Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong visited his former teammates in Gap before the start of Tuesday's first day in the Alps.
There's nothing like a visit from the champ to inspire the troops. Long-time Discovery teammate George Hincapie went right out and joined a breakaway 23 miles into the race.
Armstrong told Eurosport that he told his teammates he still believes in them, despite their bad day in the Pyrenees; there are no Discovery riders in the top 10 and team manager Johan Bruyneel has said the team is going for stage wins.
“I just tried to reiterate that I believe in them, and while I know that it's obviously been a difficult year relative to what we were used to, it's still the same group of guys, still great riders. But that I understand that this is a transition time so, you know now is not the time to be critical or say what's the problem? Now is the time to say that I believe in them, especially relative to the field. I still think that we have some of the best riders in the race.”
With some hard feelings toward race organizers because of comments they've made over the years, Armstrong had said he wasn't going to visit the Tour this year. However, the recent blood-doping scandal prompted him to show his support of cycling.
“… the only reason I came is because of what happened. And I think that now is the time that fans of cycling have to stand up and say, 'I'm a fan.' And I want to come and I want to be supportive, not just of the team, not just of the race, but of the sport of cycling, which to me is still the most beautiful sport there is.”
Chris Brewer at the Paceline (registration required) described the whole media-feeding-frenzy onslaught at Armstrong's appearance. He also reports that Armstrong explained his “asshole” comment regarding the French soccer team — “It was purely for comedy.”
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