Except for wishing his team well, Lance Armstrong isn't picking anyone to win this year's Tour de France.
In Armstrong first year of retirement in 2006, he picked Germany's Jan Ullrich. Then he switched to Italy's Ivan Basso. Both had dogged him in his previous Tour wins.
Of course, neither Ullrich nor Basso raced in 2006 after the rumored allegations of doping in connection with the Operacion Puerto affair.
This year, Armstrong says Astana's Alexander Vinokourov looked like he should be the favorite, but he didn't perform well in the mountain stages of the Dauphine Libere last month. Vino finished 20th in the Dauphine and is still considered the overall favorite.
A part owner of the Tailwind Sports team sponsored by the Discovery Channel, Armstrong is buying into Johan Bruyneel's goal to put a Discovery team member on the podium in Paris, win the white jersey (best young rider) for Alberto Contador and maybe win a couple of stages.
After the first day, Discovery had a team member in a white jersey, but it was Russian cyclist Vladimir Gusev.
More at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram
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