McQuaid, UCI President for seven years between 2006 and 2013, was speaking following a BBC interview with Armstrong, due to be aired on Thursday (January 29).

The 43-year-old American was banned from sport for life by the United States Doping Agency (USADA) in October 2012 for his systematic doping before he confessed to cheating his way to a record seven consecutive Tour de France titles in an interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2013.

But Irishman McQuaid, who after the USADA report was published said Armstrong had "no place in cycling", claims he sympathises with the banned cyclist.

"He was very much made a scapegoat, there was a witch hunt after Armstrong," he told BBC Radio Five Live.

"That's the way it was.

"USADA wanted a big name."

Lance Armstrong was banned from sport for life but McQuaid feels he was the subject of a witch-hunt ©Getty Images



McQuaid's comments seem to support those made by Armstrong after he claimed he was not given the same opportunities as the other members of the US Postal Team, who were a part of, what USADA called, "the most sophisticated, professionalised and successful doping programme that sport has ever seen".

Armstrong's teammates George Hincapie, Christian Vande Velde, Dave Zabriskie and Tom Danielson were all offered reduced bans in exchange for their testimony.

"They weren't really interested in the smaller riders and also they made deals with the smaller riders in order to get the information they needed on the big guys," McQuaid added.

"I can have a certain sympathy because I don't think in sport, people in those situations, I think they should be treated equally."

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