The International Cycling Union are still to receive evidence from the US Anti-doping Agency in the Lance Armstrong case, but “will not be afraid” to enforce sanctions if necessary, president Pat McQuaid said.

USADA on August 24 announced their intention to strip Armstrong of the seven Tour de France titles he won and annul all of the 40-year-old’s results dating back to 1998.

Armstrong was handed the sanction and a lifetime ban after the Texan said he would no longer be contesting the doping charges levelled against him, all of which he denies.

USADA say they have over a dozen witnesses who agreed to testify and give evidence that Armstrong used performance-enhancing drugs and encouraged others to do so.

The UCI had challenged USADA’s jurisdiction and have the option of appealing to the Court of Arbitration for Sport against the ruling on Armstrong and their right to jurisdiction as the world governing body.

They plan to wait to receive a communication outlining USADA’s reasoning for their sanctions before deciding whether to take any action. That is still to arrive.

McQuaid said: “They’ve sent us a letter saying they will send us a reasoned decision, so we will wait for that.

“If the UCI has to sanction, we will have no problems. We have sanctioned many good riders in the past, we’ve put them out of the sport and we’re not afraid to do it with anybody.”