Lance Armstrong

Lance Armstrong is an American professional road racing cyclist who rides for UCI ProTeam Team Astana. He won the Tour de France a record-breaking seven consecutive years, from 1999 to 2005. He is the only individual to win seven times, having broken the previous record of five wins, shared by Miguel Indurain and Bernard Hinault, Eddy Merckx and Jacques Anquetil. He has survived testicular cancer, a tumor that metastasized to his brain and lungs, in 1996. His cancer treatments included brain and testicular surgery and extensive chemotherapy, and his prognosis was originally poor. -In 1999, he was named the American Broadcasting company Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year. In 2000 he won the Prince of Asturias Award in Sports. In 2002, Sports Illustrated magazine named him Sportsman of the Year. He was also named Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2005. He received ESPN's ESPY Award for Best Male Athlete in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006, and won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award in 2003. Armstrong retired from racing on July 24, 2005, at the end of the 2005 Tour de France, but returned later. Armstrong was born in Plano, Texas on September 18, 1971. He began as a triathlete, winning adult competitions from the age of 13. Lance Armstrong has taught me to always stick to what you want to do and never give up. You can learn a lot about him just from the way he presents himself. He has gone through a lot over the years and the one things he has never done is given up. 