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Lance for Senate?
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Peter Dejong / AP
As Lance Armstrong prepares for an eighth Tour de France victory this summer, he opens up to The Daily Beast’s Mark McKinnon about a future in politics, who inspires him, and why his comeback will roll on past 2009.
In his first interview since announcing that he and his girlfriend are expecting, Lance Armstrong talks to The Daily Beast’s Mark McKinnon about his political ambitions (“If you feel like you can do the job better than people who are doing it now, and you can really make a difference, then that’s a real calling to serve, and I think you have to do that”); why 2009 might not be his last Tour de France (“I certainly don’t want to limit [the comeback] to one year”); how LIVESTRONG and other charities will survive the economic downturn (“ It’s going to be a hard time for us nonprofits.”); and he reveals what athletic mountain he’ll climb when he’s finished with cycling.
“You can help raise your children,” Armstrong said. “You can lead the state of Texas. You can be mayor of a city. You can run for the Senate.”
Lance Armstrong, athlete and cancer advocate extraordinaire, had a typically ambitious year or so: his foundation (on whose board I sit) raised $37 million for cancer research, programs and advocacy while reaching 332,000 people living in 200 countries; he helped conceive and pass a first-of-its-kind statewide proposition in Texas that created a $3 billion cancer research fund; he testified before Congress; he ran the New York and Boston marathons; he rode and placed second in the Leadville 100 mountain bike race (after just several weeks of training); and he decided he would mount a comeback and compete for an eighth Tour de France victory in 2009.
The Daily Beast caught up with Armstrong in Hawaii, where he was taking a brief holiday break with his kids before heading to Australia where, in a couple of weeks, he will ride his first race of 2009 for Team Astana in the Tour Down Under:
It’s New Year’s. A good time to reflect. Let’s take a look back.
It’s been an interesting period for me. I transitioned from part of my life that I’d been doing for what seemed like forever. For the better part of 15 years or so, I was a professional athlete. And I channeled all that energy and competitiveness into the fight against cancer. Which has been awfully rewarding. We’ve done some things that are ground breaking. Done some things no one thought we could do. We’ve represented this disease to a whole community of people who were eager to have something to rally behind. Whether it’s a color, or a name like LIVESTRONG, the idea, the notion of being part of a group to affect change. I think we’ve gone a long ways to unifying that idea. Now we need to see the results.
How is the Foundation dealing with external economic events?
If we all look around at our economy and the markets and the absolute destruction of wealth in this country, it’s been devastating for almost everyone. I just came from a lunch with George Roberts, one of the founders of KKR [Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co, a private equity firm]. We talked about a lot of things, but a lot about the economy. When you look at just the markets alone, we’ve seen $7 trillion of wealth lost. So, you can look at automakers, you can look at retailers, you could look at technology companies. But you also have to look at nonprofits. Those are the people who are doing the greatest work in my opinion, and unfortunately they are going to be hurt the most. Because people are going to stop giving. It’s scary. We’ve heard of many, many organizations that have had to lay off staff or just closed the door. It breaks my heart. We’ve been pretty disciplined and pretty tough during this time. Fortunately we have not had to cut any staff or programs. It’s going to be a hard time for us nonprofits. That’s just the harsh truth.
The comeback will perhaps alleviate some of that for us because there will be added attention and added exposure to what we’re doing and to what LIVESTRONG means. To the great programs, grants, organization, people and staff we have. So it’s almost fortuitous, certainly not by design, but the comeback may help be a natural buffer for us.
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Lloyd Grove is editor at large for The Daily Beast. He is also a frequent contributor to New York magazine and was a contributing editor for Condé Nast Portfolio. He wrote a gossip column for the New York Daily News from 2003 to 2006. Prior to that, he wrote the Reliable Source column for the Washington Post, where he spent 23 years covering politics, the media, and other subjects.
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Give me a break. The guy rides a bike. The last thing we need is another person taking a public position simply to keep that all important attention they have come to need.
Go away lance and leave the running of this country to those who are educated to do so. Your not.
Hey Mark...ya still in grade school buddy? Removing any comments that you don't like? LOL Grow up or go back to work at Burger King
Thanks for the interview, Mark. I have a small-time blog where I basically sort through all the news out there about Lance and post the positive stuff regarding training, preparation and racing. Most "news stories" lately look like someone took a safety scissors and Elmers Glue and visited Lance's twitter account. Your getting the quote about Astana possible filling the podium at the Tour de France was huge.
Now I know why he loves bike riding so much. The crouch allows him to more easily gaze at his navel.
Sorry. But I don't believe that he is riding again for the foundation. He is riding again because he is an egomaniac and can't stand being out of the spotlight. Plain and simple. He could take the LIveStrong foundation global without riding the Tour. Now, he wants to save the world by entering politics. He is an athlete not a savior.
I enjoyed this timely, well-rounded piece. With Lance, it's hard to separate the man, the athlete and his cause. This interview hits right at the intersection of all three.
So on the one hand I'm glad to see him back in the saddle. His return is good for cycling in the U.S. Political ambitions? Cool. I'm of the opinion that people that groom there entire career toward Washington, DC are less prepared to lead the country than someone that may have actually accomplished something.
His foundation could be promoted and served just as well had he never come back to road racing. Thought he'd do more off-road racing. Leadville is only one endurance race. I'd love to have seen him in the Great Divide Race, or Trans Alps...
Lance would make an excellent politician - he's a brutal competitor, and knows how to win. Pro cycling is best defined as "Boxing meets horse racing" - which gives Lance a knowledge of how rough human behavior can be and how to handle it - a trait I deeply admire in our president-elect with his Chicago experience. At the same time, Lance's passion for cancer work is genuine - he does visit kids cancer wards in hospitals without a lot of fanfare and accompanying PR hacks. He has done enormous things for the cancer community, in terms of moral support/encouragement political presence and in delivering pure hard cash. Never make the mistake of underestimating Lance or counting him out. Never, ever works. Besides, If Schwartzenegger can be a Gov....
First, I would race until, I guess, I came in second. When you are on a winning streak there is no reason to stop. Secondly, (SHOCK!) I would take LIVESTRONG globally through LinkedIn or other social and professional networking sites as the Pickens Plan has group representation on LinkedIn. It may already be "a group" I've just haven't seen it. As far as politics, if Al Franken can win then anyone can. (That's a compliment.)
I'm not interested in feeding his ego.
Go Lance! To all you critics, you are allowed your opinion, but most of you don't have a clue about the complexity of pro cycling. But I don't have the time to educate you. Lance is a force, whether on the bike or spearheading cancer awareness globally.
He would make a great politician but he does have a flaw, he is an honest, hard working individual. I hope he does take office in some capacity and help clean up the corrupt government we have in these trying times.
Lance is an inspiration, and although not perfect, he is doing more than all of you put together! So shut up and go back to watching tv on your couches.
I think it is great he is racing again, no matter what the reason. I plan on watching him.
He seems to have all the qualifications to run for a polital office. Womanizing, lying, drugging, flip-flopping, what else---
While I can appreciate his cycling achievements and promotional efforts for cancer, he's not a good person, deep down--which is what matters most in this life. It's really unfortunate when his talent is offset by the fact that he's such a tool (see also Kanye West and John Mayer, for starters). He should stop talking about himself for a few years and start treating women respectfully; this will go a long way toward making him the inspiration that he aspires to be.
The trouble with politics anybody thinks they can do it. And stupid people vote them in like it's American Idol and then wonder why things get as screwed up as they currenly are.
After seeing first-hand the work Lance and the LAF are doing to fight cancer, I am inspired and empowered by his personal commitment and that of his foundation staff.
Mr. Armstrong is one of the most well-focus, intense individuals on the place of the planet. He has surrounded himself with some of the most talented and competent people on the planet, via both his cycling team and his LAF staff.
Whether it is cycling, serving in the fight against cancer, or the political arena, he faces each task head-on with iron determination to make change HAPPEN.
Mr. Armstrong isn't sitting on his ass doing nothing but complaining about what needs to be done or how it could be done better. He is personally invested in the fight.
Since it's inception in 1997, the Lance Armstrong Foundation has raised more than $250 million to fight cancer, donating $2 million in December of 2008 alone. Lance served on the President's Cancer Panel from 2002-2008. I'm all about some VOTE LANCE. I would be proud to have him in my corner any day.
That's 15 minutes of my life I'll never get back.
trisha08
"Sorry. But I don't believe that he is riding again for the foundation. He is riding again because he is an egomaniac and can't stand being out of the spotlight. Plain and simple. He could take the LIveStrong foundation global without riding the Tour. Now, he wants to save the world by entering politics. He is an athlete not a savior."
I have to agree with this. I have watched all of his races and
have read all of his books. I do have great respect for his accomplishments. He has a "Killer" attitude so necessary for his success. However, there is another side to this guy
who has an enourmous ego along with being a "player" (read womanizer who prefers blondes). Will he marry his pregnant
girlfriend and if so, how soon will he divorce her? I think his ego thinks he is doing the world a good deed by leaving us a bunch of future "Armstrong Bred Riders". I forsee another
"Love Child" episode if he enter politics.
Mark was kissing Lance's bicycle seat so hard he must have got
Mark was kissing Lance's bicycle seat so hard he must have gotten a concussion.
brelnday:
"He seems to have all the qualifications to run for a polital office. Womanizing, lying, drugging, flip-flopping, what else---"
lol....I forsee another love child once he gets in office.
Thank you.
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