Lance Armstrong Admits Using Banned Substances in Run to Seven Tour Titles

Fitzgerald Cecilio

Disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong finally admitted using banned substances during his run to seven Tour de France titles, describing himself as "deeply flawed" and a "bully" to others who might expose him.

Armstrong made the much-anticipated admission during a one-on-one interview with talk show host Oprah Winfrey at his home in Austin, Texas Thursday.

During the interview, Armstrong admitted to Oprah that he used illegal substances such as EPO, testosterone, cortisone and human growth hormone to boost performance and gain advantage over opponents.

Aside from that, Armstrong also confessed to using illegal blood transfusions to avoid detection.

"I went and looked up the definition of cheat," Armstrong said. "And the definition is to gain an advantage on a rival or foe. I didn't view it that way. I viewed it as a level playing field."

Armstrong also called his inspiring career as a cancer survivor-turned-Tour de France champion and his image as family man as "untrue".

After winning various legs of the Tour de France, Armstrong's sporting career ground to a halt in 1996, when he was diagnosed with cancer. He was 25.

Armstrong admitted to Winfrey that he then developed a "ruthless and relentless" attitude that helped him survive. But he carried it with him into his sports career, "and that's bad," he said.

After recovering from cancer, Armstrong returned to cycling in 1999 and did not stop until he clinched seven straight Tour de France wins. He left the sport after his last win in 2005 but returned in 2009.

However, Armstrong insisted that he was clean when he finished third that year, but that comeback led to his downfall.

"We wouldn't be sitting here if I didn't come back," he told Winfrey.

However, some critics were not moved by Armstrong's confession.

For author David Doyle, who wrote a book about doping and the Tour de France, Armstrong was not telling the whole story.

"A partial confession is sort of the pattern here," he said. "Maybe this is Armstrong's partial, and more will come out later," Doyle told CNN's Anderson Cooper.

Doyle also countered Armstrong's claim that he did not push teammates to dope.

"Tyler Hamilton gets a phone call: be on a plane tomorrow. We're flying to Valencia to do a blood transfusion. That's what happens," Coyle said.

U.S. Anti-Doping Agency chief executive officer Travis Tygart praised the interview, calling it a "small step in the right direction."

However, Tygart said that if Armstrong is sincere in his desire to correct his past mistakes, he will testify under oath about the full extent of his doping activities.

Lance Armstrong confessed to using performance-enhancing drugs to win the Tour de France during an interview with Oprah Winfrey, reversing more than a decade of denial

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Lance Armstrong Admits Using Banned Substances in Run to Seven Tour Titles