Two of my favorite racers of all time: Greg Lemond and Laurent Fignon in the 1989 Tour.
I can trace my involvement in cycling to one singular event: Greg Lemond winning the 1989 Tour de France, specifically the final time trial on the Champs-Élysées. He started the final race 50 seconds down on Laurent Fignon and ended the day winning the Tour by 8 seconds—something few thought possible. His comeback from near death (he was accidentally shot while hunting) to the pinnacle of the sport was truly inspiring to me and eventually led me to buy my first bike. That was the beginning of a journey that has had an enormous impact on my life—most momentous events (my wedding, my children, my closest friends, my love of wine, my outlook on life) can be traced back to that Time Trial on the world’s most famous road.
At the time there was no internet, there was no T.V. coverage (other than brief ‘updates’ on the weekly Wide World of Sports). I was living in Ann Arbor, Michigan and would go to the public library every day to scour every newspaper for any updates on the race. When the race concluded and I learned of the incredible result a day later, I was hooked. Now, I do not have the prototypical bike racing body (I am 6’4” and was around 215 pounds at the time), but that was irrelevant, I was out on a bike, getting fit, feeling like a kid again.
When I started riding, I was very much what people (including me, now) would call a Fred—basically a poser, wearing pro style gear (I still remember getting that Team Z [Lemond’s team in ’90] cycling cap and wearing it everywhere even though it was several sizes too small) and someone who had no idea what he was doing on a bike. Eventually, I started racing (and even won a few), shaving my legs, and even cutting back on the drinking during the racing season (that has since stopped—who was I kidding?). It eventually led me to lead bike tours in Europe, through which I indirectly met my wife.
There is no doubt in my mind, that the effect that Lance Armstrong has had is much broader. There are many reasons for that (the internet, cable television), but there is no doubt that he has inspired many people both on and off the bike. Today, there are many more people racing (which, I feel by the way, has made it more dangerous, but that is for another post), riding for fun or fitness, and just aware of the sport. When I started getting serious about cycling, few rides would occur without someone shouting a homophobic slur or trying to run me off the road. Once Lance started winning Tours, these slurs were supplanted with screams of “Go Lance” while they zoomed by in their SUV. I like to think that motorists are both much more aware and accepting of cyclists as the sport has become more main stream.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not attributing all this to Lance (I am a bit of a statistician after all: “Correlation does not imply causation”), but I do know that my cycling world has changed dramatically. Beyond cycling, he has had perhaps his greatest impact, no doubt inspiring many with cancer, helping thousands with their own personal battles. Thus many people have similar relationships to Lance as I do to Lemond, many of them far more compelling and inspiring than mine.
I will admit that I was rooting for him while he was winning his Tours, watching just about every stage of each of his wins. On the bike, and in the Tour, there had not been someone like him for quite some time. At first, I thought he was being persecuted, particularly by the French press since at the time Americans did not have a good image in Europe. Lance did not do much to help his cause, seemingly not interested in winning over the French the way that Lemond did. Many times, I would find myself as a defender of Lance, partly because I am a believer in due process, partly because I am a bit of a patriot, and partly because I quietly hoped the allegations were not true (although I certainly feared the opposite).
Recently, however, I have grown dubious of Lance’s legacy. In the last few years, I have met several people who have little doubt that Lance doped and their compelling arguments have largely led me to believe the same. There is no way to know for sure, of course, but I had reluctantly (and quietly) climbed down off the Lance bandwagon a while ago.
Yesterday, Lance announced that he would not challenge the charges brought by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) that he had been systematically doping since 1996, meaning that he will be stripped of his seven Tour de France titles. This is just the latest (and by far the most significant) black eye for a sport that has meant so much to me. One could argue that cycling is doing far more than any other sport in trying to expose its cheaters, but many just see it as a sport rife with dopers (and they may be right).
Even more, Lance’s status as inspirational figure has come crashing down (or at least seriously damaged). Those who have bashed Lance over the last few years are no doubt rejoicing today with a chorus of “I told you so!’ but for me, it is a rather sad day. I am no Lance apologist by any means, but his impact on the sport and beyond has been enormous.
The countless hordes that have a Lance story are no doubt saddened today, and I am sad with them. And it’s not about the bike….
the drunken cyclist 
agree
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I don’t know if the decision to stop fighting the charges means he’s guilty or not. Since he’s not competing professionally anymore (unless he goes pro in triathlon) I can see why he’d be tired of fighting the repeated charges.I don’t pay that much attention to cycling, so I don’t know, but the idea that makes me feel better (and really, it’s all about me, right?) is that he’s just tired of fighting. Regardless, it’s a sad day.
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Well, if he fought the charges, then the evidence against him would be made public. That would irreparably harm what might be left of his image.
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That’s a good point. I was thinking of all the previous charges that didn’t hold up. There’s probably something to that. Nobody is going after Michael Phelps…
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That’s what I was going to say. Ultimately a good strategic move on his part– he probably knew it would all be revealed and now he can ride on his popularity and never really be exposed. I like a lot about Lance, but I think he’s guilty. How could he not be?
Just went to the Pro USA Cycling Tour today– good times!
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Yeah, I have it on pretty good authority that he was a doper (blood doping is essentially different from PEDs in that you transfuse your own blood and is virtually undetectable). Sad nonetheless….
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If I may, I have an opinion here. Lance simply chosen not to fight the system and have better use for his life – and I think this was wise. He successfully passed 500 or so doping tests… I think this is a nonsense political witch hunt, and nothing else. Not sure if that US organization can strip him of any titles, but even this doesn’t matter. He will stay as an inspiration to cyclists and people fighting cancer all over the world. Yes, it is somewhat of a sad day, but I would suggest that we should celebrate a smart and inspirational person instead (you see, even here I’m leading to the fact that we have a reason to raise a glass tonight, not that we need one : ) )
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Well, I will raise a glass (or two) tonight, but seeing that I am having dinner with someone who is no fan of Mr. Armstrong, we might be toasting you and your superhuman ability to get every one of my trivia questions right!
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Firth of all, I’m flattered and ashamed at the same time – I’m only a good Google user, that’s all… Now, for the record – I enjoy your quizzes very much, as they are interesting and force me to learn something! There are too many out there, where you say “yeah, I don’t know the answer, but… whatever”. Your quizzes, on contrary to those, are challenging and interesting at the same time… Well, I guess it is a time for a glass. Cheers!
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Like you, Lance and the Tour de France played a big part of me getting on a bicycle. I’ve never raced but I was (and still am) inspired by all of the cycling events. I always hoped that Lance would be cleared of all charges and this isn’t proof that he did dope. But, I think that all of this will make cycling a cleaner sport. Lance has done some incredible things and you can’t take that away from him. If his legacy is his fight against cancer, that is a bigger and better legacy to have. I will always look at him as being my inspiration to get on a bike and ride.
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Thanks for the great comment Cat! I too, hope this will be good for cycling in the end, but the Tour was certainly damaged by this. So happy to hear that you are out there on your bike; riding is such a beautiful, exhilarating activity, I just can’t get enough.
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Part of me is saying “Bravo” for not engaging in a fight that many believe is stacked against him. But a bigger part of me is thinking that if so many former teammates are lined up perhaps ready to sully their own careers there may be something there. Then there’s his legacy – I would expect him to keep fighting like he always on and off the bike. He may saying that he’s more than cycling, with his foundation and whatnot. But his foundation, as admirable as it is, would not be around if not for his career. If he’s clean, I just don’t think he should walk away from all of that now. I’m curious to see what UCI does as they’re the ones who can officially strip him of the titles. I had read that if they go to Court of Arbritation for Sport (how awesome that there’s one of those) the ugly stuff can still come up. No matter what – all very sad.
That all said, it’s time for some vino. Going to Asian Fusion restaurant so I’m thinking I’ll be making friends with a bottle of Alsatian Gewurz…
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I too was saddened by the news of him not fighting the charges. Saddened because to me to me that was an admission of guilt on his part and I so wanted to believe he was that good. I had been watching with interest his new career in Triathlons – will he continue do you think?
If he and cycling in general helped you get on your bike and find a love then that won’t change – it still helped you become the person you are today, this news can’t take that away from you.
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I loved that book. And it was one of the few books I could get my son to read all the way through.
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Yeah, I thought it was good, too. Now I wonder how much of that was a ‘lie’?
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Gosh. I sure hope not.
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I’m sorry, Jeff. We all knew it was coming, though. No one wants to support a sport that kills the heros we fans create. A thought for Michel Corvelyn’s departed teammates, and his own health troubles… there is death in doping, and the young men who do it don’t understand that: they are still immortal.
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Of course you are right and I knew this was coming as well. Far too many people knew. Still a very sad day for such a great sport. I just hope that all those people who took up cycling at least in part due to LA’s ‘inspirational story’ stay with it. It would also be a shame if the sport returns to relative anonymity–if the ‘public’ sees it merely as a sport of dopers and cheats, will sponsors start looking elsewhere? I don’t care what happens to Lance, I care about the people he ‘inspired’ and the sport he ‘championed’.
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Like.
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I’m a bit late coming into this conversation (I have a good excuse; I just found your blog tonight!), but I’ll throw my 2 centimes in anyway. I don’t think anyone who has gotten on the bike (or BACK on the bike) because of Lance has given it up because of his doping. Cycling is amazing enough, and champions come and go. Most of us wanted him to be innocent because of our admiration of his cancer comeback, his reasonably elegant speaking style, his complete dominance in the Tour de France and, lets face it, his good looks (we don’t like ugly people, usually).
But there has always been another side to Lance (or other sides), just like everyone else. The Lance we knew was carefully constructed by NIke and Lance himself and we chose not to look elsewhere to find out more about him (the ‘evidence’ was out there…I’m staring at a few examples on my bookshelf right now).
For me it’s not a sad day at all for cycling. The faster the sport gets cleaned up, the better. It is, however, a sad day for our illusions.
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Thanks for stopping by! I hear you. Those that were/are big fans of Lance (which included me at one point) seem to choose to ignore the smoking gun. The cancer comeback is compelling and inspiring for many. While I do not think anybody would instantly give up cycling because of this, some might have wonder what it all means. I have a good friend that was a teammate of Lance and he certainly is not a fan of him as a person (although he has stated that he was the best cyclist he has ever seen), I guess that can be said about a lot of great athletes. As for cycling, I do not share your optimism. There is no way to eliminate all the cheating–none. Other sports ignore it, cycling not as much, but it also seems clear that Lance was able to game the system–so what does that all mean? Who knows. I will always be a fan of cycling, but I will never think it is clean….
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Wow, an inside connection! The stories you must get told after a few glasses of wine…
I agree with everything you said, and I’m just as pessimistic as you about the future of doping. I’m just glad that there is, once more, a spotlight being shone on the problem. And when it’s Lance, it’s a big spotlight. My coach and I often have conversations about the circus that is pro cycling. We, like you, love it no matter what.
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Yeah, he shares a few stories, but mostly we just sit around and drink wine!
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