His having been stripped of his world-record feat of seven Tour-de-France crowns may somehow dent the global attraction to the classic European tournament which Armstrong made more famous.
Armstrong climbed to the peak of Mount Everest fame following his record of seven Tour-de-France crowns in the aftermath of surviving testicular cancer which further sparked the global fascination for the cycling champ.
His distribution of more than 80 million bright yellow wristbands to benefit his "LiveStrong" charity brought pure joy to the teeming millions of young and the not-so-young fans around the world, the proceeds of which went to research of his affliction, and assistance to those similarly situated.
Despite his multiple Tour-de-France triumphs, Armstrong remained humble and focused on his charity work while striving to excel in his craft, realizing fully well he had reached iconic status among his legions of fans around the world.
In recent years, however, allegations began to stalk Armstrong pointing to suspicions that he had been receiving performance enhancing drugs as well as drug transfusions, which critics claim, could have been the reason for his excellence in the prestigious
Tour-de-France tournament, the cycling event duplicated in several parts of the world.
The doping charges, though initially denied by Armstrong did not only shock the cycling world, but were received with great disbelief by his legions of fans.
As performance-enhancing allegations resonated around the globe, international anti-doping agencies stepped in.
Against a landscape of overwhelming documentary evidence, the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USDA) finally decided to strip Armstrong of his seven Tour-de-France medals for having used illegal performance enhancing drugs.
The USDA decision to strip Armstrong of his famous medals was shortly upheld by both the International Cycling Union and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) raising further the bar of punishment that included lifetime sanctions disallowing the disgraced cycling champ to compete in any sports event allowed and ruled by international doping agencies.
Since then, Armstrong has been in seclusion, but reported to have been spotted by several news organizations to be taking a rest in Hawaii.
As the former cycling icon continues to hide from the public eye in the bosom of family and trusted friends, another round of fresh criticism is set to stare at him in the face of new allegations that he gave a donation of US$250,000 to the anti-doping agency, a claim described by critics as a clear case of conflict of interest.
To his millions of fans who placed him on a pedestal, and who took pride in wearing the famous bright-yellow "LiveStrong" Armstrong wristbands hanging from their wrists, the events of the past months is a big LET-DOWN.
For years, Armstrong was a hero to them who dreamed of one day cycling along his path not only to world-fame, but to be in the shadow of their hero.
It is indeed a sad time for cycling enthusiasts and fans everywhere.
---
www.BIZCHUM.com
Written by Chantal
We are Creative Blogger Theme Wavers which provides user friendly, effective and easy to use themes. Each support has free and providing HD support screen casting.
0 comments:
Post a Comment