Lance Armstrong : Professional Cyclist

By Kristyne McDaniel

Armstrong began competing in adult competitions from the age of fourteen as a triathlete, and soon became understood that an aptitude for cycling was his skill, receiving an invitation to join the Junior National Cycling Team in training at the age of seventeen.  On October 2 of 1996, he was diagnosed with testicular cancer that had spread to his lungs and brain, and he continued with training after removal of his right testicle and two brain lesions and extensive chemotherapy to cure the cancer.

Born September 18 in 1971, Lance Armstrong has since come to embody the spirit of generations of people, and earned a reputation as one of greatest cyclists in modern history.  Now retired, he is famous for winning the Tour de France a record of seven consecutive times from 1999 through 2005, and has retained celebrity status through various charities and appearances throughout modern Western culture in American cinema and television.  These many various cycling feats were accomplished several years after brain and testicular surgeries, as well as extensive chemotherapy to treat testicular cancer in 1996, and prevailing as no one else.

The cancer had spread to his brain and lungs that became the reason for his surgeries and chemotherapy, but this in no way stopped the man from dominating the Tour de France, becoming icon for stunning athletic determination overcoming some of the most devastating odds in both life and
pursuit.  After consecutively winning out over the competition, Lance had officially retired from the total competition, but has maintained a certain degree of clarity through what he has managed to accomplish overall by winning numerous awards and making many various appearances.

This has lead to a range of support in the fight against cancer, as his athletic celebrity and recovery from cancer inspired the creation of the Lance Armstrong Foundation in collaboration with the Nike Corporation, and this charity was founded shortly after his 1996 treatments in 1997.  The sales of yellow rubber wristbands in support of this cause netted tens of millions of dollars in the cause against cancer, and were launched in 2004 to popularity all across the country, making Lance Armstrong one of the major popular proponents in the nonprofit fight against cancer.