Here is the latest on Lance Armstrong. My take:
- The organizers of the Giro d'Italia are desperate to have Lance participate. It's the 100th year of the event, and Lance is a rock star (so to speak). He has never raced the Giro. If he is there, the event will be covered worldwide and people who don't ordinarily follow cycling will pay attention. Everyone wins. Remember: Cycling is a business as well as a sport. Lance is a valuable commodity. I think Lance will do everything he can to start the Giro, not only to benefit the Giro but to benefit his foundation. He will almost certainly not race to win. He will not have the proper training, for one thing. He will probably drop out after a week or 10 days. The organizers would rather have that than no Lance at all.
- If you read between the lines of the story, Lance is now setting his sights on the Tour de France. Officially, his teammate Alberto Contador is the team leader, which means that Lance will be expected to assist him. For example, Lance will pace Contador up the steepest mountains. Greg LeMond did this for Bernard Hinault in 1985, when Hinault was trying to win his fifth Tour (thus joining the greats). Hinault was supposed to repay LeMond the following year, but he tried to win instead. LeMond felt betrayed by this and won the Tour without Hinault's help. Backstabbing occurs in sport as well as in life generally. Sad but true.
- I honestly believe that the time off the bike will do Lance good. He is masochistic in his training. The injury will force him to stay off the bike for a couple of weeks. When he gets back on, he will train with a vengeance. A lot can happen in a three-week stage race. If Contador falters, or if Lance appears stronger than Contador early on, the team could designate Lance the team leader and make everyone, including Contador, work for him. Let's just say that it could get interesting.
What do the cyclists among you think of this?
Addendum: The fracture is worse than it was thought to be. See here for the latest news, from the New York Times.
Addendum 2: The Giro is putting on a brave face.
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 
