Monday 16 February 2015 22:16, UK
Lance Armstrong has been ordered to pay $10m (£6.5m) in damages after losing a lawsuit with sports insurance company SCA Promotions.
SCA were forced to pay the disgraced cyclist $7.5m in 2006 after Armstrong sued them for breach of contract when they withheld bonus payments he claimed he was entitled to for his seven Tour de France victories.
However, Armstrong has since admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs during all of his victories, and he was also found to have lied during the proceedings with SCA, who had counter-sued him for fraud.
In a 2-1 decision, a three-man arbitration panel in Texas ruled against Armstrong.
SCA Promotions president and founder Bob Hamman said: "It is hard to describe how much harm Lance Armstrong's web of lies caused SCA but this is a good first start towards repairing that damage."
A statement from the company read: "Lance Armstrong was hit with a record-breaking sanctions award by the arbitration panel hearing his dispute with Dallas-based SCA Promotions, Inc.
"According to the arbitrators' written ruling, the sanctions award punishes Armstrong for engaging in 'an unparalleled pageant of international perjury, fraud and conspiracy'.
"The 10 million-dollar award, which must be paid directly to SCA Promotions, is believed to be the largest award of sanctions assessed against an individual in American judicial history."
Armstrong's attorney, Tim Herman, declined to comment. The epic legal battle between the parties, which has run for over a decade, has not yet concluded.
SCA's statement added: “SCA's dispute with Armstrong is not over. It has a currently pending lawsuit in Dallas state district court where it is pursuing additional claims against Lance Armstrong and Bill Stapleton [Armstrong's agent]."
