Road Cycling Tips

It has been confirmed. Cycling legend Lance Armstrong is joining the Kazakhstan’s Astana team.

“I will race in 2009 with Astana,” he said in the press conference. He would start with the 2009 Tour Down Under in Australia, then the 2009 Tour de France, and is also interested in the Giro d’Italia.

Armstrong’s main aim of returning to the cycling scene is to promote his cancer-prevention foundation, and not to win an eighth Tour de France. “Honestly, I don’t know. I’ve been off the bike three years,” Armstrong said. “I’ll be nearly 38 years old. … So I honestly don’t know. I will try to be as prepared as possible. I don’t know if that equals victory. … I have a fair bit of confidence, but I don’t have that kind of confidence, yet.”

“I cannot guarantee you an eighth Tour victory, but I can guarantee you that the Livestrong message will touch all aspects of our society, all continents of our society and certainly touch all the different aspects of cancer.”

Regarding Alberto Contador’s previous statement about his hesitance to be on the same team as Armstrong, Armstrong said, “Alberto is the best rider on the planet right now. We have to understand that, we have to respect that. I’m not sure I can ride that fast anymore. I certainly hope it works out.”

“If he has other offers and he wants to go somewhere else or go to a Spanish team, perhaps, that’s his decision, but I would encourage him to give this situation an opportunity and I would look forward to racing with him.”

It’s still unknown if Contador would leave Astana or if there could be a peaceful settlement of the leadership issue between him and Armstrong. Let’s look forward to a public statement by Contador.