Lance Armstrong admitted that he won with the help of doping. The Truth About the Great Trickster Lance Armstrong The Lance Armstrong Foundation
Lance Armstrong is one of the most famous faces in the world of cycling, associated with inspiring stories of overcoming challenges and hardships, as well as the most notorious doping scandals. His entire sports biography is interesting and controversial, it includes several "historical" stages, each of which was marked by its own finale and, for example, several departures of a cyclist from big-time sports.
Childhood and early career
Lance Armstrong.
Lance Armstrong was born in Texas, near Dallas in 1971. The young athlete was brought up by one mother almost from childhood, because his father left this small family early. But the woman was able to instill in her son a love of sports, so little Lance began to go in for swimming, which became the first direction in his then still sports hobbies.
However, swimming as a separate sport was quickly forgotten, and the boy, including swimming, running and. In four years of training at the age of 16, Lance Armstrong has already reached a professional level that not all sports fans, even those of great age, could boast of.
Like many boy athletes, Lance Armstrong dreamed of the Olympics, but the triathlon he did was not included in the list of Olympic disciplines, so the young man was forced to turn all his attention to cycling alone, which eventually became the main activity of the athlete. Since then, the first serious victories of Lance Armstrong began and the results that delight the society are quite worthy for a young cyclist who has just entered the international level.
By the way, back in childhood, Lance Armstrong was told by a doctor that such impressive lung capacity I have never seen it before, and the amount of lactic acid that appears in the muscles as a manifestation of fatigue is much less than the usual indicator, which means that the boy perceives any load much easier than other athletes of an equal level.
Early wins
In 1991, Lance Armstrong had already won the US races, however, those competitions were held only to harm cyclists. But such a start was a great start for a professional career. A year later, at the Olympic Games, which were held in Barcelona, a young cyclist took 14th place in the group race, which, when competing with experienced cyclists who often find themselves in major competitions, was an excellent result.
Already in 1993, at 22, Lance Armstrong won the road cycling race in America, taking the place of one of the youngest winners. Then there were victories in "", where Lance Armstrong played as part of a team called "Motorola". Already in 1996, this cyclist was named the country's first racer, and then signed a lucrative contract with a team from France, receiving two and a half million dollars for the deal at once.
Such achievements made Lance Armstrong one of the most famous young cyclists in the country, and further fate only glorified the athlete even more, making him almost a legend in the eyes of ordinary spectators and sports fans who have long watched the formation of a cyclist and the development of his abilities, obtaining new achievements. .
Illness and sports during treatment
The unexpected results of medical research in the life of a cyclist have not always been positive. All in the same successful 1996, in October, the attending physician of Lens Armstrong diagnosed the cyclist testicular cancer. The disease was so neglected that metastases were found in the lungs with their huge volume, the abdominal cavity and even the brain. As a chance of survival, the doctor set only twenty percent, then this figure completely dropped to some meager three percent.
A difficult period of treatment began. Neoplasms were removed during operations, the brain was not damaged due to the fact that malignant tumors in it were represented exclusively by dead cells. Lens himself chose a course of chemotherapy that was very hard for the body, which, if it should help him in the fight against cancer, then certainly once and for all throw out the cyclist not only from big sport, but from any sport in general.
However, cancer receded, a remission came, and Lance Armstrong, inspired by such a victory, decided to return to the sport. The contract with the French team was not canceled, but its conditions became clearly unfavorable for the athlete - the French indicated that they could terminate the contract at any time. Of course, during the treatment, the cyclist set aside his iron horse, but immediately after the end of chemotherapy, he returned to his favorite pastime.
The fight against the disease and love for the bike inspired Lance Armstrong to an active social life - the cyclist decided to actively engage in charity work and inspire society to fight the disease, considering such a mission to be an ideal combination of sports and public education.
Return to big sport
After treatment, the cyclist quickly returned to cycling. In 1999, he overtook his rivals by an incredible margin, having mastered one-day competitions with a distance of 56 kilometers, climbing bikes uphill and other "tasks" of the competition.
The victory was repeated in 2000, and in 2001, almost everyone was confident in the third victorious race of Lance Armstrong.
The victories continued until 2005. Yes, after seven triumphal trips cycling Lance Armstrong himself announced his retirement and rest from big sport.
Second retirement from cycling
The departure of Lance Armstrong was a very unexpected event for both his competitors and fans. The first ones finally breathed a sigh of relief, paying attention to the search for a new potential leader of the competition. But in society, various gossip developed and existed for some time. The main conjecture was the idea of a possible recurrence of cancer, but the cyclist denied it, emphasizing that family, personal life and relaxation from sports took first place for him.
However, speculation and gossip quickly disappeared, and Lance Armstrong remained a completely recognizable personality in the world of sports. The cyclist conducted several interviews and even book presentation. A doping scandal with Lance Armstrong in the lead role became a kind of black glory, but even this news was eventually received quite calmly, and the cyclist remained the idol of many young athletes, as well as cancer patients and their families.
doping scandal
The first doping issue was raised in 1999, but it quickly went down the drain because the banned substance was in a cream that was approved for use. The scandal began in 2011, but in 2012 the cyclist was already charged with specific doping charges based on the violation of several prohibited items at once.
A couple of months after the accusations, Armstrong openly stated that he was not going to prove his innocence and refused to further participate in the trial. All achievements since 1998 were canceled, the cyclist lost titles earned.
However, many famous people associated with the sport came out in support of Armstrong, despite the refusal of many companies to cooperate with him. Armstrong himself did not admit his guilt and reacted very calmly to the situation, later even speaking in support of other athletes who were also accused of using illegal doping. So, for example, he reacted especially sharply to those situations when some athletes were equated with his own failure, noting that the memories of many years ago do not carry any useful information either for society or for the athletes themselves.
Creativity and social activities
After his recovery, the cyclist created a fund own name, aimed at helping those with oncology in the fight against their illness. Many friends of Lance Armstrong joined the fund, who supported him during a difficult decision and decided to continue to inform society and help those who are unable to cope with the disease on their own. By the way, Lance Armstrong decided to use the return to the bike as an option to promote an active fight against cancer.
Another inspiring event for people who follow the life and general activities of a cyclist was the release of the book. The book was published in 2000 and was co-authored by Sally Jenkins. The book became an autobiographical work that tells about the features of the fight against cancer. According to the two authors, it should give all patients a chance for hope, motivation for recovery and active struggle, as well as strength for all those people who are forced to watch the extinction of loved ones.
Lance Armstrong's serious attitude to cancer in general and his desire to help other patients elevated him to the rank of a hero, even the story of doping and the connection of all major victories after recovery did not tarnish Armstrong's reputation. Although he left the sport, after being left with annulled results, his fame remained thanks to subsequent performances and a very good book, devoid, as critics said, of excessive plaintiveness and pathos.
Features of personal life
Armstrong with wife Anna Hansen.
Unfortunately, Lance Armstrong does not belong to that category of happy people who, in addition to defeating the disease, can boast that there was always one person with him throughout his career and during a long treatment. Lance Armstrong has been married several times, once his high-profile romance came close to the wedding.
The cyclist lived with his first wife for five years. It was Christine Richard who helped her husband defeat cancer, in addition, she was an activist in the movement of volunteers who worked specifically with oncology patients. This couple had three children, but in 2003, at the peak of success after returning to big sport, the marriage broke up.
The cyclist had a relationship with Sherol Crow, a famous singer, but this romance did not last long either - only 2 years.
At the moment, Anna Hansen became the life partner of Lens Armstrong, who gave the former cyclist two more children, who by 2010 became the father of entire five heirs. The youngest daughter was born in 2010, and the eldest son was born in 1999, at the very beginning of the second career take-off.
Life position
A socially active life, sports achievements and the victory of cancer are good, but not only with this, Lance Armstrong won the hearts of his many fans and admirers, located, if not all over the world, then all over America for sure.
This already former cyclist, after an illness and reaching a very serious level of fame, and, therefore, a large amount of discussion of his personality in the media and society, completely ceased to be shy of expressions. His well-known sayings are often not devoid of strong words and often do not correspond to the generally accepted standard concepts of the hardships of illness and pity for the sick.
Lance Armstrong has repeatedly stressed that he would need a more compelling reason than cancer to give up cycling. In addition, he also emphasized that his main victory was victory over cancer. This combination of views allowed Lance Armstrong to return to the bike almost immediately after chemotherapy, leaving self-pity somewhere within the walls of the hospital.
The book of the former cyclist, like his numerous interviews, is full of motivational statements and truthful observations. The ridicule of weak-willed people in these phrases is complemented by sincere support for those people who are trying to cope with the hardships of fate.
That is why the social activities of Lance Armstrong are fully supported by society, despite the doping scandal, which did not affect the heroic image of the athlete.
That is why, after quite a long time after leaving the big sport, the name of Lance Armstrong remains well known.
Video. Cyclist Lance Armstrong
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Task 2 of 15
2 .
Which cyclist does not break the rules?
Correctly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.6. The cyclist is prohibited from:
Not properly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.6. The cyclist is prohibited from:
b) move on motorways and roads for cars, as well as on the carriageway, if there is a bicycle path nearby;
Task 3 of 15
3 .
Who must give way?
Correctly
6. Requirements for cyclists
Not properly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.5. If the cycle path crosses the road outside the intersection, cyclists must give way to other vehicles moving on the road.
Task 4 of 15
4 .
What loads are allowed to be carried by a cyclist?
Correctly
6. Requirements for cyclists
22. Shipping
Not properly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.4. A cyclist may only carry loads that do not interfere with the cycling and do not obstruct other road users.
22. Shipping
22.3. Carriage of cargo is permitted provided that it:
b) does not violate the stability of the vehicle and does not complicate its management;
Task 5 of 15
5 .
Which cyclist violates the Rules when carrying passengers?
Correctly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.6. The cyclist is prohibited from:
Not properly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.6. The cyclist is prohibited from:
e) carry passengers on a bicycle (with the exception of children under 7 years of age who are transported on an additional seat equipped with securely fastened footrests);
Task 6 of 15
6 .
In what order will the vehicles pass through the intersection?
Correctly
16. Passage of intersections
Not properly
16. Passage of intersections
16.11. At the intersection of unequal roads, the driver of a vehicle moving along a secondary road must give way to vehicles approaching this intersection of carriageways along the main road, regardless of the direction of their further movement.
16.12. At the intersection of equivalent roads, the driver of a non-rail vehicle must give way to vehicles approaching from the right.
This rule should be guided by each other and tram drivers. At any unregulated intersection, a tram, regardless of the direction of its further movement, has an advantage over non-rail vehicles approaching it along an equivalent road.16.14. If the main road changes direction at the intersection, the drivers of vehicles moving along it must be guided by the rules for passing the intersections of equivalent roads.
This rule should be guided by each other and drivers moving on secondary roads.Task 7 of 15
7 .
Cycling on sidewalks and footpaths:
Correctly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.6. The cyclist is prohibited from:
Not properly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.6. The cyclist is prohibited from:
c) move along sidewalks and footpaths (except for children under 7 years old on children's bicycles under adult supervision);
Task 8 of 15
8 .
Who has the right of way at the intersection with the bike lane?
Correctly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.5. If the cycle path crosses the road outside the intersection, cyclists must give way to other vehicles moving on the road.
Not properly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.5. If the cycle path crosses the road outside the intersection, cyclists must give way to other vehicles moving on the road.
Task 9 of 15
9 .
What distance should be between groups of cyclists moving in a column?
Correctly
6. Requirements for cyclists
Not properly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.3. Cyclists, moving in groups, must ride one after another so as not to interfere with other road users. A column of cyclists moving along the carriageway should be divided into groups (up to 10 cyclists in a group) with a distance of 80-100 m between groups.
Task 10 of 15
10 .
Vehicles will pass the intersection in the following order
Correctly
16. Passage of intersections
16.11. At the intersection of unequal roads, the driver of a vehicle moving along a secondary road must give way to vehicles approaching this intersection of carriageways along the main road, regardless of the direction of their further movement.
Not properly
16. Passage of intersections
16.11. At the intersection of unequal roads, the driver of a vehicle moving along a secondary road must give way to vehicles approaching this intersection of carriageways along the main road, regardless of the direction of their further movement.
16.13. Before turning left and making a U-turn, the driver of a non-rail vehicle is obliged to give way to a tram in the opposite direction, as well as to vehicles moving on an equivalent road in the opposite direction straight or to the right.
Task 11 of 15
11 .
The cyclist passes the intersection:
Correctly
16. Passage of intersections
Not properly
8. Traffic regulation
8.3. The signals of the traffic controller take precedence over traffic signals and traffic signs and are mandatory. Traffic lights, except for flashing yellow, take precedence over road signs of priority. Drivers and pedestrians must comply with the additional requirements of the traffic controller, even if they contradict traffic signals, traffic signs and markings.
16. Passage of intersections
16.6. When turning left or turning around at the green signal of the main traffic light, the driver of a non-rail vehicle is obliged to give way to a tram in the same direction, as well as vehicles moving in the opposite direction straight or turning right. This rule should be guided by each other and tram drivers.
Task 12 of 15
12 .
Flashing red signals of this traffic light:
Correctly
8. Traffic regulation
8.7.6. To regulate traffic at railway crossings, traffic lights with two red signals or one white-moon and two red signals are used, having the following meanings:
a) flashing red signals prohibit the movement of vehicles through the crossing;
b) a flashing white-moon signal indicates that the alarm system is working and does not prohibit the movement of vehicles.
At railway crossings, simultaneously with a prohibitory signal of a traffic light, an audible signal may be turned on, additionally informing road users about the prohibition of movement through the crossing.
16.14. If the main road changes direction at the intersection, the drivers of vehicles moving along it must be guided by the rules for passing the intersections of equivalent roads.
This rule should be guided by each other and drivers moving on secondary roads.
Not properly
16. Passage of intersections
16.11. At the intersection of unequal roads, the driver of a vehicle moving along a secondary road must give way to vehicles approaching this intersection of carriageways along the main road, regardless of the direction of their further movement.
16.14. If the main road changes direction at the intersection, the drivers of vehicles moving along it must be guided by the rules for passing the intersections of equivalent roads.
Correctly
8. Traffic regulation
16 Crossings
Not properly
8. Traffic regulation
8.7.3. Traffic lights have the following meanings:
A signal in the form of an arrow, allowing a left turn, also allows a U-turn, if it is not prohibited by traffic signs.
The signal in the form of a green arrow (arrows) in the additional (additional) section (s), switched on together with a green traffic light, informs the driver that he has an advantage in the direction (directions) of movement indicated by the arrow (arrows) over vehicles moving from other directions;
f) a red signal, including a flashing one, or two red flashing signals prohibit movement.
The signal in the form of a green arrow (arrows) in the additional (additional) section (sections) together with a yellow or red traffic light signal informs the driver that movement is allowed in the indicated direction, provided that vehicles moving from other directions are allowed to pass unhindered.
The green arrow on the plate, installed at the level of the red traffic light with a vertical arrangement of signals, allows movement in the indicated direction with the red traffic light on from the rightmost lane (or the leftmost lane on one-way roads), subject to the provision of an advantage in traffic to its other participants moving from other directions to a traffic light signal allowing movement;
16 Crossings
16.9. While driving in the direction of the arrow switched on in the additional section at the same time as the yellow or red traffic light, the driver must give way to vehicles moving from other directions.
While driving in the direction of the green arrow on the table set at the level of the red traffic light with a vertical arrangement of signals, the driver must take the extreme right (left) lane and give way to vehicles and pedestrians moving from other directions.
Correctly
Not properly
11. Location of vehicles on the road
11.14. Movement on the carriageway on bicycles, mopeds, horse-drawn carts (sleighs) and riders is allowed only in one row on the right extreme lane as far to the right as possible, except when a detour is performed. Left turns and U-turns are permitted on roads with one lane for traffic in each direction and no tram tracks in the middle. Driving on the side of the road is allowed if it does not create obstacles for pedestrians.
Task 1 of 15
1 .
Are the Rules violated in the situations depicted?
Correctly
f) tow bicycles;
Not properly
6. Requirements for cyclists
6.6. The cyclist is prohibited from:
d) hold on to another vehicle while driving;
f) tow bicycles;
Armstrong earned his first million in prize money back in 1993. Then he became the winner of many international professional races, repeatedly won the US championships, became the world champion. But exactly two weeks after his 25th birthday, on October 2, 1996, he learned that he had testicular cancer. Metastases in the lungs. A week later, the doctors again stunned Lance - he had two brain tumors. One is above the center responsible for the coordination of movements, the other is three microns from the visual center.
duel with cancer
He had surgery on his scrotum. But the condition of the athlete remained difficult. “Your sports career is over!” - shouted to him all and sundry. And representatives of the team for which he then played terminated his former contract. "You will never have children, break up!" - yelled at Lance and his girlfriend Kristin relatives. But here the number of well-wishers did not pass. Christine was not going to leave her beloved in difficult times. And a surgeon from the Indianapolis Hospital, Craig Nichols, advised the guy to take tests at a sperm bank before the operation, in order to then carry out artificial insemination - chemotherapy could really harm future offspring.
And a month after the operation, Armstrong started training! And in the evenings ... I talked with cancer:
You attacked the wrong one,” Lance explained to him quietly but convincingly. - You made a big mistake by choosing my body to live there. You see, I really want to live. And would not mind to win a couple more races.
Having operated on the brain, the doctors were already in a state of shock. It turned out that the tissue of both cancerous tumors is dead! Why? Nobody knows. But there is a suspicion that the cancer did not want to get involved with the "crazy champion", and ... committed suicide in his brain.
In the same mysterious way - from the fear of cancer in front of the champion, from the effects of toxins introduced into his body, God knows - Lance got rid of metastases in the lungs, and from the resulting blood cancer. In her diary, his fiancée Kristin wrote on February 12, 1997: “Doctors have reported that there are no more signs of cancer in Lance’s body!! Will the disease return? Only time can answer this question. Anyway, this date is his second birthday.”
Best of the day
But it wasn't quite like that. Cancer cells continued to remain in Armstrong's body. And the chemotherapy sessions drove him crazy. Pain when urinating, decrepit muscles, burns on the skin from "chemistry", dark circles under the eyes. The hair on the head fell out, the eyebrows disappeared. Born in Texas and a heavy eater, he had once looked like a well-fed ranger, but now he looked like a skeleton covered in leather.
In the late 90s, it was about saving the guy, returning him to normal life, Craig Nichols later recalled. - No one thought about his return to sports, especially to cycling, where inhuman loads fall on people.
New battles
Nevertheless, at the end of the 97th, Lance resumed training. Signed a contract with the new cycling team "Yu. Es. Postal. In February 98, he participated in a small tour of Spain, finishing 15th. But soon he left the track in a race in France. He spat on everything and went into a binge.
And then the character of the modest and gentle girl Kristin Richard appeared, who was next to Lance all the hardest days. “You almost defeated the disease, you endure these terrible sessions of“ chemistry ”! Think about how scary training is compared to all this nightmare! - she lamented, indiscriminately kokosha all the bottles of alcohol.
Finally sobered up after a month of hard drinking, he said - well, then let's get married! In May 1998, they got married in the famous Santa Barbara. And in the summer, Lance participated in three races, two of which he won.
But in December 1998, while accelerating in training, Lance, flying at a speed of 50 km / h, “rammed” a truck, which the drunk driver accelerated to 120 kilometers and specifically directed at the cyclist. Fortunately, at the last moment, Armstrong managed to turn a little to the side. A concussion, a fractured rib, bruises, abrasions...
"Tour de Lance"
On February 13, 1999, Christine wrote in her diary: “Our doctor called today. Lance listened to him and smiled. Then he turned to me: “Baby, you are pregnant!”
On July 1, 1999, Christine wrote: “The Tour de France starts in a day. My mother and I (Armstrong's mother - Linda - approx. A.P.) put a candle in every church we pass, praying for his quick legs and safety.
On July 2, Armstrong was hit by a truck again. That, however, did not prevent him in three weeks from becoming the winner of the "Great Loop" - a super multi-day race in France, having received his first title of king of the "Tour de France"!
When he, having plowed 3600 kilometers, triumphantly entered the Champs Elysees, even worldly-wise cyclists refused to believe in what had happened. And the first to congratulate him on the victory were his mother Linda and wife Kristin.
A year later, he won again. And on the Champs Elysees, in addition to his mother and wife, Armstrong was met by his little son Luke - Louis David Armstrong, who was born in October 99th. The same family line-up honored the winner of the Tour de France in 2001. Moreover, between the second and third victories of Armstrong in the Tour, doctors radically examined the athlete. And somehow they were even reluctantly surprised - Lance's body completely got rid of all cancers. At the same time, the Tour de France began to be either jokingly or seriously called the Tour de Lance.
Olympics ... It seems that in the case of this cyclist it is trite, but the fact is that on the eve of the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, during training, Armstrong ran into another truck. And at the Games he performed with a spinal injury. This is probably why he took “only” third place there.
Champagne on the track
So, last Sunday on the Champs Elysees for the sixth time honored Armstrong the winner. At the last stage to Paris, he, as in 2002, allowed himself to drink a glass of champagne - his total lead was conducive to such an extravagant trick. From now on, Armstrong is the official genius of these races, an athlete who has outstripped death. And now it’s hard to believe that seven years ago, not only in sports prospects, but in the prospects of his life itself, not many believed, little by little preparing to say goodbye to him forever.
Is it conceivable in those days to think that this half-corpse would become an absolute record holder, the father of three children (in November 2001, Kristin and Lance had twins - Isabella and Gracie). That in comparison with Armstrong the names of such cycling legends as Miguel Indurain, Eddy Merckx, Jacques Anquetil and Bernard Hinault, who won the Tour de France “only” five times, will fade! Who could believe that Armstrong the cyclist would not be inferior in popularity to Armstrong the astronaut, the conqueror of the moon? That Lance would even talk about the President of the United States as if he were talking about his friend from the tavern closest to the house:
Yes, we know him well! And I want to say that he is a great guy. And a Texan like me!
Only before, in the days of victorious chords, Armstrong was surrounded by family. However, in January 2003, the idyll collapsed. In May, Lance and Kristin reconnected, as if trying, as in the old days, to win together. We won. But in September, the divorce was officially registered. Allegedly, at the request of Christine, who was tired of her husband's tournament wanderings.
Don't ask me questions! - shook his head at a press conference after the "Tour" -2003 Armstrong. “Kristin has had a lot of hardships. She was by my side all the time, giving me strength in difficult times. She brings up three small children, for which I am eternally grateful to her.
However... 6 million people die from cancer every year on Earth. But by some miracle, a third of cancer patients survive. For their sake, Armstrong created the Cancer Relief Fund. For their sake, he remains a member of the board and one of the sponsors of the World Cancer Recovery Fund. Ultimately, for their sake, he became the champion of the Tour de France. And the French delegate of the World Cancer Foundation, Pascal Brand, is right when he said: "Armstrong's victories show that there is life after cancer."
2010 The greatest cyclist is being seen off to retire. "Thank you Lance, you are a real person!" - write the fans on the posters. Thousands of people feel involved in its greatness. Armstrong ended his career undefeated. He is a seven-time Tour de France champion, almost a celestial who made cycling really popular. Lance Armstrong is an example of how much is available to a person if he has the will and character. Honoring the champion, no one could have imagined that soon the pedestal under Armstrong, who had ascended to heaven, would begin to sway, and then he would completely collapse from heaven.
The only one who knew that every day his career and reputation were at stake was Armstrong himself. A unique athlete dedicated his life to two things - the fight against cancer and the fight against the rules. Life taught him: you need to win at any cost.
If not for the iron character, Lance Armstrong would never have become famous. He was a promising young athlete, there are hundreds of them around the world. True, when Lance was 16 years old, the doctor told him that he had never seen such a lung capacity, and the level of lactic acid, which causes muscle pain when tired, is lower than most people. At the age of 22, he achieved his first significant success: he won the world championship in road cycling. His career went uphill, the French team Cofidis signed him to a contract for $2.5 million. In addition, he met the Italian doctor Michele Ferrari, who promised him help and the highest results. It seemed that a whole life and great achievements in sports lay ahead. And suddenly, at the next medical examination, a 25-year-old athlete is diagnosed with cancer.
Metastases have already spread throughout the body. They are found in the abdominal cavity, in the lungs and even in the brain. Doctors later explained to Lance that his chances of survival were 3%. He agreed without hesitation to all operations and the most aggressive chemotherapy. Under the onslaught of Armstrong, the disease receded, fate decided to give him a second chance. “Cancer chose the wrong guy,” Lance told friends. He recovered, but was left without a job: Cofidis terminated his contract. The management of the team will regret this, but at that moment they believed that they were doing the right thing: this is business, nothing personal.
Who knows, maybe it was then that Lance Armstrong decided that he would do anything to win. The main thing is to be the first. Rules are made for the weak. If he did what was expected of him, he should have died by now. Before his illness, Armstrong, like most cyclists, was thin and wiry. After treatment, he lost his hair and became like a gray-skinned skeleton. In this state, he went to be photographed for new rights. Let only the card keep the memory of what he was like when he finally recovers.
After the illness, it was not easy to return to the sport. There were no offers. Just as Armstrong was about to give up his career, an offer came from the US Postal Service, a small and poor team whose main sponsor was his old friend Thomas Weisel.
Lance couldn't miss his one chance. He immediately contacted an old acquaintance of Dr. Ferrari: he needs a result, and the Italian knows how to help. His first success was the fourth place in the Spanish Vuelta in 1998. A year earlier, Armstrong had created the Livestrong Charitable Foundation to support cancer patients. The idea for the fund came to him while still in the hospital, when a nurse asked him to comfort a boy who was about to undergo chemotherapy for the first time.
The 1999 Tour de France was Lance's triumph. During the mountain stage, he pedaled at crazy speed. French driver Christophe Basson wrote in the newspaper Le Parisien: "The peloton was shocked by his dominance." Thus began Lance Armstrong's championship marathon.
Its secret is the drug erythropoietin. He confessed this to teammate Jonathan Waters during the 1998 Vuelta. From 1999 to 2005, with the US Postal team, later renamed the Discovery Channel, Armstrong won the Tour de France seven times in a row. To stay at the top of the world of cycling for so many years, you need to keep abreast of the latest medical advances.
A lot of people dope in cycling, so you need to be the first here. Dr. Ferrari combined erythropoietin, testosterone, growth hormone and cortisone. In 2002, Ferrari was banned from cycling for life in Italy. Athletes do not have the right to contact him under threat of disqualification. But the bans did not frighten Armstrong: in a few years he transferred about $ 1 million to his account.
Lance undertook to reshape the team "for himself": he wanted to be a champion again. He replaced staff doctor Pedro Celaya, who flushed tens of thousands of dollars worth of drugs down the toilet during the Tour de France doping scandal with the Festina team. The new doctor did not make such mistakes and actively supplied the team with doping. Armstrong brought in a new athletic director. They became the famous Belgian racer Johan Brunel. It was possible to work with such a team. Armstrong organized doping deliveries. In order not to keep illegal drugs with him, Lance hired a motorcyclist who rode for him throughout the Tour de France and delivered drugs on a call. Over time, doping became dangerous - WADA introduced new tests, and the team switched to blood transfusion. All riders donated half a liter of blood to be poured back between stages.
Fully immersed in the affairs of the team, Armstrong nevertheless continued to support his foundation and other charitable organizations. There was no other athlete who would donate so much to charity - Lance seemed to be paying for his dishonest victories. For example, he transferred $500,000 to those affected by Hurricane Katrina. For all of America and for the whole world, Lance Armstrong has become a symbol of the winner. He was called on TV shows, books were written about him, they worshiped him, they tried to be equal to him.
It cannot be said that the current scandal was a bolt from the blue. The press regularly accused Armstrong of doping. His former assistant gave an interview to a journalist who in 2004 published the book Armstrong Mysteries. But who cares about any accusations when it comes to a legend? In addition, Armstrong won all the libel cases one after another. His main argument has always been "not caught - not a thief." He was never caught red-handed.
He ended his career undefeated. But the US Anti-Doping Agency never left him alone. It dug, found out the truth. Yes, what does doping matter ... Everyone took it, but he alone became the champion! But the agency thinks otherwise. Revealed in August 2012, stripped of all Tour de France titles in October 2012. The demand to return all the prize money is about 4 million dollars. It was passed by partners and teammates. Together with him, they lay under a diffuser during a blood transfusion. They were ready to turn themselves in, just to ruin his career. But it doesn't matter. The main thing is that the Livestrong fund continues to exist. Despite the loud exposure, Lance Armstrong does not repent: this is a victory, and any means are good for victory.
“You may not believe me, but if I were asked to choose between winning the Tour de France and beating cancer, I would choose the latter,” Armstrong wrote several years ago in his book. After the scandal, he remained true to himself. “I know who actually won all those seven Tours,” says the degraded athlete. - My teammates also understand this very well. And everyone who competed with me knows who the real winner is. People ask me how I'm doing, to which I answer each time: "It's been better, but it's been worse."
Well, Lance Armstrong will certainly forever remain one of the most colorful and controversial figures in the history of sports. Let him be deprived of all titles, but for himself he will forever remain a winner. Who knows, maybe this is the most important thing - no matter what, feel like a champion.
He is the “ex-winner” of seven Tour de France tournaments, but his main achievement is the victory over cancer
Lance Armstrong is one of the most controversial athletes in history. Having become a legend in cycling, a multiple winner of the Tour de France and other prestigious tournaments, he was convicted of using illegal drugs and lost his previously won titles.
From triathlon to cycling
Armstrong was born on September 18, 1971 in Plano, Texas (USA). At the age of 12, he began to engage in triathlon. When the young athlete turned sixteen, the coaches of the US Cycling Federation drew attention to him. Armstrong had serious physiological inclinations for a brilliant sports career. One day, the doctor who examined Lance told him that I have never seen such a large lung as his. The level of lactic acid, which provokes muscle pain after exercise, is lower than that of most people on the planet.
In 1991, Lance won the Ch US championship amateur cycling. In 1992 on Olympic Games in Barcelona he was fourteenth overall. At 22, Armstrong became one of the youngest cyclists to win a World Championship. In 1996, Lance, in the status of the best racer in the United States, signed a contract with the French Cofidis team and became a professional athlete. The contract amount was $2 million.
Fight against cancer
And so, when Lance Armstrong was halfway to worldwide recognition, in October 1996 he was found advanced testicular cancer, with metastases in the abdominal cavity, lungs and brain. Doctors' prognosis for survival ranged from 3 to 10%. However, Armstrong is not one to give up. Realizing that he had nothing to lose, he agreed to a long-term treatment with the latest aggressive methods of radiation and chemotherapy. Lance has had multiple surgeries. But two weeks after the injections, IVs, and hospital bed, bald and emaciated, Armstrong was back on his bike, overcoming kilometer after kilometer. Some time after the treatment, Lance found out that his name was almost forgotten in big-time sports, and the Cofidis team terminated the contract with him without paying the promised money. However, this blow did not push the future champion out of the way. Armstrong wanted to prove to everyone that he was written off early. He signed a contract with a little-known US Postal Service team.» and already in 1998 at the Spanish Vuelta he took 4th place.
victorious return
Thanks to incredible perseverance, hard work, desire for victories, in 1999 Lance won the first championship at "Tour de France". Moreover, starting from the eighth stage (and there were 17 in total), Armstrong rode in the yellow jersey of the leader.
In 2000, as if not noticing his rivals, the American defended his title. Lance's only competitor was Jan Ulrich, but in the end he lost more than six minutes to the champion. On the Olympic Games in Sydney 2000 Armstrong became a bronze medalist, and despite the fact that on the eve of the Games, a cyclist ran into a truck during training and injured his spine (it must be said that for Armstrong "dating" with trucks was a common thing - he had three accidents).
Before the third victory on "Tour de France" a miracle happened in Armstrong's life - doctors diagnosed the complete absence of any cancer cells in Lance's body. On July 29, 2001, Armstrong won his third Tour. In 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, Armstrong still had no equal, and he was the first in the history of cycling to win seven French stage championship titles in a row. Fans admired him, TV and sponsors idolized him, the world received another super-hero. To the great disappointment of millions of people, everything will soon be turned upside down, but that will be a little later. In 2005, unable to withstand the lack of competition, Armstrong decided to end his career as a professional athlete.
The 2000s were successful for Armstrong, not only in terms of sports. The invincibility of the athlete, combined with the heroic struggle over a terrible disease, made an indelible impression on numerous companies and firms that offered Armstrong multimillion-dollar contracts. Publishing companies fought for the right to write a biography of the "great racer". At this time, Armstrong was at the peak of popularity and adoration.
In 2008, the legendary cyclist decided to return to the big sport, but not only for the sake of victories, but to promote the fight against cancer. In 2009, 37-year-old Lance finished third in the Tour de France. In 2010, at the same tournament, Armstrong's team "Team RadioShack" took first place in the team standings. In 2011, the 40-year-old cyclist finally ended his career as a cyclist.
"Great sportsman or rogue liar?"
But the biggest sports defeats came after the end of a career. The famous cyclist lost everything for which he fought in big sports for many years. The American athlete was disqualified for life, and also stripped of winning seven titles in a row for"Tour de France" (1999 - 2005) due to allegations by the American Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) in doping. For a long time, the athlete denied all charges.
However, in January 2013, on one of the American TV shows, Armstrong still found the courage to admit to the systematic use of doping. At the same time, he said that it was impossible to win the Tour de France seven times without doping. The athlete also noted that he did not regret that he had been taking illegal drugs for many years. Armstrong said that in cycling everyone is accepted by banned athletes, but only he became invincible.
Lance Armstrong is the founder of the Cancer Relief Foundation. The Fund's activity is to rehabilitate cancer patients, solve health problems, and support scientific research in modern medicine. After the doping scandal, Armstrong was forced to leave the post of head of the Foundation, so as not to tarnish the image of the organization. But these were far from all the problems in the life of an athlete. Immediately after Lance's consciousness of doping, Nike terminated the contract with the cyclist. After all, no one wants to tarnish their reputation by contacting dishonorable people.
Nevertheless, despite all the problems and scandals associated with the use of doping, one cannot but agree that Lance Armstrong forever inscribed his name in the history of world cycling.
New doping exposure in the world of big sport. The world's most decorated professional cyclist, Lance Armstrong, has been stripped of all titles, including seven Tour de France titles, and suspended for life for using illegal drugs. The corresponding statement was distributed by the American Anti-Doping Agency.
The doping scandals of the most famous racer in the world of cycling, Lance Armstrong, pursued almost all the time that he participated in the competition. Too often he won. It's no joke, back in 1993, he became the youngest professional world champion in history, and then won the toughest multi-day Tour de France seven times. From 1999 to 2005
There is simply no other such titled cyclist in the world. And this despite the fact that in 1996 he was diagnosed with cancer, with metastases in the lungs and brain. The reasons for the appearance of this disease in Armstrong, no one knows so far, but enemies claim that all this is from the use of doping. At the same time, Lance Armstrong won cancer. And he organized a fund to fight this disease, proving to everyone that he was cured not even thanks to chemotherapy, but to his favorite cycling. All doping tests at the same time showed that the athlete was clean. Until the scandal erupted.
Host: Well, what exactly did you see?
Tyler Hamilton in the frame: I saw erythropoietin in his refrigerator. I have seen him inject several times.
Host: Did you see Lance Armstrong injecting himself with erythropoietin?
Tyler Hamilton: Yes. We've all done it. I've done it myself many times."
And this was not the first statement in which former teammates not only accused Armstrong of using erythropoietin, a hormonal drug that increases performance and endurance, but also accused him of provoking them to use illegal drugs.
Both Tyler Hamilton and Floyd Landis the year before claimed that Armstrong won unfairly. After that, a series of lawsuits began. The cyclist himself argued that he had been slandered, said that during his career he had passed more than 500 doping tests, and none of them turned out to be positive, all the accusations against him were indirect, and his former colleagues were slanderers. In addition, they made their statements after they themselves were caught using doping.
Most likely, the proceedings would have continued for a long time if Lance Armstrong had not unexpectedly written on his Internet page the day before that he was tired of litigation.
"There is a moment in everyone's life when you need to say 'enough'. For me, it has come. I have fought accusations that I cheated everyone and unfairly won seven races of the Tour de France since 1999. For two years I have been involved in a criminal case initiated by Travis Tygart. The problems that my family and our foundation faced as a result forced me to come to the current decision. All this nonsense is now over."
Thus, the "nonsense" that Armstrong writes about, but in fact - a serious accusation of Travis Tygart, head of the American Anti-Doping Agency, of doping by an athlete remained without refutation. And despite the fact that Armstrong never admitted that he used illegal drugs, he actually signed his own sentence.
“His inability to refute the allegations, very serious allegations, means that he actually admits that there were banned substances. And this allows the US Anti-Doping Agency to sanction him in accordance with the rules, which will be done. Sanctions will be quite serious, in fact - life disqualification," said International Anti-Doping Agency President John Fahey.
Nikolai Proskurin, one of the leaders of the Astana professional team from Kazakhstan, in which Armstrong played for some time, says that he did not use any illegal drugs and did not offer anyone, although many accused him of doing something under the guise of an illness. it was unclean.
This story is like two drops of water similar to what is happening with another famous athlete - the Norwegian Ole Einer Bjorndalen, a six-time Olympic champion in biathlon. Competitors accuse him of using an asthma medication that allegedly gives him an advantage in races. It fails to prove it. But it is likely that after the World Anti-Doping Agency adopted rules at the 2008 Beijing Olympics to store all doping samples taken from athletes for 8 years for possible future re-checking, we will face more than one high-profile scandal.
As for Armstrong, the American Anti-Doping Agency claims that in addition to circumstantial evidence, that is, the words of his former rivals, they also have the results of doping tests taken from Armstrong in 2009 and 2010, and they will soon be made public. Whether the promise to publish the results of these tests led Lance Armstrong to withdraw from his defense is unknown. But it has already become known that the American Anti-Doping Agency announced the deprivation of the athlete of all his titles, starting in 1998. This is not only the biggest blow to his career, but also to the reputation of the Tour de France. That is why the International Cycling Union is waiting for an official clarification from the American Agency on the Armstrong case.
