Lance Armstrong dealt with a pretty nasty cancer diagnosis and then turned it into something good by creating the Livestrong Foundation. However, it turns out he built his athletic career on steroids and his house of cards has collapsed. I had always admired his athletic feats but now feel like he lied to all of us.
Allow me to clarify. He won 7 Tour De France races. He won an Olympic medal. He was Mr. Clean. He told us for years that he never took performance enhancing drugs. And it turns out he lied to all of us.
This summer when he told the world he was going to stop fighting the charges, I think we started to become aware that there might be some truth to the claim. Now it has all come out that there was a secret system of performance enhancing drugs in the US cycling team. Lance has now stepped down from his world famous charity, he has lost his endorsements, will probably be stripped of his medals, and banned from all future competitions.
Earlier this year we watched another famous charity, the Komen Foundation (for the Cure) suffer a significant setback with the Planned Parenthood debacle. It would be a shame if another big charity, the Livestrong Foundation, also suffered as the result of the lies told by its founder.
It is also a shame that the dishonesty of one man will impact the lives of so
many others. We have lost a hero who was a symbol of hope for many that you can return after cancer and exceed your previous expectations.
It might be time for Lance to step back from the limelight and let
those who do not lie to shine. Honesty is always the best policy and its
time he realized that.
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