Lance Armstrong's Honorary Degree Taken Away By Tufts University

Lance Armstrong’s Honorary Degree Taken Away By Tufts University

by NESN Staff on Thu, Nov 22, 2012 at 10:58PM

Oh, Lance Armstrong. How the mighty have fallen.

Back in 2006, Lance Armstrong gave a commencement speech at Tufts University and likewise the school granted him an honorary degree — a doctorate of letters — specifically citing his “tremendous grit and courage.” Well, apparently some of Armstrong’s other qualities aren’t so deserving of recognition.

On Tuesday, the university’s board of trustees unanimously voted to strip Armstrong of his honorary honor.

“While continuing to respect the significant work of the Lance Armstrong Foundation, the board concluded that, in the wake of the recent report of the United States Anti-Doping Agency and its acceptance by the International Cycling Union, Mr. Armstrong’s actions as an athlete are inconsistent with the values of Tufts University,” Kimberly Thurler, the school’s director of public relations, wrote in a statement to The Weekly Standard.

This indignation is just the latest for Armstrong along a streak of comeuppance after allegations of doping during his seven Tour de France titles were finally backed up by the sport’s governing bodies. Once Armstrong’s titles were stripped and lifetime ban announced in October, basically all of his sponsors jumped ship.

Likewise, Armstrong stepped down as chairman of the cancer-fighting charity that he founded. And that was well before the foundation decided to drop his name entirely, changing its name from the Lance Armstrong Foundation to the Livestrong Foundation.

Is there any further left to drop?