Monday, December 29, 2003
He can become the first bicyclist to win six straight Tour de France titles.
By JIM VERTUNO
AP SPORTS WRITER
AUSTIN, Texas -- For Lance Armstrong, 2003 was a year of personal and professional struggles and triumph.
Divorce divided his family. A crash, dehydration and some admittedly poor riding nearly cost him a record-tying fifth straight Tour de France title.
But just when his dominance of one of world's most grueling sports events teetered near its end, Armstrong fought off Jan Ullrich of Germany by 62 seconds to put himself in position to become the first rider to win six in a row in 2004.
On Sunday, Armstrong was honored as The Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year, the second straight year he's won the award voted on by sports writers and broadcasters.
"It was a tough year and hard Tour," Armstrong said.
"Professionally, it was as successful as any year. Personally, it was a very tough year, for more than just myself. I tried to work through it the best I could. The personal stuff is behind now."
Bested Bonds again
Armstrong and San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds were the top two finishers for the third straight year. Armstrong received 26 first-place votes and 174 points. Bonds had 10 first-place votes and 59 points.
"Oh, man," Armstrong said. "I couldn't hit a baseball."
That Armstrong could fight through his struggles is no surprise considering his comeback from testicular cancer that had spread to his lungs and brain.
He went from having a 50 percent chance of surviving in 1996 to four straight Tour championships from 1999-02. What made the 2003 victory so remarkable was that for the first time since his comeback he seemed human again.
As a celebrity, his divorce from wife Kristin -- the mother of their three children -- made headlines.
On the bike, the grimaces he once used to trick his rivals were real. The mountain stages of the Tour were a hardship and the crashes he so often avoided finally snared him in 2003.
Challenged by Ullrich
Pushing him all the way was Ullrich, a five-time runner-up in the Tour de France whom Armstrong considers his chief rival in 2004.
"He's definitely the biggest threat," Armstrong said. "A lot of people would argue Ullrich was a better rider this year."
The close finish seems to have refocused Armstrong. He feels he has something to prove, not just by winning another Tour, but winning as he used to -- with a dominating ride.
"I was just not happy with my performance in 2003 and that's a big motivating factor," he said. "I can be a stronger rider."
Armstrong says he wasn't chasing the record book after his early Tour wins, but now he's eyeing his place in cycling history.
The only other five-time winners are Eddy Merckx, Miguel Indurain, Bernard Hinault and Jacques Anquetil. Only Armstrong and Indurain won five in a row.
"It's not like they suddenly stopped at five," he said. "They all tried and I intend to do the same. I'm excited about it and I'd be very upset if I lost." Armstrong takes nothing for granted. At 32, he has said he plans to race the Tour de France through 2005, but realizes age will limit how far he goes beyond that. "It's not easy to continue winning something," he said. "At some point, math catches up with you." Armstrong believes his love of the ride -- whether it's up the side of a mountain or a straight-away sprint -- still gives him the edge over his challengers.