Passion has a way of taking over and making you stand face to face with your worst of fears. It provides situations where you’ll need to make a decision and live with it for the rest of your life. Sometimes you triumph, sometimes you lose. But almost always you come out stronger than you were ever before.
Such is the story of Lance Armstrong and his career. With its spectacular and almost magical highs, and its equally spectacular lows. To say that Lance Armstrong was passionate about cycling would be a massive understatement. And, in equal right, talking about his career without all of the controversies would be dramatically incomplete.
If we keep all the speculations and proven doping charges aside, his enigma and his story have inspired a generation of cyclists and athletes to believe in themselves and take up the sport. Any sport. Not to mention, the effect his 1999 Tour de France win had on people battling with Cancer. And, who can forget the LiveStrong bands that became a fashion statement with an equally strong cause attached to it.
His passion for endurance sport and especially cycling will be remembered for every, both for the good and for the ugly.
The Birth Of The Passion
Lance, born on September 18, 1971, in Plano, Texas, was raised by his mother, Linda. He was athletic from a young age. Admittedly, he wasn’t good at any sport that had a ball in it like football or baseball. And maybe that’s the reason he tried his luck in endurance sport.
“At some point, I just woke up and said that I suck at every ball sport known to man. So, football, baseball, basketball. I can’t play those games.” — Lance Armstrong
Lance took up competitive cycling and triathlon (an endurance sport including long-distance running, cycling, and swimming in a single day of competition) at the age of 13. And at the age of 16, he became a professional triathlete. He then went on to win national sprint-course triathlon champion in 1989 and 1990. At the age of 18, he was a national champion in triathlon.
“The… the feeling… freedom, and just… time to be alone. To be outside. To be away. You know, when you’re 13, everybody wants to be away. Right. You’d be away from your dad, your mom, your whoever. And so, I was out. Most kids just ripped down the corner, and mom can’t see them and they are free. I was, you know, taking 50-mile rides and doing… I was truly free.” — Lance Armstrong
He later took up professional cycling as his focus as it was both his strongest event in triathlon and one that he loved the most. Soon the Olympic development team invited him to train in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where he learned the ins and outs of the sport and was instantly recognized as an emerging talent. This was in 1989.
The following year, he qualified for the 1990 junior world team and was placed 11th in the World Championship Road Race. This was the best time by any American since 1976 for the event. In the same year, he also became the U.S. national amateur champion. The year didn’t see a close without him winning two more major races, the First Union Grand Prix and the Thrift Drug Classic, beating many professional and seasoned athletes in the process.
He was a sensation in the cycling community even before he considered taking any performance-enhancing drugs. The passion he has for the sport has never died since.
The Moment Of True Passion And Facing The Beast
Lance’s arguably the biggest of achievements that saw him become an overnight sensation has to be his 1999 Tour de France title win. It was particularly remarkable due to the fact that he had recently survived and worked his way out of battling cancer.
In October 1996 Lance was diagnosed with 3rd stage testicular cancer. It was well advanced, the tumors had spread to his abdomen, lungs, and lymph nodes. He had to get on aggressive chemotherapy at his prime and was given a 65 to 85 percent chance of survival. Subsequently, doctors found tumors on his brain and his odds of survival dropped to 40 percent. Despite all odds, Lance was declared cancer-free in February 1997.
And, in a short period of 2 years, he was back to professional cycling and won the title. The success and more importantly his will to survive cancer was a pure record of his passion for the sport. His story resonated around the world and struck a chord with everyone, especially the people battling cancer. He would then go on to win the Tour de France 7 times and become the most successful road cycling athlete the world had ever seen.
At this point, it is important to point out that he was later subjected to trial on charges of doping that came out to be true. He was stripped off of all his 7 Tour de France titles and was banished from the sport. His passion for cycling and for the sport brought him face-to-face with one of the toughest decisions he had to make — to take banned enhancement drugs to make sure he keeps winning or not.
In the latest of many documentaries, ‘Lance 30 for 30’ released this year, Lance explains his actions and decisions. His reasoning, with regret of course, again showcases the passion he had for cycling. It was true at the time that everyone or at least 90% of the athlete in the sport were taking banned substances and that he had to do it to ensure a fighting chance. He confesses, that it was a choice he made consciously.
His deep passion for the sport had him take a decision that he had to live with for the rest of his life. For this decision, he faced great ridicule and shame. It wasn’t his passion for the sport that led him to take the decision to dope, it was his obsession with winning that made him take that step.
The documentary shows a stronger Lance than before who owns his mistakes and takes responsibility. His passion has led him to a better and most importantly a stronger place. And because of this, his legacy is far from over.
Passion Is A Fire That Needs Taming
This is a perfect example of how passion can get colluded when faced with greater challenges. In these times the best thing to do is always to reach back to your basic principles and instincts. It is easier said than done, and Lance Armstrong will vouch for it.
His life is an example of how passion can become an obsession and how being true to yourself at every point is really important. But one thing is for certain.
