We'll Win, Vows Armstrong Over Cancer Battle
Lance Armstrong took time out from the Tour Down Under to launch his global cancer campaign in Adelaide
Lance Armstrong says that his comeback to professional cycling is motivated by his desire to raise awareness of cancer, and yesterday he began to put his words into action by visiting the Royal Adelaide Hospital to launch the Livestrong Global Campaign. The goal he has set for the campaign would put his seven consecutive Tour de France victories firmly in the shade – being, as he told a 300-strong audience, "to conquer cancer". He declared: "And we're going to win."
It was a day off for the 133 riders of the Tour Down Under, who took part in a city-centre circuit race on Sunday evening, before today's first stage of the race proper. But while the majority spent it riding their bikes in the morning and lounging by the hotel pool in the afternoon, Armstrong donned a suit and tie – yellow, obviously – to visit cancer patients at Adelaide zoo in the morning, and then the hospital.
There, he addressed government officials and non-government organizations, then listened to the testimonies of cancer patients and survivors, some of them broadcast by video from Melbourne and Sydney. Armstrong is among their number, of course, having been diagnosed with advanced testicular cancer, and given less than a 2% chance of living, in October 1996.
Since then, through his Livestrong Foundation, he has raised $250m, most of it dedicated to "inspiring and empowering" cancer sufferers. But the global campaign is more ambitious: it is to act as a catalyst for action, including greater financial support from governments and education in parts of the world where myths survive and stigma persists.
"A single organization cannot tackle this epidemic alone," he said. "It will truly take a global effort to conquer cancer. Starting today, we're building a global movement and we're going to win. Cancer worldwide has become a massive problem, but it has also become a complacent problem and we're not doing enough for my taste." He noted that a number greater than the population of Australia, about 27.5m people, have died in the 3½ years, or 1,274 days, since he last raced. To hammer the point home, the bike he will race this year is adorned with the two numbers in bright yellow: 1,274 on one tube, 27.5 on another.
"We don't cry out loud, we don't scream out loud about [cancer]," he added. "On September 11, 2001 over 3,000 people from the United States and around the world died, and the world came to a halt. This disease is a lot greater than that; this disease, to me, is true terror."
After Australia his next stop is America and the Tour of California. Asked if he expects to enjoy as close a relationship with President Obama as he appeared to have with Bush, with whom he went mountain biking, Armstrong sought to set the record straight: "I've spent time with [Bush] on and off the bike, and that's perceived as partisan; people say 'they're obviously best friends.' But listen, as a cancer survivor who's asked to ride mountain bikes with the president, I'm thinking one thing: once this bike ride is over with, I'm going to ask him for something.
"I asked him for a billion dollars [to fight cancer]. Didn't get it. But when you get the opportunity to go and ask that question, you have to go." Might a similar invitation be extended by President Obama? "He's a basketball player," said Armstrong. "I can't jump."
It was a day off for the 133 riders of the Tour Down Under, who took part in a city-centre circuit race on Sunday evening, before today's first stage of the race proper. But while the majority spent it riding their bikes in the morning and lounging by the hotel pool in the afternoon, Armstrong donned a suit and tie – yellow, obviously – to visit cancer patients at Adelaide zoo in the morning, and then the hospital.
There, he addressed government officials and non-government organizations, then listened to the testimonies of cancer patients and survivors, some of them broadcast by video from Melbourne and Sydney. Armstrong is among their number, of course, having been diagnosed with advanced testicular cancer, and given less than a 2% chance of living, in October 1996.
Since then, through his Livestrong Foundation, he has raised $250m, most of it dedicated to "inspiring and empowering" cancer sufferers. But the global campaign is more ambitious: it is to act as a catalyst for action, including greater financial support from governments and education in parts of the world where myths survive and stigma persists.
"A single organization cannot tackle this epidemic alone," he said. "It will truly take a global effort to conquer cancer. Starting today, we're building a global movement and we're going to win. Cancer worldwide has become a massive problem, but it has also become a complacent problem and we're not doing enough for my taste." He noted that a number greater than the population of Australia, about 27.5m people, have died in the 3½ years, or 1,274 days, since he last raced. To hammer the point home, the bike he will race this year is adorned with the two numbers in bright yellow: 1,274 on one tube, 27.5 on another.
"We don't cry out loud, we don't scream out loud about [cancer]," he added. "On September 11, 2001 over 3,000 people from the United States and around the world died, and the world came to a halt. This disease is a lot greater than that; this disease, to me, is true terror."
After Australia his next stop is America and the Tour of California. Asked if he expects to enjoy as close a relationship with President Obama as he appeared to have with Bush, with whom he went mountain biking, Armstrong sought to set the record straight: "I've spent time with [Bush] on and off the bike, and that's perceived as partisan; people say 'they're obviously best friends.' But listen, as a cancer survivor who's asked to ride mountain bikes with the president, I'm thinking one thing: once this bike ride is over with, I'm going to ask him for something.
"I asked him for a billion dollars [to fight cancer]. Didn't get it. But when you get the opportunity to go and ask that question, you have to go." Might a similar invitation be extended by President Obama? "He's a basketball player," said Armstrong. "I can't jump."
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