Lance Armstrong’s final appearance as a rider in the Tour de France didn’t go quite as he wanted, or expected, to say the least. Despite an illness and crash disrupted spring, the 38-year-old seven-time winner took the start in Rotterdam outwardly confident that he was capable of delivering an eighth Tour victory for his new sponsor RadioShack.
Instead, he finished in a rather anonymous 23rd place, 39’20” behind former teammate Alberto Contador (Astana), losing time in the Alps, the Pyrénées, and the time trials, all areas where he was once the undisputed king.
“Sportingly, I didn’t go as well as I wanted,” he admitted to French Eurosport as he travelled to Paris en route to the final stage. “I thought I was ready; I started well; then there was the flat tyre on the cobblestones, the crashes… The first crash, I didn’t lose any time but I never fully recovered; the second was the nail in the coffin.”
The cobblestones on stage 3 was where Armstrong had said that he and his RadioShack would put pressure on Contador, just as his US Postal Service team had done to Iban Mayo in 2004. Instead, it was Armstrong himself who had been put under pressure, losing almost a minute to Contador, and more than 2 minutes to Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank).
“I thought, after last year and the beginning of the race,” he said, “that I’d do better than last year.”
Armstrong’s crash in the Ardennes on stage 2, and his lost time on the cobbles of stage 3, was a fate suffered by a number of the overall contenders. His crash on stage 8 to Morzine-Avoriaz though, which he admitted was his own fault, hinted that the legendary good luck, that followed him in all seven of his Tour victories, was beginning to desert him.
Other than the famous incident that saw a fan's souvenir bag dump him and Iban Mayo on the tarmac at the bottom of the climb to Luz-Ardiden, Armstrong had virtually no crashes in his entire Tour reign. Despite the change of luck though, there was no question of him going home.
“I couldn’t abandon,” he said. “I could say ‘I crashed twice’, find a dozen things that didn’t work out. The result is not ideal, but it would have been a big mistake to abandon the team, the sponsor, my fans…”
As has been his habit, ever since his first Tour win, the race marks the end of Armstrong’s competitive season. When, or if, his next one will start is still not decided.
“I won’t race this year,” he confirmed, “except for some recreational events. I haven’t decided if I will do things next year; in Austin [Texas], you’ll see me riding with my children, there will be other charity events… At least for the rest of the year there will be no professional racing.
“I think I’ve done my competitiveness for the next 40 years! That takes me to 80 years and after that I don’t think I’ll want to make a comeback! I can set myself challenges in the marathon; I can set myself personal goals to surpass…”
When Armstrong gets home to the states he will find the Federal investigation into the allegations made by former teammate Floyd Landis waiting for him. This will be the next competition for him to face.
“It will be very competitive,” he said. “We will put out the best team, but in the end it will be a fair competition; today it is not, but ultimately it will be. I will have the opportunity to express my point of view. I’m 100% confident; everything will be said.”
Once again, Armstrong confirmed how much he feels hurt by the claims of his former friend. “Someone who says he wants to clear his conscience and also incriminates a dozen people, adding ‘I don’t regret what I did’, that doesn’t add up. That’s just someone who wants to ruin the lives of others.
“Does it bother me? Yes, it’s not sincere.”
Despite the seriousness of the allegations, and the potential consequences of anything that Landis claimed sticking, Armstrong denied that thoughts of the investigation affected his racing at the Tour.
“I wouldn’t say that,” he said. “In ten years, when I remember this Tour, it will not be the memory that I have.”
There are plenty of things for the seven-time winner to remember from this yea’s race, but not the memories that he has become used to.
“Several things,” he said. “Of course I will not remember the yellow jersey, but there is the fact that the team fought hard to get the team classification; having my son at the Tour for a week; bad luck; crashes…”
Armstrong has long been linked to a move to politics in his post-cycling retirement. Once again though he refused to commit himself either way, other than to express an opinion over one specific thing that he feels is a waste of public money.
“I’m asked a lot about politics,” he confirmed. “Never say ‘never’, but the chances are low. The two choices are political questions. As an Americans, it’s necessary to ask of our leaders ‘Are you doing what is in our interests?’ on the environment, the health service… Many people answer ‘yes’.
“Is allowing agents to track athletes without evidence and destroy their credibility a good use of American taxpayers’ money? I think many people would say ‘no’.”
Landis’ allegations are the latest in a long line of accusations of doping aimed at Lance Armstrong. This, he says, is something that he has become used to over the years; he has learned to put them out of his mind.
“Sure,” he said, “it started in 1999, I’m vaccinated against it. There are people who say ‘he did it’; others say ‘he didn’t do it’; others say ‘he did it but so did everyone else so it’s okay by me’. Each side comes up with arguments that suit their own side. I gave up fighting against it long ago; it doesn’t stop me from having my foundation, from doing what I want with my life.”
He was also quick to point out that many past champions have had similar fingers pointed at them, and expects the trend to continue in the future.
“These doubts apply to all champions,” he claimed, “Thevenet, Hinault, Fignon, Lemond, everyone. In a few years I’ll be one of those former riders and there will be another rider at the eye of the storm.
“Right now, for the last ten years, it’s me.”