Lance Armstrong Tells Bicycling Magazine: Doping Allegations Will Not Stop His Involvement with Livestrong Foundation

“The last thing I am is a quitter,” Armstrong says;
“My commitment is full-time now”

EMMAUS, Pa. & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cycling legend Lance Armstrong tells Bicycling magazine in an exclusive interview that ongoing investigations into alleged doping violations during his career will not sidetrack him from any advocacy work or participation with his Livestrong Foundation to benefit cancer research.

“I clung to the possibility that Lance Armstrong had never doped. I thought he at least deserved that uncertainty…just a few people in the world had directly experienced his acts of innocence or guilt, and their accounts so contradicted one another…”

Armstrong’s comments appear in the May 2011 issue of Bicycling that hits newsstands next week. Armstrong spoke to the magazine on the condition that it not question him directly about the investigation or about performance enhancing drugs.

“If people think that I am going to be distracted or we (Livestrong) are going to be sidetracked from our mission, they are sorely mistaken,” Armstrong told Bicycling. “The last thing I am is a quitter. So I would reiterate to anybody in the cycling community who wants to question my commitment or the passion of this organization, they are making a big mistake.

“We are all a team in this fight and my commitment is full-time now. I am committed for as long as I need to be, and it's not going to go away in a month or a year.”

In an accompanying essay in the same issue, Bicycling editor-at-large Bill Strickland, who has followed Armstrong’s entire career and spent a season on tour with Armstrong’s team to pen 2010’s critically-acclaimed book Tour de Lance, writes that he has at last become convinced that Armstrong indeed doped during his career—though he’s hardly convinced that will ever be determined in court.

After years of remaining, in his words, “agnostic” about the topic of whether Armstrong doped or not (“I clung to the possibility that Lance Armstrong had never doped. I thought he at least deserved that uncertainty…just a few people in the world had directly experienced his acts of innocence or guilt, and their accounts so contradicted one another…”), Strickland writes that:

“It wasn’t Floyd Landis for me, or the federal investigation, or any public revelation. My catalyst was another one of those statements that was never said by someone I never talked with. It was not from one of Armstrong’s opponents. It was not from anyone who will gain any clemency by affirming it under oath. It was an admission that doping had occurred, one disguised so it could assume innocence but unmistakable to me in meaning.”

Strickland’s entire essay, along with other elements of the feature story on Armstrong, is now available online at www.bicycling.com.

Other stories featured in the package include:

“The Ugly Truth:” A chart on how the Tour de France would look each year Armstrong podiumed if the top ten were scrubbed of all finisher’s who have been implicated for using performance enhancing drugs.

“Cast of Characters:” A guide to the Tour champion’s allies, enemies, and those whole ultimate impact on him remains uncertain.

“You the Jury:” A highly distilled analysis of ten key allegations Armstrong might face if his case ever reaches a jury.”

About Bicycling

As the world's largest bicycling magazine, Rodale Inc.'s Bicycling is the voice of cycling, providing the stories on the personalities, trends, and techniques behind the sport. Appealing to readers of every ability and interest level, the magazine features expert reviews of the latest equipment as well as training and fitness tips. Published 11 times a year, Bicycling is the magazine for the athlete for whom the bicycle is the centerpiece of an active lifestyle. For more information, please go to www.bicycling.com.

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