LOS ANGELES -- The case against Lance Armstrong is closed. His legacy as a seven-time Tour de France champion endures. Federal prosecutors dropped their investigation of Armstrong on Friday, ending a nearly two-year effort aimed at determining whether the worlds most famous cyclist and his teammates joined in a doping program during his greatest years. Armstrong steadfastly has denied he doped during his unparalleled career, but the possibility of criminal charges threatened to stain not only his accomplishments, but his cancer charity work as well. Instead, another attempt to prove a star athlete used performance-enhancing drugs has fallen short, despite years of evidence gathering across two continents. "I am gratified to learn that the U.S. Attorneys Office is closing its investigation," Armstrong said in a statement. "It is the right decision and I commend them for reaching it. I look forward to continuing my life as a father, a competitor, and an advocate in the fight against cancer without this distraction." The probe, anchored in Los Angeles where a grand jury was presented evidence by federal prosecutors and heard testimony from Armstrongs former teammates and associates, began with a separate investigation of Rock Racing, a cycling team owned by fashion entrepreneur Michael Ball. U.S. Attorney Andre Birotte Jr. announced in a press release that his office "is closing an investigation into allegations of federal criminal conduct by members and associates of a professional bicycle racing team owned in part by Lance Armstrong." He didnt disclose the reason for the decision, though Birotte has used discretion in pursing high-profile criminal cases before. Last February, his office closed an investigation of mortgage giant Countrywide Financial Corp. The pronouncement comes after a pair of less-than-successful cases against top sports figures accused of doping. Home run king Barry Bonds was found guilty of obstruction of justice and sentenced in December to 30 days home detention -- a conviction hes appealing -- but prosecutors were unable to convince a jury he lied about using steroids. Roger Clemens steroid trial is slated for April 17 after a judge declared a mistrial last summer when prosecutors showed jurors inadmissible evidence. Investigators looked at whether a doping program was established for Armstrongs team while, at least part of the time, it received government sponsorship from the U.S. Postal Service. Authorities also examined whether Armstrong encouraged or facilitated doping on the team. He won the Tour de France every year from 1999-2005. The hurdle for prosecutors wasnt so much to prove whether any particular cyclist used drugs, but to determine if Armstrong and other team members violated federal conspiracy, fraud or racketeering charges. Unlike Bonds and Clemens, who testified before a federal grand jury and Congress, respectively, and were accused of lying under oath, Armstrong was not questioned in front of the grand jury. Betsy Andreu, who with her husband and former Armstrong teammate, Frank, accused the cycling champion of doping, said she was shocked by Birottes decision. "Our legal system failed us," she said. "This is what happens when you have a lot of money and you can buy attorneys who have people in high places in the Department of Justice." Led by federal agent Jeff Novitzky, who also investigated Bonds and Clemens, U.S. authorities sought assistance overseas, requesting urine samples of U.S. Postal riders from Frances anti-doping agency and also meeting with officials from Belgium, Spain and Italy. Prosecutors also subpoenaed Armstrong supporters and ex-teammates to testify in Los Angeles. Among them were Ukrainian cyclist Yaroslav Popovych, who rode on three Armstrong teams dating back to 2005; Allen Lim, an exercise physiologist for Team Radioshack; and longtime Armstrong friend Stephanie McIlvain. The investigation began after Novitzky was told about a cache of PEDs found by a landlord in the vacated apartment of Kyle Leogrande, a cyclist who rode for Rock Racing and had a doping ban, according to several people familiar with the case. The case also was spurred by disgraced cyclist Floyd Landis, who claims Armstrong had a long-running doping system in place while they were teammates. Landis, who was stripped of the 2006 Tour de France title for drug use, acknowledged in 2010 he used performance-enhancing drugs after years of denying he cheated. One of the most serious accusations came during a "60 Minutes" interview last May when former teammate Tyler Hamilton said he saw Armstrong use EPO during the 1999 Tour de France and in preparation for the 2000 and 2001 tours. The report also said Armstrong loyalist George Hincapie, another ex-teammate, told federal authorities that he and Armstrong supplied each other with PEDs and discussed them. Hincapie released a statement after the segment aired, saying he did not speak with the show and didnt know where it got its information. U.S. anti-doping officials said Friday they will not be dissuaded by the governments decision to close the Armstrong probe. "Unlike the U.S. Attorney, USADAs job is to protect clean sport rather than enforce specific criminal laws," said Travis Tygart, chief executive officer of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. "Our investigation into doping in the sport of cycling is continuing and we look forward to obtaining the information developed during the federal investigation." As the investigation progressed, Armstrong assembled a legal team, hired a spokesman and briefly created a website to address any of the allegations reported by the media. Frustrated by a slew of news articles about the investigation, Armstrongs attorneys filed a motion in July, asking a judge to order federal agents to testify about their contacts with reporters. Armstrong consciously maintained a high profile throughout the investigation, raising money for his cancer charity, Livestrong, and racing in events such as off-road triathlons. He had no reason to hide, he said. A spokeswoman for Livestrong, Katherine McLane, said the group was "very glad to hear this news." She called Armstrong an inspiration to millions of cancer survivors. That could have played a role in prosecutors decision, one expert said. "The government always has a tremendous amount of prosecutorial discretion regarding whether or not to bring an indictment. In this case it appears that they have acted judiciously and likely considered all of the good works of Lance Armstrong and his foundation," said Mathew Rosengart, a former federal prosecutor who is not involved in the case. Jerseys Wholesale .m. Santa Clara, CA (Sports Network) - The San Jose Earthquakes will try to build on a surprising run to the Eastern Conference finals last season when the club opens its 2011 Major League Soccer campaign against Real Salt Lake at Buck Shaw Stadium. Wholesale Jerseys China . The Yankees trailed 4-3 after seven innings before tagging Baltimore relievers Kevin Gausman (2-5) and Francisco Rodriguez for four runs in the eighth to halt a six-game losing streak in Baltimore. Soriano had a solo blast off Orioles starter Miguel Gonzalez earlier in the game, while Mark Reynolds went 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBI in the triumph, only New Yorks second in its past six tilts. http://www.wholesalejerseysbuy.us/ . Johnson returned to practice this week and the Texans had hoped he would be able to play. He made progress, but Johnson said Friday that he would sit out another week. Wholesale Jerseys From China . Quebecor president Pierre Karl Peladeau stressed at a wide-ranging news conference that he will continue trying to bring an NHL team back to the city, once home to the Quebec Nordiques. He promised Tuesday to develop amicable ties with the league and lobby discreetly -- an oblique reference, perhaps, to the leagues long-running feud with billionaire businessman Jim Balsillie, who has loudly campaigned for another Canadian team.Paris, France (Sports Network) - World No. 1 superstar and former champion Serena Williams, Australian Open titlist Victoria Azarenka and last years Wimbledon runner-up Agnieszka Radwanska were a trio of winners Wednesday at the French Open. The sizzling-hot 2002 French Open winner Williams won her 26th straight match on tour by lambasting French wild card Caroline Garcia 6-1, 6-2 in only 62 minutes on Court Chatrier. "Its important for me to win easily," Williams said. "Its also important for me to play well. If I play well, it will bode well for me at Roland Garros." The 15-time Grand Slam singles champion is now 69-3 since a shocking first- round loss at the hands of French journeywoman Virginie Razzano at last years French Open. The 30-year-old Razzano came from behind to beat Slovak Zuzana Kucova 4-6, 6-2, 6-0 on Wednesday and could face Williams in a rematch in the quarterfinals if both players win two more matches this week. The 31-year-old reigning Wimbledon and U.S. Open titlist Williams is trying to reach her first French Open semifinal in 10 years. Her third-round opponent will be Romanian Sorana Cirstea. The third-seeded former No. 1 Azarenka finally played her first-round match and handled Russian Elena Vesnina 6-1, 6-4 on the famed red clay at Roland Garros, while the fourth-seeded Radwanska looked good in her second-rounder by pasting American Mallory Burdette 6-3, 6-2. Rain wreaked havoc on the schedule Tuesday, as it took four days to complete round one. "I felt like Im one of the last ones to start," Azarenka said. "It was a long wait, but I think performance-wise it was a good match." The reigning two-time Aussie Open champ will face German Annika Beck in round two. Radwanska, meanwhile, has never advanced beyond the fourth round in Paris and was a third-round upset victim here a year ago. She couldve faced her sister, Urszula, in the next round if the younger sibling, who knocked out Venus Williams in the first round, beat German Dinah Pfizenmaier on Day 4. Her German counterpart, however, prevailed in 6-3, 6-3 fashion and will next face the older Radwanska. Fifth-seeded 2012 French Open runner-up Sara Errani won her eighth match in nine tries at Roland Garros by throttling Russian Yulia Putintseva 6-1, 6-1. The gritty Italian lost to Maria Sharapova in last years French finale and will meet German Sabine Lisicki in her next outing. Seventh-seeded former Wimbledon champion and 2012 French Open semifinalist Petra Kvitova outlasted Frenchwoman Aravane Rezai 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 to reach the second round, while eighth-seeded German Angelique Kerber landed in the third round with a 6-2, 6-2 spanking off Slovak Jana Cepelova.dddddddddddd A second-round upset came when Serb Bojana Jovanovski took out 10th-seeded struggling Dane Caroline Wozniacki 7-6 (7-2), 6-3. The former world No. 1 Wozniacki has posted only one clay-court win since early last month and has now lost before the quarterfinals in Paris six times in seven trips. Former French Open winner Ana Ivanovic moved on, as the 14th-seeded former No. 1 star whipped Frances Mathilde Johansson 6-2, 6-2. The Serbian Ivanovic captured the French title in 2008 and was the 2007 runner-up. Fifteenth-seeded Italian Roberta Vinci held off Kazakhstans Galina Voskoboeva 6-4, 4-6, 6-2, while Czech Petra Cetkovska ousted 19th-seeded Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 7-5, 2-6, 6-4, 20th-seeded Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro came back to beat American Shelby Rogers 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, and a 26th- seeded Cirstea subdued Swede Johanna Larsson 6-1, 6-4 in the round of 64. Some other second-round results saw 29th-seeded American Varvara Lepchenko get past Ukrainian Elina Svitolina 7-6 (7-5), 6-1, a 32nd-seeded Lisicki drill Spaniard Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor 6-4, 6-0, former French Open champ Svetlana Kuznetsova come back to best Slovak Magdalena Rybarikova 1-6, 6-2, 6-2, and 19-year-old Puerto Rican Monica Puig drive out 18-year-old American Madison Keys 6-4, 7-6 (7-2). The Russian veteran Kuznetsova titled here in 2009 and was the Roland Garros runner-up in 2006. In other opening-round play involving seeds, No. 12 Maria Kirilenko of Russia rolled past fellow countrywoman Nina Bratchikova 6-0, 6-1, in-form Estonian Kaia Kanepi took out No. 23 Czech Klara Zakopalova 7-6 (7-3), 6-2, and American Jamie Hampton doused No. 25 Czech Lucie Safarova 7-6 (7-5), 3-6, 9-7. Kanepi has now won six straight matches, including her clay-court title last week in Brussels. Hampton was one of 10 American women to win first-round matches this week. Additional opening-round wins came for the aforementioned Beck, Swiss Stefanie Voegele, Aussie Ashleigh Barty, last weeks Brussels runner-up Peng Shuai of China, and Slovak Anna Schmiedlova. The second round is scheduled to conclude on Thursday, including matches for the second-seeded and defending champion Sharapova and Azarenka. The former world No. 1 Sharapova will battle rising Canadian Eugenie Bouchard, while Azarenka will meet Beck. Thursdays schedule will also feature sixth-seeded Aussie Open runner-up and former French Open champion Li Na, Kvitova, ninth-seeded former U.S. Open champion and former French Open finalist Sam Stosur, and 17th-seeded American Sloane Stephens. Li will tangle with American Bethanie Mattek-Sands, while Stephens will be opposed by compatriot Vania King. cheap jerseys cheap nfl jerseys ' ' '