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Armstrong says he will retire after Tour de France (spoiler inside)

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N8 v2.0

N8 v2.0

Not the sharpest tool in the shed
Oct 18, 2002
11,003
149
The Cleft of Venus
:devil:


Armstrong says he will retire after Tour de France
Via Yahoo!

ATLANTA, Georgia, April 18 (Reuters) - Six-times Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong said on Monday he would retire after this year's Tour in July.

The 33-year-old American was addressing a news conference. Armstrong came back from being diagnosed with cancer in 1996 to win a record six Tour de France titles between 1999 and 2004. Three men -- Jacques Anquetil (1961-64), Eddy Merckx (1969-72) and Miguel Indurain (1991-95) -- won the event five times.
 
N8 v2.0

N8 v2.0

Not the sharpest tool in the shed
Oct 18, 2002
11,003
149
The Cleft of Venus
Cyclist Lance Armstrong announces retirement
CBC Sports | Mon, 18 Apr 2005 15:37:27 EDT

Lance Armstrong, one of the most celebrated athletes of his generation, will walk away from the sport of cycling after this year's Tour de France.

The six-time Tour de France champion ended months of speculation when he officially announced his retirement Monday at a news conference in Atlanta.

"I have decided the Tour de France will be my last race as a professional cyclist," Armstrong said Monday.

Armstrong's pronouncement comes one day before he's scheduled to compete in the Tour de Georgia, a race he won last year.

The 33-year-old native of Texas hinted at his decision to retire when he recently told La Gazzetta dello Sport, Italy's largest sports daily, that the pressure of the sport was taking its toll on him and he missed his children.

The story of his amazing success reads like a script straight from Hollywood, but unlike a Frank Capra film, Armstrong's tale of personal triumph is steeped in fact, not fiction.

Armstrong began 1996 as the No. 1 ranked cyclist in the world, but his career took an unfortunate turn when he was diagnosed with testicular cancer that had spread to his lungs and brain, and left him with less than a 50 per cent chance of survival.

After surgery and rounds of chemotherapy, he not only returned to his sport, but he rocketed to the top, winning his first Tour de France title in 1999.

Last year he won the Tour de France, the crown jewel of cycling, for an unprecedented sixth consecutive time.

Armstrong's efforts didn't go unnoticed – he became one of the most recognized athletes in the world, as Sports Illustrated magazine named him Sportsman of the Year in 2002 and he was selected the Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for 2002, 2003 and 2004.

Worldwide fame has come at a price, however, as Armstrong has been dogged by allegations of drug abuse over the last few years. The most recent claim was made by Mike Anderson, a former personal assistant, who stated he found steroids in Armstrong's home in Spain.

Anderson worked for Armstrong from 2002 until last November. A month later, Armstrong began legal action against his former assistant, claiming Anderson tried to extort a settlement of $500,000 US.

Last year, a Paris court spurned Armstrong's attempt to force a publisher to insert his denial of doping allegations into copies of the French-language book, L.A. Confidential, the Secrets of Lance Armstrong by authors David Walsh and Pierre Ballester.

The book relied in part on allegations by former Armstrong assistant Emma O'Reilly, who once reportedly worked as Armstrong's personal assistant, physical therapist and masseuse. The book stated Armstrong asked O'Reilly to dispose of used syringes and lend him makeup to hide the needle marks on his arms.

Armstrong has always refuted doping accusations made against him, arguing that he is the most tested athlete in any sport, and that he has never tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs during a remarkable career that has produced over 80 victories.

Armstrong is obligated to race in one Tour de France according to a new two-year contract he signed with the Discovery Channel team before this season. His retirement means this year's Tour de Georgia will likely be Armstrong's last race in the United States.

Armstrong, who turns 34 in September, would become the oldest winner of the Tour de France in the post-Second World War era should he win this year's race.

The 92nd Tour de France (21 stages covering 3,584 kilometres) begins on July 2 in the town of Fromentine, and concludes on July 24 with the famous climatic sprint down the Champs-Elysses in Paris.
 
H

HarryCallahan

Monkey
Sep 29, 2004
229
0
SC mtns
firetoole said:
finally the french will have there pride back
2000 :nuts:
2001 :nuts:
2002 :nuts:
2003 :nuts:
2004 :nuts:
2005 :nuts:
Click to expand...
Maybe.

Maybe not.

They'll still have to beat the the Italians, the Spanish, the Swiss, the Danes, and... the Germans.

Even without Lance, there will still be folks that can knock the fromage off their baguette.
 
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