Scott Goldstein
A Collection of Quotes about Lance from the Tour:
(the authenticity of the following quotes has not been personally
verified...they are as presented by CNN and thus are assumed to be
legitimate ;) )
"It will be a hard, close fight between [Jan] Ullrich and Armstrong.
Armstrong may have a slight advantage over the first few
days because he
comes straight from the Tour of Switzerland but then it
will be a matter of
seconds. Both will fight at the same, very high level."
--Walter Godefroot, chief of Ullrich's Telekom team,
speaking in late June
as he unveiled his nine-strong team for the Tour.
"I disagree with the view that I'm the overwhelming
favorite. There are
guys who are as strong as me who've won this race before
and guys as
strong as me who have won other races."
--Armstrong, just before the Tour began in Dunkirk.
"I'm not thinking about winning the whole race. There
are still three weeks
to go and Armstrong is very hard to beat...I know he can
be beaten,
though."
--Festina rider Christophe Moreau, after winning the
Tour's prologue in
Dunkirk. Moreau abandoned the Tour during the 12th stage.
"Lance Armstrong is my hero. I think he's an absolute
inspiration. To come
back like he did from cancer, it inspired me to do the
sport."
--Weary cycling fan Alan House, 52, of Preston, England,
after ascending
Alpe d'Huez a few hours before Armstrong put his
remarkable stamp on
the same climb.
"This was a real attack by Armstrong -- we all should
have expected
it...This quite simply is the story of the favorite
fulfilling expectations."
--Roger Legeay, sport director of the Credit Agricole
team, after
Armstrong won the first stage in the Alps by powering
past his rivals at the
base of Alpe d'Huez.
"He's the best rider in the world. Today just proved
that."
--Breathless Australian sprinter Stuart O'Grady, after
Armstrong won his
first stage at Alpe d'Huez.
"He deserves the cycling Oscar."
--Actor, cycling fan and Armstrong friend Robin
Williams, commenting on
how the Texan bluffed his opponents into thinking he was
hurting before he
won the 10th stage at Alpe d'Huez.
"This was an important stage. The climb was good for
Ullrich and the fact
Lance could take a minute on him says a lot."
--Johan Bruyneel, sport director of Armstrong's U.S.
Postal team, after the
Texan won his second consecutive stage in the Alps and
added 60
seconds to his lead over Ullrich.
"I still believe there's another level of Lance
Armstrong."
--Armstrong, after winning his second consecutive stage
in the Alps, an
uphill individual time trial from Grenoble to Chamrousse.
"A well-directed meteor shower."
--Former Armstrong teammate Jonathan Vaughters, speaking
on the first
rest day about the few things that could stop the Texan
from winning a
third Tour.
"When Armstrong quits cycling. Then it's possible."
--Vicente Belda, boss of a powerful Kelme team, on when
one of his
riders would be in a position to win the Tour.
"People should look at my face when I'm training like a
dog back home or
on my training camps. It's an ugly face. I'd rather have
it then and feel good
here."
--Armstrong, responding to suggestions after winning his
third stage victory
that he makes cycling look easy.
"Armstrong is impossible to match. He's the best... I've
tried everything
and I have no regrets."
--Ullrich, all but conceding defeat to Armstrong after
missing what was
arguably his final chance to reel in the defending
champion's lead in the
144.5-kilometer stage from Tarbes to Luz-Ardiden.
"That first week he kept a low profile, remained behind
his bodyguards...
There was a radical change in the Pyrenees. He became
more open, he
signed autographs, he was more cooperative with
journalists."
--Tour director Jean-Marie Leblanc, describing how
Armstrong had
become more open during the mountain stages.
"Armstrong -- you either like him or you don't.
Personally, I've never been
friends with him. Sometimes we've had exchanges that
were less than
friendly."
--Former world number one Laurent Jalabert in an
interview with French
sports daily L'Equipe, published after the final
mountain stage.
"I don't look at myself as a [Miguel] Indurain or a
[Jacques] Anquetil or an
[Eddy] Merckx or a [Bernard] Hinault... I look at myself
as a lesser rider.
Perhaps that's normal or natural, I don't know."
--Armstrong, comparing himself with the only riders who
have each won
five Tours.
"It's fitting that the leader of the free world and the
leader of the world of
cycling should both come from Texas."
--Tom Domine, 34-year-old cycling fan from Dallas, Texas.
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USC: 21 - Notre Dame: 38 The Agony of Defeat!
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