
"It feels good to be honest and not have to live a lie anymore," he said.
- With files from The Canadian Press
