The man, the mystery: Lance Armstrong

The kid is good. \nThere is nothing else you can say about Lance Armstrong. The man is dominating his sport much the same way Tiger Woods has been dominating the sport of golf in the past few years.\nBut there is a marked difference between what the two men have accomplished in their individual sports.\nTiger plies his trade where he is loved. On golf courses around the world fans come to stand in awe at the splendor of a man named Tiger. His every swing is an artistry of which fans come to watch and cheer. \nEvery course on the PGA tour has become the equivalent of a home court for Tiger, with all his fans watching every move he makes in his gallery, yearning to see him and his mastery of the game. That was until last Saturday at the British Open, but that is another matter entirely.\nArmstrong, unlike Tiger, is dominating his sport in a land were he is not worshiped, a land were he is not revered. Armstrong wins in a land where he is hated, despised and accused of cheating along every centimeter of the course.\nThe Tour de France, the jewel of the road bicycle racing world, is not particularly Lance-friendly, nor is it particularly American-friendly.\nNot only does he face the same agonizing and grueling climbs in the mountains that his competitors face, but he also faces legions and legions of fans that want nothing more than to see him fail. They want to see him beaten.\nEvery climb and descent of the race, every turn and stop, is lined with fans that continually boo and heckle Armstrong as he races toward a record-tying fourth consecutive Tour de France title.\nTo get a taste of his world, find a drunk walking around Kirkwood. Go with them to the SRSC and get on a stationary bike. Then try to pedal that bike for half an hour with the drunk screaming obscenities. \nArmstrong does that five hours a day for 20 stages of one of the world's toughest sporting events. The man is a defiant gamer.\nThere may be no other sports figure as equally hated by opposing fans and loved by loyal fans than Lance Armstrong.\nProfessional cycling for most of us starts and ends with Armstrong. Little 500 riders may know a few more of the stars of the sport, but it is only the die hard few in this country who know any other cyclist. \nBut every American is rooting for Lance. Not many pay attention to his sport, but everyone knows his story. His accomplishments on a bike are so much more impressive when you realize his biggest victory was life itself. \nHowever his dominance after a life threatening condition has lead to accusations of doping. And that, with soured European American relations, makes you realize that Lance has landed himself on a powder keg that is the politics of sporting competition.\nIn Europe, cycling enjoys a much higher audience than it does in the U.S. There is more of a bike culture, and they do not want their race won by an American. \nSo Lance has to race up these hills with not only his opponents against him, but the crowd against him. He is booed and jeered every time he pushes down on a pedal for the 20 stages that make up the tour. \nArmstrong is not only beating the riders. He is not only beating the course. He has already beaten his biggest battle -- the battle with death. \nNow all that lies ahead for him is winning his place in the hearts of cycling fans around the world.\nMaybe he can learn from Tiger after all.