"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - It's official: Lance will ride 2005 Tour de France

I see Discovery Channel just announced that Lance will ride 2005 Tour de France.

It looks like pro as well as anti Lance folks will get their opportunitys to praise/downplay his performance.

yawn.

Good point.

I should have added a note that its going to be a looong spring/summer for those who are boared with the whole Lance subject.

courtesy of http://www.cyclingnews.com

Armstrong will ride Tour 2005

After much speculation, Lance Armstrong finally announced his initial 2005 racing schedule, one that will include this summer's Tour de France where he will go for a seventh straight victory.

"I look forward to achieving my goal of a seventh Tour de France (victory)," said Armstrong to thepaceline.com. "I am excited to get back on the bike and start racing although my condition is far from perfect," he added.

Also on Armstrong's racing schedule is the Tour de Georgia in April, an event the American won in 2004. As already confirmed, Armstrong will kick off his season early next month at Paris-Nice, a seven day stage race and the first event of the newly formed Pro Tour. Following Paris-Nice, Armstrong will take part in the 89th edition of the Tour of Flanders, one of Europe's most prestigious Spring Classics, on April 3. Armstrong last raced in the Tour of Flanders in 2002, finishing 59th in support of his team's leader. Armstrong will then return to the U.S. and defend his title at the Tour de Georgia, scheduled for April 19-25.

"Johan (Bruyneel, the team's sports manager) and I will evaluate my fitness later this spring and possibly add some races to the calendar," said Armstrong.

Damn you're fast. . . I just heard it (wife called said ABC news announced it!)
read it on CyclingNews and popped over here.

At least Jan will have his wish to race against LA again.
Gonna be a long Spring and Summer, eh?

Marty

Sounds like a short spring for Lance, although the newspiece said Johan and Lance might add more races later:

# Mar 6-13 - Paris-Nice (France)

# Apr 3 - Tour of Flanders (Belgium)

# Apr 19-24 - Tour de Georgia (USA)

# Jul 2-24 - Tour de France

I can't believe he's not doing the Dauphine/Tour de Suisse/Catalunya.

I'm also thinking he's going to go for the win in Paris-Nice.

And the Tour de Georgia as well. Excellent! :)

That's it? For all this talk about him expanding his horizens, he's doing Paris Nice, 1 classic, a small tour in the U.S and the TDF.

Color me unimpressed.

That was my impression as well. I guess he's scrapping the classics for the Tour de Georgia. Wouldn't want to overextend himself, afterall.

Neither would the other riders, I'm sure...

american racer on an american team doing what no one ever thought remotely possible. yeah, I'm so cool and euro that I either discount his achievments or am bored by the whole thing.

That's it? For all this talk about him expanding his horizens, he's doing Paris Nice, 1 classic, a small tour in the U.S and the TDF.

Color me unimpressed.

Are you a father? What do you think he should do about that fact in his life? I see this as his way of trying to cover all the bases in his life and still have some time close to his kids. Ain't nothing wrong with that.


tomcat

That was my impression as well. I guess he's scrapping the classics for the Tour de Georgia. Wouldn't want to overextend himself, afterall.

Neither would the other riders, I'm sure...


Well I'm sure he's doing to Tour de Georgia to help promote the event and give it a foothold so that it can survive when he retires. As much as I admire Armstrong & his achievements I can't help but feel that the bigger he becomes, the bigger the void will be when he's gone. Now before you jump down my throat what I mean when I say that is in terms of GC level American riders in the Pro Tour, the level of televised coverage of cycling (OLN), the sponsorship & growth (hopefully) of pro level events here in the States (Tour de Georgia). This doesn't mean I don't like or won't root for European riders but you get my drift ? Don't you ?? :D

And all the defenders of the faith come out of the woodwork.

The guy is a professional athlete. You'd think he'd feel obligated to race all of the races he could, especially these years. It's what the fans of the sport want. Without fans, pro athletes are nothing. Absolutely nothing. The only reason he is so successful is because of the fans. No fans = no sports, and Lance is just another guy that can ride his bike really far on the side of the road.

I'm sure his kids will understand later on down the road why daddy couldn't be with them for a few months. Don't forget that they benefit from his success as well.

Was there ever any doubt that he would ride the Tour??? Did you really think OLN would pay without a Tour 05 guarantee????

Come on people…it was a forgone conclusion as soon as he won 04.

Excellence is boring to those that can never hope to achieve it.

GO LANCE!!!

Yes he is also riding in the Tour de Georgia again this year to defend his title here. Yes that is good new for the people that live here and I can say it brought a lot of excitement last year.

And I really thought he was going to do the classics
I was just waiting for Lance in Het Volk, Tour of Flancers,
the real spring classics. Lance on the koppenberg . . .
oh well, maybe next year (yeah right).

Marty

Yes he is also riding in the Tour de Georgia again this year to defend his title here. Yes that is good new for the people that live here and I can say it brought a lot of excitement last year.

Lucky freekin' Georgia! What we need is a Tour de Illinois.

Are you a father? What do you think he should do about that fact in his life? I see this as his way of trying to cover all the bases in his life and still have some time close to his kids. Ain't nothing wrong with that.


You think he's the only father in the peloton?

it's boring because there was never a doubt. the whole "will he or won't he?" thing was an orchestrated marketing ploy to advance the lance [and discovery brand]. it was like "who shot jr?" that's what i find boring.

as for his greatness... i am willing to concede that armstrong is the greatest tour de france rider ever. however, he does it with so little elan that i find it uninsteresting. i only watched the first week of the tour last year. i probably won't want this year's at all. i do find it dull. whenever any athlete or team dominates a sport for so long, whether it's the yankees or lance armstrong, i find it uninteresting.

and i think the lance brand managers know just how uninteresting the whole thing is. that's why they resorted to the "who shot jr?" strategy this year to keep everyone interested.

personally, i'd rather be doing my own racing that seeing what the best bio- and cycling technology can accomplish in the tour de france.

I, for one, am excited about this. I like him and what he stands for. I also think that the more comptetition there is in the tour, the more exciting it is to watch. Hopefully, this will be a shootout between Lance and Ivan. Go lance!

RT

Not defending but he gets crucified for
1) neglecting the kids (riding tour)
2) Not riding classics (taking care of kids).

a conundrum huh?

Marty

Well, it looks like I have to admit that I was wrong about all of this. I thought he was going to focus on some classics and take a year off.

I guess I was just wishing...

I'm sure his kids will understand later on down the road why daddy couldn't be with them for a few months. Don't forget that they benefit from his success as well.

Um WTF dude? Having been in a family where my father was gone and my mother chose her carrer rather than the family I will say NO the children will NOT forgive him and it has been for more than a few months, it has been for years now and every min counts. This absense is exactly why the children of stars (athletes or whatever) are often the ones doing all sorts of drugs, getting into legal trouble and generally not having any respect for themseves or anyone else.

I admire him and anyone else that puts their family before their job. He has the money, he has the fame, he has the victories. He has won more TDF than anyone in history, why does he need to prove himself to anyone? He almost lost his life to cancer.

Why wouldn't he pick his family over his job?

I tend to agree with Velocipedio, it is getting monotonous.
The only thing I find interesting is which Jan Ullrich is gonna
show up? Fit and fourth?
At least 2 years ago there was some drama and doubt
that Lance would get 5.

Marty

I, for one, am excited about this. I like him and what he stands for. I also think that the more comptetition there is in the tour, the more exciting it is to watch. Hopefully, this will be a shootout between Lance and Ivan. Go lance!

That's true, but we've never seen much of Lance in the classics, so that would be something new and exciting to watch. The Tour is still the biggest and best though, and it gets TV coverage, so we'll at least get to see what happens.

And all the defenders of the faith come out of the woodwork.

The guy is a professional athlete. You'd think he'd feel obligated to race all of the races he could, especially these years. It's what the fans of the sport want. Without fans, pro athletes are nothing. Absolutely nothing. The only reason he is so successful is because of the fans. No fans = no sports, and Lance is just another guy that can ride his bike really far on the side of the road.

I'm sure his kids will understand later on down the road why daddy couldn't be with them for a few months. Don't forget that they benefit from his success as well.

Nope....I don't but it. Lance is several things at once, just like the rest of us. Yes, he is a professional athelete but he is also a father, son, friend, etc. We all have to juggle as these roles in our lives so why do you think it's different for Lance? I personally have more respect for a person who does try to cover all the bases than one that is totally self-centered and ignores their other responsibilities. So I say good for him for not letting the "fans" dictate his life. I guess it's a matter of which kind of "fan" you want to be.



tomcat

Um WTF dude? Having been in a family where my father was gone and my mother chose her carrer rather than the family I will say NO the children will NOT forgive him and it has been for more than a few months, it has been for years now and every min counts. This absense is exactly why the children of stars (athletes or whatever) are often the ones doing all sorts of drugs, getting into legal trouble and generally not having any respect for themseves or anyone else.

I admire him and anyone else that puts their family before their job. He has the money, he has the fame, he has the victories. He has won more TDF than anyone in history, why does he need to prove himself to anyone? He almost lost his life to cancer.

Why wouldn't he pick his family over his job?

I agree. I'm sure he has enough money to support them, so what's the point? If anything him being such a star puts them in an unhealthy "curcus" atmosphere.

I agree. I'm sure he has enough money to support them, so what's the point? If anything him being such a star puts them in an unhealthy "curcus" atmosphere.

Of course I should have also said that every time I can see him (and others that I am sure some are also neglecting their children) race I will watch.

You think he's the only father in the peloton?

Good question. How many pro riders who spend alot of time in Europe, are divorced, and have children who live on another continent? I don't know myself, do you?


tomcat

Give me a break. The guys got all the money in the world to fly home at a moments notice or even to have his kids flown to Europe.

The father thing is a lame excuse.

I doubt that any of us are in a position to second guess the preparations of a man who was won the Tour six times in a row.

Riders like Duclos-Lasalle, Museeuw, and Tafi have all experienced success at the spring classics when they were in their mid to late 30's. There's nothing wrong with Lance waiting another year to round out his palmares. He has nothing to gain (in terms of a competitive edge) by sitting out from the Tour for a year, and returning in 2006. He's contractually obligated to race the Tour again, and we all know he will do it to win, so why mess with a formula that has worked in the past?

Personally, I think it is amazing that he balances being a pro athlete, a parent, and all the work he does with his foundation, along with all the distractions of being a celebrity.

Regarding Lance and Fatherhood: Let's stop the **** talking about **** we know nothing about, huh?

It's a drag that he's not racing more of the calendar. But I didn't expect much more than this. Now that LA's made it clear he's a specialist only, I don't care what else he races, so long as he rides the Tour til he's dethroned.

I like him and what he stands for.
and what is that, exactly?

I don't know about you guys, but if my father was off making millions to help ensure my future, I would be very thankful later on. But that's just me. Maybe I'm not a punk like those who'll turn to drugs and cry because daddy left them for three months when they were four years old. Give me a ****ing break.

Lance owes all of his success to this sport, maybe it's time he started acting like it. Paris-Roubaix, Milano-San Remo.. these are all one day races. He'd be away from his kids for a week tops.

i'm curious: did people feel this way about merckx? not only did he win 5 tours, he won just about everything else throughout the year. were people sick of his domination? i read stories about him going on breakaways, refusing help from his other breakaway companions, and taking the sprint from the front. was that boring at the time? to me now years later, it's amazing. ballsy. if it was so boring, why is it now that people look back fondly on his greatness? why is watching a great athlete at the top of his game boring? we need more drama than just watching him destroy everyone else (note: last tour he was basically unbeatable, but the one before he was vulnerable)?

i'm glad armstrong will race the tdf. i think the more great riders in a race, the better. for whatever it's worth, i actually expected him to not race it this year and focus on the classics. i still hope he will add more races to his spring schedule.

Hmm....Older people always love their original sports hero.

It's like Michael Jordan....I was a kid win Jordan was winning all of those titles, and nobody will ever be a better player in my mind. When people talk about LeBron eventually becoming better than MJ it makes me want to puke, even though LeBron actually has the talent to do it.

And for whatever reason we turn on people when they start winning too much. All of the sudden it's not a great story anymore, it's just boring. Think Yankees and Patriots. The world is a strange place.

people felt this way about indurain, his style was actually quite similar to armstrong's: mechanical efficiency, another day at the office.

merckx won his five with a break after four in 1973. he also raced almost everything on the calendar, from the classics, to other grand tours, to track and cyclo-cross. he was a tempermental competitor, and he raced with incredible elan. there were more than a few suicide breakaways in his palmares. he was sominant, yes, but you always got the feeling that he worked hard for it [and he did].

even when he dominated everything, like in 1972, thre was always a chance that he could lose. the difference in style between merckx and armstrong is that merckx put everything on the line and gambled, and usually won, while armstrong works from a set plan and wins. armstrong doesn't gamble; he plans.

admittedly, that's a winning formula. it worked for indurain. it just isn't very exciting.

by the way, my personal fave was the badger. now there was elan!

I don't know about you guys, but if my father was off making millions to help ensure my future, I would be very thankful later on. But that's just me. Maybe I'm not a punk like those who'll turn to drugs and cry because daddy left them for three months when they were four years old. Give me a ****ing break.

Lance owes all of his success to this sport, maybe it's time he started acting like it. Paris-Roubaix, Milano-San Remo.. these are all one day races. He'd be away from his kids for a week tops.

Again it isn't just for 3 months a year and it isn't just when they are 3. He has been doing this for years...at least 6 right. Say one of his kids is 3 and he has missed 4 months for the last 3 years (whole life). He has then missed a full year of the most important time inthat child's development and in fact has missed 1/3 of the child's life.

I am going to guess you aren't a parent. If you were you might have a better understanding of this. If you are and don't get where I am coming from here then I feel sorry for your children.

i'm curious: did people feel this way about merckx? not only did he win 5 tours, he won just about everything else throughout the year. were people sick of his domination?

Back then, quite a lot of people had a problem with the supremacy of Merckx. He wasn't as popular among the Belgians as one might think (he is now, though). And there are also stories of race organisers offering him money to stay out of their event...

I am going to guess you aren't a parent. If you were you might have a better understanding of this. If you are and don't get where I am coming from here then I feel sorry for your children.

Oh good lord. He's not the only father in cycling.

by the way, my personal fave was the badger. now there was elan!

:beer: Yep, he was a class act. Not overly popular either, by the way.

Oh good lord. He's not the only father in cycling.

Laggard, this is two times that you have been asked questions that you have ignored.

1. Are you a father?

2. Name the other "fathers in cycling" that are in Europe, that have their kids living on another continent and are divorced?


tomcat

Laggard, this is two times that you have been asked questions that you have ignored.

1. Are you a father?

2. Name the other "fathers in cycling" that are in Europe, that have their kids living on another continent and are divorced?

tomcat

Both questions are irrelevant.

Regarding Lance and Fatherhood: Let's stop the **** talking about **** we know nothing about, huh?

:beer: Hear, hear. (Armstrong himself has always been quite outspoken on the fact that he does sacrifice a lot in order to get his training done. 'Where are you on Christmas, New Year's Day'... that kind of talk. I guess the admiration society would eagerly point to 'lazy' Ullrich for spending time with his girlfriend and daughter rather than on the bike.)

I'm pleased that he's doing the tour again.

Both questions are irrelevant.


Whaaa......????? You were the one who put "he's not the only father in cycling" comment into the conversation. You're just ignoring the questions so you can keep making flippant remarks about Lance. You just blew your cred dude.


tomcat

ok guys chill with the father stuff.
The fact remains that his race line up is weak, and if he doesn’t add in L-B-L, Amstel, and one Smaller Stage race (sussie, dauphine etc..) I know I, and I would hope most serious fans of the sport would be slightly disappointed to see such a great champion race so little.
I am a fan of Armstrong because of what he does on the bike, I want to see him race.

ok guys chill with the father stuff.
The fact remains that his race line up is weak, and if he doesn’t add in L-B-L, Amstel, and one Smaller Stage race (sussie, dauphine etc..) I know I, and I would hope most serious fans of the sport would be slightly disappointed to see such a great champion race so little.
I am a fan of Armstrong because of what he does on the bike, I want to see him race.

Why do you hate America?