First of all, I want to say that Lance was probably the only reason I decided to get on a bike in the first place; I wouldn’t go as far as to say I’m an Armstrong fanboy, but I do support him. Over the years, people have thrown allegations at him suggesting that he was taking performance-enhancing drugs during his seven wins in the Tour de France. Most recently, former team member Tyler Hamilton claimed that he saw Armstrong taking the performance-enhancing drug EPO during a Tour. 

Since he started winning things, he’s had haters; I’ve always been on his side because I know his story. I’ve read the books, and I have huge respect for the guy, whether he doped or not. The sad thing is, with each allegation my support for him is diminishing; as the identities of the various accusers become steadily more high-profile, his defence is starting to weaken. 

I don’t want to think that he doped, and previously it wouldn’t even have been considered, but I’m starting to doubt him. For now, I shall continue to believe he didn’t dope. Time will tell, and eventually somebody will uncover the truth whether it’s good or not. As I said, the increasingly high-profile nature of his accusers suggests to me that they are only out to assassinate his character, and nothing more. At least, I really hope that that’s all it is. 

So what if he did dope? Well, that obviously thrusts dishonesty onto him, and seriously puts into question his seven Tour de France victories; however, most people who are inspired by Armstrong (myself included) aren’t inspired exclusively by the Tour wins, but by his refusal to give up during his period suffering from cancer. He overcame what was pretty terminal cancer by pure determination, and without a single prayer or belief in God. For me, that’s incredible, and it also means that even if he did dope, I’ll still continue to wear my yellow band.