July 24, 2005 was the most record-breaking day in cycling for seven years. On this day, the light and later shadow figure Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France for the seventh time in a row – the culmination of a career as a cheat.
Yellow. Everything was yellow around Lance Armstrong. Beaming with joy, the best cyclist in the world slipped into the legendary yellow jersey. For the seventh time in a row he had won the toughest tour in the world, the Tour de France. Next to Armstrong stood his daughters in yellow dresses, holding yellow flowers and looking up at their father – the legend.
Lance Armstrong had achieved what no one before him had achieved: the American secured his seventh tour title by crossing the finish line in Paris. As the dominator of cycling, he ended his career after his last big loop. The people on the side of the road gave Armstrong a standing ovation and bid him farewell to his retirement.
But Armstrong did not want to leave the world stage without a word. In parting, he turned to all the doubters who had confronted him with doping suspicions throughout his career. “I’m sorry for you,” Armstrong said into the microphone on the podium on the Champs-Élysées. “I’m sorry you don’t have big dreams. I’m sorry you don’t believe in miracles.”
Jan Ullrich and Ivan Basso grinned next to Armstrong. Until he dies, he will be a fan of the tour. “Vive Le Tour!” July 24, 2005 went down in history as a record day: Lance Armstrong was the shining light of cycling.
From the light to the shadow figure
Now, many years after the Armstrong doping revelations, everything is different: July 24, 2005 is actually the day on which Armstrong’s cheating career reached its zenith. Lance Armstrong became the shadow figure of cycling.
The impetus for this came from former teammates such as Floyd Landis and Tyler Hamilton, who were themselves convicted of doping. They weighed heavily on Armstrong – who had made a comeback from 2009 to 2011. The US Anti-Doping Agency initiated investigations against the Texan.
Testosterone, growth hormones, EPO and cortisone – that was the doping cocktail that drove Armstrong’s engine since the 1990s, according to the conclusive findings of the investigators. “The achievements of Team US Postal and Lance Armstrong have been achieved with a massive use of doping unprecedented in the history of sport uncovered,” the USADA report said. “More than a dozen former companions confirm that Mr. Armstrong used doping from the beginning to the end of his career.”
Armstrong falls to his feet
The international cycling federation UCI, itself a helper in covering up Armstrong’s doping practices, reacted on October 22, 2012. The UCI recognized Armstrong from all titles since August 1998.
The American lost all seven yellow jerseys in one fell swoop. Sponsors canceled contracts, Armstrong faced more than $100 million in damages and threatened bankruptcy. Armstrong himself only confessed to his doping abuse in 2013 on Oprah Winfrey’s show.
In April 2018, Armstrong finally wriggled out of the largest damages lawsuit. The US Department of Justice had demanded $100 million from Armstrong because he had caused great damage to the state sponsor US Postal. By paying the government $5 million, Armstrong prevented the process and averted impending bankruptcy. Armstrong has landed on his feet financially.
That’s why he obviously doesn’t have to regret his doping practices. If he were back in the 1995 situation when doping was normal in the peloton, he would probably dope again, Armstrong said in a 2015 interview with the BBC.
This is also reminiscent of his farewell after the seventh tour title on July 24, 2005. At that time, Armstrong said goodbye to his critics: “I have absolutely no regrets.”
Florian Puetz