Opinion

Tragic hero must continue to live strong

People had a lot to say about the disgraced, former seven-time Tour de France champion, Lance Armstrong and his “apology tour,” which started with a two-part interview with Oprah Winfrey on the Oprah Winfrey Network. Many feel that there is no way for him to make up for the cheating, deceit and annihilation of those who stood in his way.

Betsy Andreu, the wife of one of Armstrong’s former teammates, appeared on Anderson Cooper 360 and expressed her hurt and frustration over Armstrong and his interview.

“This was a guy who used to be my friend, who decimated me,” Andreu said. “He could have come clean.  He owed it to me. He owes it to the sport that he destroyed.”

In a Jan. 18 article by Dan Loumena of the Los Angeles Times, Kathy LeMond, the wife of another former teammate, refused to believe or accept Armstrong’s apology.

“He’s a liar, and it never stops,” LeMond said. “I don’t think he’s sorry.”

John Fahey, the president of the World Anti-Doping Agency, was not softened by the interview in comments made to the Associated Press.

“He was wrong, he cheated and there was no excuse for what he did,” Fahey said. “If he was looking for redemption, he didn’t succeed in getting that. My feeling after watching the interview is that he indicated that he probably would not have gotten caught if he hadn’t returned to the sport.”

I watched the two-part interview, and I certainly feel for the many people who Armstrong admittedly and relentlessly bullied, berated and browbeat. Many of them merely told the truth when threatened with prosecution by authorities. Armstrong admitted to Oprah that his drug of choice was erythropoietin, which increases red blood cell count and improves athletic performance.

Armstrong is a human being after all. He was involved in a cycling culture at a time when it was plagued by nearly ubiquitous blood doping and hormone abuse. To claim Armstrong destroyed the sport of cycling by taking such a drug is an overstatement.

The great good that Armstrong has done for those who have struggled with cancer cannot be overlooked. As stated on livestrong.org, Armstrong was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 1996. In the following year, he established the Lance Armstrong Foundation, which became The Livestrong Foundation in 2003. The foundation is designed to encourage and guide people who are suffering of cancer.

“Since our inception, we have raised more than $470 million dollars for the fight against cancer, and 81 percent of those funds have gone directly to support our programs and services for survivors,” according to the website.

That is $380.7 million dollars — quite a chunk of change.

According to an Oct. 11, 2012 article for The Daily Telegraph’s website, Stephen Cummings of BMC Racing Team was not prepared to completely throw away Armstrong’s contributions.

“It is easy to say and point your finger on all the bad things, but you could look at the good things he has done as well,” Cummings said. “So, he has done a lot of good things, like his cancer charity, you know. When I met him, he was a nice guy to me.”

We put celebrities on these pedestals of perfection, whether they are singers, actors or athletes. When these heroes inevitably behave in less than heroic ways, we claim they have violated our trust.

We do not know these people, and in Armstrong’s case, I do not believe he has done anything to the American public. Sure, he lied and cheated, but that is a problem for only those who were directly affected by his duplicity. Fame magnifies the flaws of people. The media expects an apology to be given to all of America when it really only belongs to those he has maligned.

Contrary to what is being said of Armstrong, he is not evil. He is a man who has made many mistakes and will certainly make many more. He does not need America’s forgiveness, he owes us nothing.

Sarah Backer is a business sophomore and may be reached at [email protected].

3 Comments

Leave a Comment