Also: Hier nochmal der offizielle Transcript der Pressekonferenz in (fast) voller Länge…
Lance Armstrong Press Conference
Apr 18,2005 – Augusta, GA:
Lance: First of all I’d like to thank everyone for being here. This is probably the second biggest media event in Augusta in recent weeks (referring to recent The Masters golf tournament) – we’ll happily be second.
I will cut right to the chase and say that after a lot thought, considering the season and the races I was going to do this year, and having decided to focus on the Tour, at the same time I have decided that the Tour de France will be my last race as a professional cyclist. (Lance was visibly choked up as these words came out.) So July 24th will be the last one after more or less 14 years in the professional peloton, it will be the last one – win or lose. Having said that, I am fully committed to winning a 7th Tour.
There are a few people I would like to thank that have been very helpful along the way. First and foremost, I think the biggest inspiration in my life now and the biggest inspiration to this decision is my children. They are the ones that make it easier to suffer, but they are the ones who have told me that it’s time to come home. And so without them, none of this would be possible. The second is my mother, she’s been a great force that I have learned a lot from.
All the many, many sponsors and partners we have had along the years, and obviously now Discovery Communications. John Hendrix, Judith McHale, and especially Billy Campbell who came along and picked up a program last year, believed in our sport, believed in the team, believed in the Tour de France, believed in cycling – I can’t thank them enough. Obviously the relationship with Discovery will continue for years to come and I am excited in being a part of the programming there, helping Billy, helping all of the Discovery Networks to do different things, and sort of parlay the success on the bike into something else.
Also, I would like to thank this guy here – Johan Bruyneel – who in my view has been the premier sports director of all time. He’s directed 6 Tours and won 6, and I don’t know anyone else that can claim that record. This is the guy that came along and believed in me in 1998, and said that you could do it, and this is how you’re going to do it, and let’s go for it. And along the way he helped shape and mold the team and put together a group of people – not just riders, but staff and sponsors and advisors that made all of this a reality. With Johan and my teammates over the years – all of them, some are still on the team and some are not – they have all been key to 6 Tours and even the other races that lead up to the Tours. So I can’t thank them enough.
Sheryl, you’ve been an amazing woman. For somebody’s who’s the Queen of Rock & Roll you sure have been a great cycling fan, cycling teammate and a great partner. Lastly, my one other team – this team of 10 million cancer survivors around the country that have been very powerful, and I think if you look at certain times in my life I’ve relied on a special force, and I think the force of a team like that is incredibly powerful. So to have them to fall back on, and to know that not only do they inspire me, but that I can hopefully inspire them, I hope to give them one more Tour de France. That’s it for now, and I’d like to take some questions…
Und dann kamen die oben bereits geposteten Fragen…
aktualisiert.
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