A Look at How Lance Armstrong’s Charity Will Cope as the Cyclist Faces Drug Charges

Can the Lance Armstrong Foundation survive its celebrity founder’s doping scandal?

The answer, according to an article in November’s Fast Company magazine, seems to be Yes.

While a federal investigation into Mr. Armstrong’s alleged use of performance-enhancing drugs during his cycling career is adding to the charity’s challenges, it isn’t expected to deal a fatal blow to the group and its crusade against cancer,the article says. (Mr. Armstrong says he is innocent, and no charges have been filed.)

“If this had occurred before the foundation had a track record, it would have been a problem,” says Leslie Lenkowsky, a professor of public affairs and philanthropic studies at Indiana University. But the Lance Armstrong Foundation, better known as Livestrong, today has a strong reputation that isn’t dependent on its founder, say corporate executives, scholars, nonprofit officials, and others interviewed for the article.

Still, the Austin, Tex., charity’s 33-year-old chief executive, Doug Ulman, and its other staff members, are trying furiously to distance Livestrong from the federal inquiry. When the Associated Press published a story in August raising questions about the investigation’s potential impact on the charity, Mr. Ulman posted part of the article in his cubicle (“like a coach motivated by trash talk,” says Fast Company). He held an impromptu staff meeting, and, along with Morgan Binswanger, the group’s chief of staff, spent the day on the phone trying to reassure donors, corporate sponsors, and supporters. The coverage hasn’t hurt, says Mr. Binswanger, but, he says, “it’s time sucking.”