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PAGE 8: RBA NEWS EXCLUSIVE: GOOD VIBRATIONS FOR ARMSTRONG & CONTADOR IN TENERIFE
Tim Maloney-European Editor
December 4, 2008
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Road Bike Action was at the Astana press conference today at the golf club at the beautiful Hotel Las Madrigueras? in Playa de las Americas on ?Tenerife, Spain and although some expected to see tension between seven-time Tour winner Lance Armstrong and 2007 Tour De France winner Alberto Contador, there was simply none in evidence.
 In Armstrong’s first European press conference since August 2005, he won his 7th Tour De France in 2005, the 37 year old Texan was polished, articulate and unflappable in the face of the media onslaught that greeted him in Tenerife. In fact, Lance even snapped a quick digi-pic of the media to post as a tweet to his Twitter.Com account.
When Alberto Contador, fresh from a quick trip to Madrid to receive a Spanish sports award, came onto the dias after almost an hour of Lance Armstrong Live, it was all smiles and grins between the two Astana riders. Both are professionals and used to the media circus that confronts top pros during their career. Road Bike Action asked the dynamic duo of Armstrong & Contador how the vibes were flowing so far between the two riders and Contador explained first “well I am happy that Lance is here. To have a great champion like Lance on our team is something special. He is a reference for me, someone I look up to. So to have him as a teammate is really good. I can learn a lot from Lance, from his experience and his way to ride.”
Armstrong reinforced the bond between he and Contador, explaining “my relationship with Alberto (Contador) is not new. For years, Johan and I tried to get him to join our team. We raced together (in the pro peloton) in 2005 and we had a lot of respect even then for Alberto. We tried to hire him event then. Remember he won the Tour De France in 2007 on the Discovery Channel team, which I was part owner of. So it’s not my first experience with (Contador). It’s clear that in 2008, Contador is the strongest rider in the world. No one can deny that.”
A new, more selfless Armstrong also explained for the European media that “there are two main reasons I’ve decided to come back to cycling. “one is that I still have a passion for cycling, racing and training. I realized this summer that I still love it. Another is that I want to promote the LiveStrong initiative on a global basis. Our studies at the Lance Armstrong Foundation have shown that there is a place and a need for our
LiveStrong message globally. I have come to the Astana team as a volunteer and I believe that if our LiveStrong Global Initiative is successful and I’m third in the Tour De France or eighteent, that’s OK as long as our LiveStrong message is a success.”
And Lance Armstrong has indicated he could potentially race for a full two years after launching his comeback from retirement with a bid for an eighth Tour de France crown. The seven-time yellow jersey champion, who also reiterated his innocence in the face of drugs allegations over the years, added that he was happy to finish way down the standings of the world's biggest race if it meant helping promote his global fight against cancer. "Being 37 feels surprisingly good. I almost feel stronger than when I was 27. Except for my lower back," Armstrong said. When asked whether his comeback would end next year, the American said he was still unsure but indicated "it could be one or two years". "I don't know. We'll just have to see. That's why I wanted to start racing early, at the Tour Down Under (in January). After the Tour Of California. I’ll see where I’m at.” When Armstrong was asked whether he would be able to win the Tour de France again, he said: "I don't know. I knew how to win it before. It's been too long out of competition and testing myself against the others. If the Tour is today I don't have the power to win. I am content with seven Tours, if there's an eighth on the line, I'm not going to refuse it."
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