Lance Armstrong

Biography

Lance Armstrong is an American professional road racing cyclist for UCI ProTeam Team Astana. He won the Tour de France a record-breaking seven consecutive years, from 1999 to 2005. He is the only individual to win seven times, having broken the previous record of five wins, shared by Miguel Indurain (consecutive) and Bernard Hinault, Eddy Merckx and Jacques Anquetil. He has survived testicular cancer, a germ cell tumor that metastasized to his brain and lungs, in 1996. His cancer treatments included brain and testicular surgery and extensive chemotherapy, and his prognosis was originally poor.

In 1999, he was named the American Broadcasting Company's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year. In 2000 he won the Prince of Asturias Award in Sports.[2] In 2002, Sports Illustrated magazine named him Sportsman of the Year. He was also named Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2005. He received ESPN's ESPY Award for Best Male Athlete in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006, and won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award in 2003. Armstrong retired from racing on July 24, 2005, at the end of the 2005 Tour de France. But, on September 9, 2008 confirmed that he will return to competitive cycling for the 2009 season.[3] Australian ABC radio reported on 24 September that Armstrong will compete in South Australia's Tour Down Under in early 2009.