Cycling - Armstrong on doping past: 'I wouldn't change a thing'

The network, owned by NBC Sports Group, said on Thursday it would broadcast a 30-minute interview next Wednesday called "Lance Armstrong: Next Stage" in which the 47-year-old American discusses his career and the decisions he made.

Cycling - Armstrong on doping past: 'I wouldn't change a thing'

(Reuters)





"We did what we had to do to win. It wasn't legal, but I wouldn't change a thing: whether it's losing a bunch of money, going from hero to zero," said Armstrong, who overcame cancer to win the first of his seven consecutive Tour de France titles 20 years ago, said in an excerpt of the interview provided by NBC Sports.

Armstrong was stripped of his Tour de France titles and banned from the sport for life in 2012 after the International Cycling Union ratified the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency's sanctions.

The American later admitted to cheating in a January 2013 televised interview with Oprah Winfrey.

Armstrong, once a hero to millions, suffered a spectacular fall from grace that costs him millions of dollars in lawsuits and endorsements.

"I wouldn't change a thing. I wouldn't change the way I acted. I mean I would, but this is a longer answer," he said.

"Primarily, I wouldn't change the lessons that I've learned. I don't learn all the lessons if I don't act that way. I don't get investigated and sanctioned if I don't act the way I acted.

"If I just doped and didn't say a thing, none of that would have happened. None of it. I was begging for, I was asking for them to come after me. It was an easy target."





(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; editing by Ken Ferris)


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