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![Lance Armstrong cancer speech days after titles stripped [RAW VIDEO]](http://web.archive.org./web/20121120231458im_/http://i.ytimg.com/vi/7Jxu4QXRdJE/default.jpg "Wed, Aug 29: Lance Armstrong speaks at the World Cancer Congress conference at the Montreal Convention Center (Le Palais des congrès de Montréal) in Montreal, Quebec.")
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1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same year since 1924, and place them in alternating even-numbered years, beginning in 1994. The 1992 Summer Games were the last to be staged in the same year as the Winter Games. Due to the end of the Cold War, these games were the first without boycotts since 1972.
Barcelona, the birthplace of then-IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch, was selected over Amsterdam, Belgrade, Birmingham, Brisbane and Paris in Lausanne, Switzerland, on October 17, 1986, during the 91st IOC Session. It had bid for the 1936 Summer Olympics, losing out to Berlin.
See the medal winners, ordered by sport:
169 nations sent athletes to compete in these Games (the number of competitors for each country below is given in brackets). With the dissolution of the Soviet Union, twelve states formed a Unified Team, while the Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania had their own teams. For the first time, Croatia, Slovenia and Bosnia-Herzegovina competed as independent nations after separation from Socialist Yugoslavia. Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was banned due to UN sanctions, but individual Yugoslav athletes were allowed to take part as Independent Olympic Participants. It was also the first Olympics since 1964 that a unified Germany competed at the Olympics. This was the Olympic debut for Namibia and the unified team of Yemen, after several separate participations of North and South Yemen. South Africa returned to the Games after 32 years. Four National Olympic Committees didn't send their athletes to compete: Afghanistan, Brunei, Liberia and Somalia.
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Adelaide
Adelaide (
/ˈædəleɪd/) is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million. The demonym "Adelaidean" is used in reference to the city and its residents. Adelaide is located north of the Fleurieu Peninsula, on the Adelaide Plains between the Gulf St Vincent and the low-lying Mount Lofty Ranges which surround the city. Adelaide stretches 20 km (12 mi) from the coast to the foothills, and 90 km (56 mi) from Gawler at its northern extent to Sellicks Beach in the south.
Named in honour of Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, queen consort to King William IV, the city was founded in 1836 as the planned capital for a freely settled British province in Australia.Colonel William Light, one of Adelaide's founding fathers, designed the city and chose its location close to the River Torrens in the area originally inhabited by the Kaurna people. Light's design set out Adelaide in a grid layout, interspaced by wide boulevards and large public squares, and entirely surrounded by parkland. Early Adelaide was shaped by religious freedom and a commitment to political progressivism and civil liberties, which led to the moniker "City of Churches".
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AMD
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NYSE: AMD) or AMD is an American multinational semiconductor company based in Sunnyvale, California, that develops computer processors and related technologies for commercial and consumer markets. Its main products include microprocessors, motherboard chipsets, embedded processors and graphics processors for servers, workstations and personal computers, and embedded systems applications.
AMD is the second-largest global supplier of microprocessors based on the x86 architecture and also one of the largest suppliers of graphics processing units. It also owns 8.6% of Spansion, a supplier of non-volatile flash memory.
AMD is the only significant rival to Intel in the central processor (CPU) market for (x86 based) personal computers. Together they held 99.1 percent (Intel 80.3%, AMD 18.8%) of the CPU's sold for quarter three of 2011.[dubious – discuss] Since acquiring ATI in 2006, AMD and its competitor Nvidia have dominated the discrete graphics processor unit (GPU) market, together making up virtually 100% of the market.
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Aspen, Colorado
The City of Aspen is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau placed the city's population at 6,658 in 2010. Founded as a mining camp in the Colorado Silver Boom and named because of the abundance of aspen trees in the area, the city is now a ski resort and an upscale tourist center. Aspen is home to three renowned institutions that have international importance: the Aspen Music Festival and School, the Aspen Institute, and the Aspen Center for Physics. The Maroon-Snowmass Wilderness, the Hunter-Frying Pan Wilderness, and the Collegiate Peaks Wilderness are nearby.
In the late 20th century, the city developed as a popular destination for celebrities, attracting people like Charlie Sheen, Hunter S. Thompson, and John Denver, the latter having written several songs about the town, including "Aspenglow" and "Starwood in Aspen". Aspen boasts the most expensive real estate prices in the United States.
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Atlanta
Atlanta ( /ətˈlæntə/, stressed /ætˈlæntə/, locally /ætˈlænə/) is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia with a 2010 population of 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest in the U.S. It is a major component of a growing southeastern megalopolis known as the Piedmont Atlantic Megaregion. Atlanta is the county seat of Fulton County, and a small portion of the city extends eastward into DeKalb County.
Atlanta began as a settlement located at the terminus of a railroad line, and it was incorporated in 1845. Today, the city is a major business city and the primary transportation hub of the Southeastern United States (via highway, railroad, and air), with Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport being the world's busiest airport since 1998. The World Cities Study Group at Loughborough University rated Atlanta as an "alpha(-) world city." With a gross domestic product of US$270 billion, Atlanta's economy ranks 15th among world cities and sixth in the nation. The city is a center for services, finance, information technology, government, and higher education. Metro Atlanta contains the country's third largest concentration of Fortune 500 companies, and is the world headquarters of The Coca-Cola Company, Turner Broadcasting, The Home Depot, AT&T Mobility, UPS, and Delta Air Lines. As of 2010, Atlanta is the seventh most visited city in the United States, with over 35 million visitors per year.
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Austin, Texas
Austin (/ˈɒstɨn/ or /ˈɔːstɨn/) is the capital of the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in the nation from 2000 to 2006. Austin has a population of 790,390 (2010 U.S. Census). The city is the cultural and economic center of the Austin–Round Rock–San Marcos metropolitan area, which had an estimated population 1,783,519 (2011 U.S. Census), making it the 34th-largest metropolitan statistical area in the United States.
In the 1830s, pioneers began to the settle the area in central Austin along the Colorado River. After Republic of Texas Vice President Mirabeau B. Lamar visited the area during a buffalo-hunting expedition between 1837 and 1838, he proposed that the republic's capital then located in Houston, Texas, be relocated to the area situated on the north bank of the Colorado River near the present-day Ann W. Richards Congress Avenue Bridge. In 1839, the site was officially chosen as the republic's new capital (the republic's seventh and final location) and was incorporated under the name, Waterloo. Shortly thereafter, the name was changed to Austin in honor of Stephen F. Austin, the "Father of Texas" and the republic's first secretary of state.
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Baltanás
Baltanás is a municipality located in the province of Palencia, Castile and León, Spain. According to the 2004 census (INE), the municipality had a population of 1,452 inhabitants.
Coordinates: 41°56′N 4°15′W / 41.933°N 4.25°W / 41.933; -4.25
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Belgium
Belgium (
i/ˈbɛldʒəm/ BEL-jəm), officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO. Belgium covers an area of 30,528 square kilometres (11,787 sq mi), and it has a population of about 11 million people. Straddling the cultural boundary between Germanic and Latin Europe, Belgium is home to two main linguistic groups, the Dutch-speakers, mostly Flemish (about 60%), and the French-speakers, mostly Walloons (about 40%), plus a small group of German-speakers. Belgium's two largest regions are the Dutch-speaking region of Flanders in the north and the French-speaking southern region of Wallonia. The Brussels-Capital Region, officially bilingual, is a mostly French-speaking enclave within the Flemish Region. A German-speaking Community exists in eastern Wallonia. Belgium's linguistic diversity and related political conflicts are reflected in the political history and a complex system of government.
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Dallas
Dallas ( /ˈdæləs/) is the third-largest city in the state of Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States. Divided between Collin, Dallas, Denton, Kaufman, and Rockwall counties, the city had a population of 1,197,816 in 2010, according to the United States Census Bureau.
The city is the largest economic center of the 12-county Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan area (the DFW MSA) that according to the March 2010 U.S. Census Bureau release, had a population of 6,371,773. The metroplex economy is the sixth largest in the United States, with a 2010 gross metropolitan product of $374 billion.
Dallas was founded in 1841 and was formally incorporated as a city in February 1856. The city's economy is primarily based on banking, commerce, telecommunications, computer technology, energy, healthcare and medical research, transportation and logistics. The city is home to the third largest concentration of Fortune 500 companies in the nation. Located in North Texas and a major city in the American South, Dallas is the main core of the largest inland metropolitan area in the United States that lacks any navigable link to the sea.
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Germany
Germany (i/ˈdʒɜrməni/), officially the Federal Republic of Germany (German: Bundesrepublik Deutschland, pronounced [ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant] (
listen)), is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate. With 81.8 million inhabitants, it is the most populous member state and the largest economy in the European Union. It is one of the major political powers of the European continent and a technological leader in many fields.
A region named Germania, inhabited by several Germanic peoples, was documented before AD 100. During the Migration Period, the Germanic tribes expanded southward, and established successor kingdoms throughout much of Europe. Beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation while southern and western parts remained dominated by Roman Catholic denominations, with the two factions clashing in the Thirty Years' War, marking the beginning of the Catholic–Protestant divide that has characterized German society ever since. Occupied during the Napoleonic Wars, the rise of Pan-Germanism inside the German Confederation resulted in the unification of most of the German states into the German Empire in 1871 which was Prussian dominated. After the German Revolution of 1918–1919 and the subsequent military surrender in World War I, the Empire was replaced by the Weimar Republic in 1918, and partitioned in the Treaty of Versailles. Amidst the Great Depression, the Third Reich was proclaimed in 1933. The latter period was marked by Fascism and World War II. After 1945, Germany was divided by allied occupation, and evolved into two states, East Germany and West Germany. In 1990 Germany was reunified.
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Girona
Girona (Catalan pronunciation: [ʒiˈɾonə]; Spanish: Gerona [xeˈɾona]) is a city in the northeast of Catalonia, Spain at the confluence of the rivers Ter, Onyar, Galligants and Güell, with an official population of 96,722 in January 2011. It is the capital of the province of the same name and of the comarca of the Gironès. Lies 99 km (62 mi) on north-east from Barcelona.
The first historical inhabitants in the region were Iberians; Girona is the ancient Gerunda, a city of the Ausetani. Later, the Romans built a citadel there, which was given the name of Gerunda. The Visigoths ruled in Girona until it was conquered by the Moors. Finally, Charlemagne reconquered it in 785 and made it one of the fourteen original countships of Catalonia. Thus it was wrested temporarily from the Moors, who were driven out finally in 1015. Wilfred the Hairy incorporated Girona to the countship of Barcelona in 878. Alfonso I of Aragón declared Girona to be a city in the 11th century. The ancient countship later became a duchy (1351) when King Peter III of Aragon gave the title of Duke to his first-born son, John. In 1414, King Ferdinand I in turn gave the title of Prince of Girona to his first-born son, Alfonso. The title is currently carried by Prince Felipe, Prince of Asturias, the first since the 16th century to do so.
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Indianapolis
Indianapolis /ˌɪndiəˈnæpɵlɨs/ (abbreviated Indy /ˈɪndi/) is the capital of the US state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 829,718. It is Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S. Census, is the 12th largest city in the U.S., the second largest city in the Midwest (behind Chicago), the second most populous state capital (after Phoenix, Arizona), and the most populous state capital east of the Mississippi River. Indianapolis is also one of the fastest growing regions in the United States.
For much of its history, Indianapolis has oriented itself around government and industry, particularly manufacturing. Today, Indianapolis has a much more diversified economy, contributing to the fields of education, health care, and finance. Tourism is also a vital part of the economy of Indianapolis, and the city plays host to numerous conventions and sporting events. Of these, perhaps the most well known is the annual Indianapolis 500 and the NHRA U.S. Nationals. Other major sporting events include the Brickyard 400 and the Men's and Women's NCAA Basketball Tournaments. 2012 marked the first time Indianapolis hosted the Super Bowl. Super Bowl XLVI was played at Lucas Oil Stadium, on February 5, 2012 in Downtown Indianapolis. Also held in Lucas Oil Stadium is the Drum Corps International World Championships, and the Music for All Bands of America Grand National Championships.
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Italy
Italyi/ˈɪtəli/ (Italian: Italia [iˈtaːlja]), officially the Italian Republic or the Republic of Italy (Italian: Repubblica italiana), is a unitary parliamentary republic in south-central Europe. To the north, it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia along the Alps. To the south, it consists of the entirety of the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Sardinia–the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea–and many other smaller islands. The independent states of San Marino and the Vatican City are enclaves within Italy, while Campione d'Italia is an Italian exclave in Switzerland. The territory of Italy covers some 301,338 km2 (116,347 sq mi) and is influenced by a temperate seasonal climate. With 60.6 million inhabitants, it is the fifth most populous country in Europe, and the 23rd most populous in the world.
Rome, the capital of Italy, was for centuries a political and religious centre of Western civilisation as the capital of the Roman Empire and site of the Holy See. After the decline of the Roman Empire, Italy endured numerous invasions by foreign peoples, from Germanic tribes such as the Lombards and Ostrogoths, to the Byzantines and later, the Normans, among others. Centuries later, Italy became the birthplace of Maritime republics and the Renaissance, an immensely fruitful intellectual movement that would prove to be integral in shaping the subsequent course of European thought.
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Jamaica
Coordinates: 18°10′57″N 77°19′18″W / 18.1823878°N 77.3217773°W / 18.1823878; -77.3217773
Jamaica (
i/dʒəˈmeɪkə/), officially the Commonwealth of Jamaica, is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, 234 kilometres (145 mi) in length, up to 80 kilometres (50 mi) in width, and 10,990 square kilometres (4,240 sq mi) in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about 145 kilometres (90 mi) south of Cuba, and 191 kilometres (119 mi) west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states of Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The indigenous Arawakan-speaking Taíno name for the island was Xaymaca, meaning the "Land of Wood and Water" or the "Land of Springs".
Once a Spanish possession known as Santiago, it became an English colony in 1655 under the name "Jamaica". It achieved full independence from Britain on August 6, 1962. With 2.8 million people, it is the third most populous anglophone country in the Americas, after the United States and Canada. It remains a Commonwealth realm in concert with the Monarchy of Jamaica holding ultimate executive power, where Queen Elizabeth II is the current head of state and Queen of Jamaica.Kingston is the country's largest city and the capital.
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Luz Ardiden
Luz Ardiden is a ski resort in the Pyrenees. It is situated in the Hautes-Pyrénées department, in the Midi-Pyrénées. The ski resort, which lies at a height of 1720 meters, opened on January 16, 1975. In more recent times, the road to Luz Ardiden has served as an occasional stage finish in Tour de France.
Starting from Luz-Saint-Sauveur (710 m.), the climb to Luz Ardiden (1720 m.) is 14.7 km long. Over this distance, the climb is 1010 m. (an average of 6.9%). The maximum gradient is 10%.
Luz Ardiden has been the finish-line for a Tour de France stage several times.
On the 2003 Tour de France, Lance Armstrong was riding with Iban Mayo at the start of the climb to Luz Ardiden when Armstrong crashed, bringing Mayo down with him. The fall was caused when Armstrong caught the handlebar of his bike on the strap of a spectator's bag. Jan Ulrich, who was riding just behind Armstrong and Mayo, avoided the crash, and in an act of chivalry he slowed to wait for the fallen riders. Armstrong quickly re-mounted his bike and caught Jan Ulrich. Immediately, Armstrong attacked the group of riders, none of whom could follow him and he powered his way to win the stage by 40 seconds, on his way to a victory on the Champs Elysees by 1 minute 1 second.
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Metz
Metz (French pronunciation: [mɛs] ( listen); German: [ˈmɛts]) is a city in the northeast of France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers.
Metz is the capital of the Lorraine region and prefecture of the Moselle department. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany, and Luxembourg, Metz forms a central place of the European Greater Region and of the SaarLorLux Euroregion. So, Metz is a fellow member of the QuattroPole union of cities, along with Luxembourg City and German Saarbrücken and Trier.
A Celtic oppidum, an important Gallo-Roman city, the Merovingian capital of the Austrasia kingdom, the birthplace of the Carolingian dynasty, a cradle of the Gregorian chant, and one of the oldest republics of the common era in Europe, Metz has a rich 3,000 year history. The city has been steeped in Romance culture, but has been strongly influenced by Germanic culture due to its location and history. A basin of urban ecology, pioneered under the leadership of people like Jean-Marie Pelt, Metz gained its nickname, The Green City, boasting over 37 m2 (398 sq ft) of open ground per inhabitant and the city's historic downtown also displays one of the largest commercial, pedestrian areas in France.
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New Braunfels, Texas
New Braunfelsi/ˌnjuː ˈbrɔːnfəlz/ is a city in Comal and Guadalupe counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is one of the two principal cities of the San Antonio–New Braunfels metropolitan area, the other being the City of San Antonio. Braunfels means "brown rock" in German; the city is named for Braunfels, in Germany. The city's population was 57,740 as of the 2010 census, up 58% from the 2000 census population of 36,494. It is the seat of Comal County. New Braunfels has a sizeable German Texan community. During the 19th century, its name was often spelled Neu-Braunfels, even by English speakers.
New Braunfels was established in 1845 by Prince Carl of Solms-Braunfels, Commissioner General of the Adelsverein, also known as the Noblemen's Society (in German: Mainzer Adelsverein). Prince Solms named the settlement in honor of his home of Solms-Braunfels, Germany.
The Adelsverein organized hundreds of people in Germany to settle in Texas. Immigrants from Germany began arriving at Galveston in July, 1844. Most then traveled by ship to Indianola in December, 1844 and began the overland journey to the Fisher-Miller Land Grant purchased by Prince Solms. At the urging of John Coffee Hays, who realized the settlers would not have time to build homes and plant crops further inland before winter, and as the German settlers were traveling inland along the Guadalupe River, they stopped near the Comal Springs. Prince Solms bought two leagues of land from the Rafael Garza and Maria Antonio Veramendi Garza for $1,111.00.
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New Mexico
New Mexico (i/nuː ˈmɛksɨkoʊ/) is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. New Mexico is the 5th most extensive, the 36th most populous, and the 6th least densely populated of the 50 United States.
Inhabited by Native American populations for many centuries, New Mexico has also been part of the Imperial Spanish viceroyalty of New Spain, part of Mexico, and a U.S. territory. Among U.S. states, New Mexico has the highest percentage of Hispanics, including descendants of Spanish colonists and recent immigrants from Latin America. It also has the second-highest percentage of Native Americans, after Alaska, and the fourth-highest total number of Native Americans after California, Oklahoma, and Arizona. The tribes in the state consist of mostly Navajo and Pueblo peoples. As a result, the demographics and culture of the state are unique for their strong Hispanic and Native American influences. The flag of New Mexico is represented by the red and gold colors, which represent Spain, as well as the Zia symbol, an ancient Native American symbol for the sun.
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Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. ( /ˈnaɪkiː/; NYSE: NKE) is a major publicly traded clothing, footwear, sportswear, and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, in the Portland metropolitan area. It is the world's leading supplier of athletic shoes and apparel and a major manufacturer of sports equipment, with revenue in excess of US$18.6 billion in its fiscal year 2008 (ending May 31, 2008). As of 2008, it employed more than 30,000 people worldwide. Nike and Precision Castparts are the only Fortune 500 companies headquartered in the state of Oregon, according to The Oregonian.
The company was founded on January 25, 1964 as Blue Ribbon Sports by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight, and officially became Nike, Inc. on May 30, 1978. The company takes its name from Nike (Greek Νίκη, pronounced [nǐːkɛː]), the Greek goddess of victory. Nike markets its products under its own brand, as well as Nike Golf, Nike Pro, Nike+, Air Jordan, Nike Skateboarding, and subsidiaries including Cole Haan, Hurley International, Umbro and Converse. Nike also owned Bauer Hockey (later renamed Nike Bauer) between 1995 and 2008. In addition to manufacturing sportswear and equipment, the company operates retail stores under the Niketown name. Nike sponsors many high profile athletes and sports teams around the world, with the highly recognized trademarks of "Just do it" and the Swoosh logo.
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Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( /ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə/) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States, with a population of 1,526,006 as of the 2010 U.S. Census. Philadelphia is also the commercial, cultural, and educational center of the Delaware Valley, home to 6 million people and the country's fifth-largest metropolitan area. The Philadelphia metropolitan division consists of five counties in Pennsylvania and has a population of 4,008,994. Popular nicknames for Philadelphia are Philly and The City of Brotherly Love, the latter of which comes from the literal meaning of the city's name in Greek (Greek: Φιλαδέλφεια ([pʰilaˈdelpʰeːa], Modern Greek: [filaˈðelfia]) "brotherly love", compounded from philos (φίλος) "loving", and adelphos (ἀδελφός) "brother").
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Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( /ˈpɪtsbərɡ/, PITS-burg) is the second largest city in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of both Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley. Nationally, it is the 22nd largest urban area in the United States. The population of the city in 2010 was 305,704, while that of the seven-county metropolitan area stood at 2,356,285.Downtown Pittsburgh retains substantial economic influence, ranking at 25th in the nation for jobs within the urban core and 6th in job density. The characteristic shape of Pittsburgh's central business district is a triangular tract carved by the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers, which form the Ohio River. The city features 151 high-rise buildings, 446 bridges, two inclined railways, and a pre-revolutionary fortification. Pittsburgh is known colloquially as "the City of Bridges" and "the Steel City" for its many bridges and former steel manufacturing base.
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Plano, Texas
Plano ( /ˈpleɪnoʊ/) is a city in the state of Texas, located mostly within Collin County. The city's population was 259,841 at the 2010 census, making it the ninth-largest city in Texas (Corpus Christi is ranked at #8 and Laredo is ranked at #10) and the 71st most populous city in the United States. Plano is located within the metropolitan area commonly referred to as the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The city is home to many corporate headquarters: Alliance Data, Cinemark Theatres, Dell Services, Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Ericsson, Frito-Lay, HP Enterprise Services, Huawei, J. C. Penney, Pizza Hut, Rent-A-Center, Traxxas, and Siemens PLM Software.
In 2005, Plano was designated the best place to live in the Western United States by CNN Money magazine. In 2006, Plano was selected as the 11th best place to live in the United States by CNN Money magazine. Plano schools consistently score among the highest in the nation. It has been rated as the wealthiest city in the United States by CNN Money with a poverty rate of less than 6.4%. In 2008, Forbes.com selected Plano, University Park, and Highland Park as the three "Top Suburbs To Live Well" of Dallas. The United States Census Bureau declared Plano the wealthiest city of 2008 by comparing the median household income for all U.S. cities whose populations were greater than 250,000. The annual Plano Balloon Festival and the Plano International Festival are two of the city's premiere cultural and entertainment events. In October 2010, Forbes magazine named Plano the safest city to live in America with a population greater than 250,000. In December 2011, Plano once again topped the list of Forbes Magazine's safest cities in America.
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Prairie Chapel Ranch
Prairie Chapel Ranch is a 1,583 acre (6.4 km²) ranch in unincorporated McLennan County, Texas, located seven miles (10 km) northwest of Crawford. The property was acquired by former President George W. Bush in 1999 and was known as the Western White House during his presidency.
Bush spends vacation time at the house where he has also entertained dignitaries from around the world.
The ranch gets its name from the Prairie Chapel School which was built nearby on land donated by mid-19th century German immigrant Heinrich Engelbrecht from Oppenwehe, Germany, who owned the land that now comprises the Bush ranch. Engelbrecht also donated land for the nearby Canaan Baptist Church (the "Prairie Chapel").
Engelbrecht and his heirs raised turkeys and hogs. The original Engelbrecht ranch house is about 4,400 feet (1,300 m) from the main house on Rainey Road and is now called the "Governor's House" and is used to accommodate overflow guests. The Bushes stayed in the house during construction of the new house.
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Serbia
Serbiai/ˈsɜrbiə/, officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: Република Србија / Republika Srbija, pronounced [rɛpǔblika sř̩bija]), is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans. Serbia borders Hungary to the north; Romania and Bulgaria to the east; the Republic of Macedonia to the south; and Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro to the west; additionally, it borders Albania through Kosovo, whose status as part of Serbia is disputed. Serbia covers an area of 88,361 km2 and has a population of just over 7.1 million, while the capital and largest city is Belgrade.
The arrival of the Serbs to the Balkans in the 7th century, established several states, eventually forming the Serbian Empire in the 14th century. By the 16th century, Serbia was conquered and occupied by the Ottoman Empire, at times interrupted by the Habsburgs. In the early 19th century the Serbian revolution re-established the country as the region's first constitutional monarchy, which subsequently expanded its territory and pioneered the abolition of feudalism in the Balkans. The former Habsburg crownland of Vojvodina united with Serbia in 1918. Following World War I, Serbia formed Yugoslavia with other South Slavic peoples which existed in several forms up until 2006, when the National Assembly of Serbia declared independence and the legal succession to the former State Union. In February 2008 the parliament of UNMIK-governed Kosovo, Serbia's southern province, declared independence, with mixed responses from international governments.
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Spain
Spain (i/ˈspeɪn/ SPAYN; Spanish: España, pronounced: [esˈpaɲa] ( listen)), officially the Kingdom of Spain (Spanish: Reino de España), is a sovereign state and a member of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Its mainland is bordered to the south and east by the Mediterranean Sea except for a small land boundary with the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar; to the north and north east by France, Andorra, and the Bay of Biscay; and to the northwest and west by the Atlantic Ocean and Portugal.
Spanish territory also includes the Balearic Islands in the Mediterranean, the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean off the African coast, and two autonomous cities in North Africa, Ceuta and Melilla, that border Morocco. Furthermore, the town of Llívia is a Spanish exclave situated inside French territory. With an area of 504,030 square kilometres (194,610 sq mi), it is the second largest country in Western Europe and the European Union after France, and the fourth largest country in Europe after Russia, Ukraine and France.
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Switzerland
Switzerland (German: die Schweiz[ˈʃvaɪts]; French: Suisse [sɥis(ə)]; Italian: Svizzera [ˈzvit͡sːɛra]; Romansh: Svizra [ˈʒviːtsrɐ] or [ˈʒviːtsʁːɐ]), in its full name the Swiss Confederation (Latin: Confoederatio Helvetica, hence its abbreviation CH), is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in western Europe, where it is bordered by Germany to the north, France to the west, Italy to the south, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east.
Switzerland is a landlocked country geographically divided between the Alps, the Swiss Plateau and the Jura, spanning an area of 41,285 km2 (15,940 sq mi). While the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory, the Swiss population of approximately 8 million people is concentrated mostly on the Plateau, where the largest cities are to be found. Among them are the two global cities and economic centres of Zurich and Geneva.
The Swiss Confederation has a long history of armed neutrality—it has not been in a state of war internationally since 1815—and did not join the United Nations until 2002. It pursues, however, an active foreign policy and is frequently involved in peace-building processes around the world. Switzerland is also the birthplace of the Red Cross and home to a large number of international organizations, including the second largest UN office. On the European level, it is a founding member of the European Free Trade Association and is part of the Schengen Area – although it is notably not a member of the European Union, nor the European Economic Area.
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The White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the President of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical style. It has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams. When Thomas Jefferson moved into the house in 1801, he (with architect Benjamin Henry Latrobe) expanded the building outward, creating two colonnades that were meant to conceal stables and storage.
In 1814, during the War of 1812, the mansion was set ablaze by the British Army in the Burning of Washington, destroying the interior and charring much of the exterior. Reconstruction began almost immediately, and President James Monroe moved into the partially reconstructed house in October 1817. Construction continued with the addition of the South Portico in 1824 and the North in 1829. Because of crowding within the executive mansion itself, President Theodore Roosevelt had all work offices relocated to the newly constructed West Wing in 1901. Eight years later, President William Howard Taft expanded the West Wing and created the first Oval Office which was eventually moved as the section was expanded. The third-floor attic was converted to living quarters in 1927 by augmenting the existing hip roof with long shed dormers. A newly constructed East Wing was used as a reception area for social events; Jefferson's colonnades connected the new wings. East Wing alterations were completed in 1946, creating additional office space. By 1948, the house's load-bearing exterior walls and internal wood beams were found to be close to failure. Under Harry S. Truman, the interior rooms were completely dismantled and a new internal load-bearing steel frame constructed inside the walls. Once this work was completed, the interior rooms were rebuilt.
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Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university located in Medford/Somerville, near Boston, Massachusetts. The university is organized into ten schools, including two undergraduate programs and eight graduate divisions, on four campuses in Massachusetts. The university emphasizes active citizenship and public service in all of its disciplines more than any peer school and is well known for its internationalism and study abroad programs. Among its schools is the United States' oldest graduate school of international relations, The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.
In 1852, Tufts College was founded by Christian Universalists who worked for years to open a non-sectarian institution of higher learning.Charles Tufts donated the land for the campus on Walnut Hill, the highest point in Medford, saying that he wanted to set a "light on the hill." The name was changed to Tufts University in 1954, although the corporate name remains "the Trustees of Tufts College." After more than a century, Tufts was a small New England liberal arts college. The French-American nutritionist Jean Mayer became president of Tufts in the late 1970s and, through a series of mergers with other institutions, transformed the school into an internationally renowned research university. It consistently ranks among the country's best colleges.
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United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK, or Britain) is a sovereign state located off the north-western coast of continental Europe. The country includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands. Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. Apart from this land border the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel and the Irish Sea.
The United Kingdom is a unitary state governed under a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary system, with its seat of government in the capital city of London. It is a country in its own right and consists of four countries: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. There are three devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in Belfast, Edinburgh and Cardiff, the capitals of Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Associated with the UK, but not constitutionally part of it, are three Crown Dependencies. The United Kingdom has fourteen overseas territories. These are remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in 1922, encompassed almost a quarter of the world's land surface and was the largest empire in history. British influence can still be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former territories.
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United States
The United States of America (commonly abbreviated to the United States, the U.S., the USA, America, and the States) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The state of Alaska is in the northwest of the continent, with Canada to the east and Russia to the west, across the Bering Strait. The state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The country also possesses several territories in the Pacific and Caribbean.
At 3.79 million square miles (9.83 million km2) and with over 312 million people, the United States is the third or fourth largest country by total area, and the third largest by both land area and population. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many countries. The U.S. economy is the world's largest national economy, with an estimated 2011 GDP of $15.1 trillion (22% of nominal global GDP and over 19% of global GDP at purchasing-power parity). Per capita income is the world's sixth-highest.
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University of Texas
The University of Texas at Austin (informally Texas, University of Texas, UT Austin, or simply UT) is a state research university in Downtown Austin, Texas, USA. It is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is approximately 0.25 miles (400 m) from the Texas State Capitol in Austin. The institution has the fifth-largest single-campus enrollment in the nation as of fall 2010 (and had the largest enrollment in the country from 1997 to 2003), with over 50,000 undergraduate and graduate students and 16,500 faculty and staff. It currently holds the largest enrollment of any college in Texas.
The University of Texas at Austin was named one of the original eight Public Ivy institutions and was inducted into the American Association of Universities in 1929. The university is a major center for academic research, with research expenditures exceeding $640 million for the 2009–2010 school year. The university houses seven museums and seventeen libraries, including the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum and the Blanton Museum of Art, and operates various auxiliary research facilities, such as the J. J. Pickle Research Campus and the McDonald Observatory. Among university faculty are recipients of the Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize, the Wolf Prize, and the National Medal of Science, as well as many other awards.
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Visalia, California
Visalia ( /vaɪˈseɪljə/ vy-SAYL-yə) is a Central California city situated in the heart of California’s agricultural San Joaquin Valley, approximately 230 miles (370 km) southeast of San Francisco and 190 miles (310 km) north of Los Angeles. The population was 124,442 at the 2010 census.
Visalia is the 44th largest city in the state of California and the 201 largest in the United States.
Often referred to as the Gateway to the Sequoias, Visalia has an estimated population of 125,921 and spans over 28.6 square miles (74.1 km2) in Central California. Its inhabitants are known as "Visalians". In 2007, Visalia was named the 3rd fastest growing city in California and 19th fastest growing city in the U.S.
Settled in 1852, Visalia is the oldest permanent inland settlement between Stockton and Los Angeles. As the county seat and largest city of Tulare County, Visalia serves as the economic center to the region known as the Sequoia Valley, one of the most productive single agricultural areas in the United States. Visalia lies within miles of the tallest mountain range in the contiguous United States, the Sierra Nevada (U.S.) (see Mount Whitney, which is located in Tulare and Inyo counties), and is the closest major city to Sequoia National Park, home to some of the largest living things on Earth, the Giant Sequoia trees. It is known as "Where The Valley Meets The Giants."
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12373 Lancearmstrong
The asteroid 12373 Lancearmstrong is a Main belt asteroid discovered by Charles de Saint-Aignan at Lowell Observatory, examining films taken at Palomar.
Lance Armstrong (b. 1971) is an American cyclist and cancer survivor. After being diagnosed with advanced testicular cancer in 1996, he was able to return to cycling and win the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times. He serves as an inspiration to cancer survivors and athletes around the world †.
This orbital diagram is courtesy of the JPL Small-Body Database Browser File:Lancearmstrong Orbit.jpg
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Aaron Rodgers
Aaron Charles Rodgers (born December 2, 1983) is an American football quarterback for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He was selected in the first round (24th overall) of the 2005 NFL Draft by the Packers. Rodgers played college football at the University of California, Berkeley, where he set several California Golden Bears records, including lowest interception rate at 1.43%.
Professionally, Rodgers is the NFL's all-time career leader in passer rating during both the regular season with a rating of 104.1, and the post-season with a rating of 105.5 – among passers with at least 1,500 and 150 pass attempts respectively. He also holds the league's lowest career pass interception percentage for quarterbacks during the regular season with a percentage of 1.80%, and the single season passer rating record of 122.5. Rodgers led the Green Bay Packers to win Super Bowl XLV and was named Super Bowl MVP. As a result, he was named Associated Press Athlete of the Year in 2011.
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Abraham Olano
Abraham Olano Manzano (born on January 22, 1970 in Anoeta, Gipuzkoa) is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist. His highest achievement was in 1995 when he became World Road Champion. In 1998 he won the World Time Trial Championship.
Olano started racing 11 years old at the Oria Cycling school, and already at junior level he won several races. Later, Olano went to track racing. He became Spanish Champion in pursuit (together with Etxegoyen, Pérez and Juárez), in the 1 km with standing start and in sprint. In road racing, he started as an amateur for Kaiku and AVSA. He was specialized in sprinting.
In 1992, Olano started his professional career at CHCS. This team shortly after disbanded, and he moved to Lotus. With Lotus, Olano won his first professional race, the Gran Premio de Villafranca de Ordizia in Gipuzkoa.
In 1993, Olano switched to CLAS Cajastur, which was later merged with Mapei. Here, he started to win important races, such as the Vuelta a Asturias and the Spanish National Road Race Championships, both in road race and time trial.
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Alberto Contador
Alberto Contador Velasco (Spanish pronunciation: [alˈβerto kontaˈðor βeˈlasko]; born 6 December 1982) is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, who last rode for UCI ProTeam Team Saxo Bank. He was the winner of the 2007 Tour de France with the Discovery Channel team. With the Astana team he has won the 2008 Giro d'Italia, the 2008 Vuelta a España and the 2009 Tour de France. He initially also won the 2010 Tour de France with this team, and the 2011 Giro d'Italia with team Saxo Bank-SunGard, only to be stripped from these titles later having been found guilty of a doping offence. He is the fifth racer in history, and the first Spaniard, to win all three Grand Tours of road cycling.
Contador is widely considered to be the best climbing specialist and stage racer in the world. Notable summit stage finishes on which he has victories include the Alto de El Angliru in the Vuelta, the Plateau de Beille in the Tour and Mount Etna in the Giro. After being widely expected to lose his tenuous lead in the 2007 Tour de France in that race's final individual time trial, Contador has become a more accomplished time trialist, with several victories in the discipline. He has earned a reputation as an all-rounder, a cyclist who excels in all aspects of stage racing which are needed for high places in the general classification.
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Alberto Salazar
Alberto Salazar (born August 7, 1958 in Cuba) is an American marathon runner of the 1980s. Born in Cuba, Salazar emigrated to the United States with his family. They ultimately moved to Wayland, Massachusetts, where Salazar competed in track and field in high school. Salazar is best known for his performances in the New York City Marathons in the early 1980s and his American track records of 13:11.93 for 5,000 m (July 6, 1982 - Stockholm) and 27:25.61 for 10,000 m - (June 26, 1982 - Oslo).
Salazar started as a high school standout from Wayland, Massachusetts. He was the state cross country champion in 1975 and trained wıth the well known Greater Boston Track Club (whose members ıncluded the likes of Bill Rodgers, Randy Thomas, and Greg Meyer) where he was given the nickname of "the rookie". From there he went to the University of Oregon where he won numerous All American honors, was a member of the 1977 NCAA cross country championship team, won the individual NCAA cross country championship in 1978, finished third in the Olympic Trials 10,000 meter race to make the 1980 Olympic team (that didn't compete in the Olympics in Moscow due to the U.S. boycott), and broke the American indoor 5,000 meter record in February, 1981 at the Millrose Games in New York (his 13:22.6 beating the old AR by nearly 20 seconds as he finished second behind Suleiman Nyambui, who broke the indoor world record with a 13:20.4). Salazar and Rodgers had a legendary duel at the Gurnet Classic Beach Run in Duxbury during the 1970s. At the 1978 Falmouth Road Race after fading to 10th place, he collapsed at the finish with a temperature of 107 degrees Fahrenheit (41.7 °C) and was read his last rites prematurely.
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Alessandro Ballan
Alessandro Ballan (born 6 November 1979 in Castelfranco Veneto, Veneto) is an Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI WorldTour team BMC Racing Team, and is a former world champion. Although he possesses a frame that is usually more associated with climbing, Ballan has established himself as a leading spring classics contender in recent years. His nickname, Bontempino, is a diminutive reference to Guido Bontempi, to whom he bears a resemblance.
Ballan turned professional in 2004 with the Lampre team. Despite a decent amateur career, Ballan was not sought after by professional teams, and required a little bit of help to secure a professional contract. In his first season, Ballan worked as a domestique for Romāns Vainšteins and Gianluca Bortolami. In 2005, Ballan was given the opportunity to aim for high placings in the spring classics and achieved a stage victory and second overall in the Three Days of De Panne, along with sixth place in the Ronde van Vlaanderen, having attacked the leading group with 37 km to go. Later in the season, he achieved his first ProTour victory in taking stage 4 of the Eneco Tour of Benelux.
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Alex Zülle
Alex Zülle (born 5 July 1968) is a Swiss former professional road bicycle racer. During the 1990s he was one of the best cyclists in the world, winning back-to-back in the 1996 and 1997 Vuelta a España, and taking second place in the 1995 and 1999 Tour de France. He was world time-trial champion in Lugano in 1996.
Zülle was born and brought up in Wil in the canton of St. Gallen, son of a Swiss father, Walter Zülle and Wilhelmine, from Brabant, Netherlands. As a child he wanted to be a skier but at 18 he was injured in an accident. He began cycling in Holland for rehabilitation before giving up because it was too windy.
His father, having bought cycling equipment, persuaded him to give cycling another go when they returned to Switzerland. After several years as a successful amateur, Zülle turned professional in 1991. He approached the former sporting director of the Swiss team, Helvetia, Paul Köchli, but Köchli signed Laurent Dufaux instead.
Zülle then approached Manolo Saiz, but was rebuffed because, among reasons, he did not contract riders who wore earrings. Eventually, Saiz softened and Zülle rode for ONCE as a stagaire or apprentice in the Volta a Catalunya. He attacked frequently and finished third. Saiz relented and Zülle signed his first professional contract in September 1991. He remained with ONCE until 1997. Most of its riders were Spanish. Zülle spoke only Swiss-German when he joined but at the end of the Vuelta a España he answered journalists in Spanish.
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Alexandre Vinokourov
Alexander Nikolaevich Vinokourov, also written Alexandre Vinokourov, (Russian: Алексaндр Николаевич Винокуров) (born September 16, 1973 in Bishkul near Petropavl) is an ethnically Russian Kazakhstani professional road bicycle racer who currently competes with the UCI ProTeam Astana. Known simply as "Vino" to many of his fans, he is both calculating and impulsive on the bike, an all-around rider with an aggressive, attacking style. His palmarès includes four stage wins at the Tour de France, four at the Vuelta a España (plus the overall title in 2006), two Liège–Bastogne–Liège monuments, and one Amstel Gold Race - plus numerous smaller stage and one-day races. Vino is a past national champion of Kazakhstan, and a silver medalist at the Summer Olympics.
Vinokourov began cycling in 1984 as an 11 year-old, competing within the former Soviet Union. He moved to France in 1997 to finish his amateur career, and then turned professional there in 1998. Vinokourov has enjoyed tremendous, consistent success in Europe, but his career was rudely interrupted during the 2007 Tour de France, when he was alleged to have been blood doping - a charge that was later confirmed. Vino begrudgingly served a 2-year ban before returning to cycling in August 2009, riding first for the national team of Kazakhstan and then for his beloved Astana. A serious crash during the 2011 Tour de France threatened to prematurely end Vino's career for a second time, but he fought back and announced he would continue for one more season in 2012 - with an eye towards competing in the Olympic Games in London.
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Alfredo Binda
Alfredo Binda (11 August 1902 – 19 July 1986) was an Italian cyclist of the 1920s and 1930s, later trainer of Fausto Coppi and Gino Bartali. Binda was the first multiple Giro d'Italia champion, securing five victories between 1925 and 1933 that redefined the way stage races were ridden. Handsome, rugged and talented, Alfredo Binda was undoubtedly the first superstar of the Giro d'Italia. A popular rider, Binda essentially became the archetypal modern stage racer way before his time. The legacy he left cycling with was his ability to combine the strength of a one-day Classics rider with an incredible climbing prowess.
Three road world championship titles, five Giro wins, two Milan – San Remo crowns and four Giro di Lombardia victories all indicate the immense capabilities Binda possessed. His record of overall Giro titles wasn't equalled until another legendary Italian rider, Fausto Coppi, took his fifth title in 1953, and it has never been surpassed.
Although born in Cittiglio near Varese, Binda grew up in Nice, in southern France. Learning to become a plasterer, Binda could often be found at the cycling track. A real cycling talent, strong both in the mountains and in the individual time trialing, he was an all-arounder.
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Alonzo Mourning
Alonzo Harding Mourning, Jr. (born February 8, 1970) is a former American professional basketball player, who played most of his 15-year NBA career for the Miami Heat.
Nicknamed "Zo", Mourning played at center. His tenacity on defense twice earned him NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award and perennially placed him on the NBA All-Defensive Team. He made a comeback after undergoing a kidney transplant and later won his only NBA Championship with the Heat. He has also played for the Charlotte Hornets and New Jersey Nets. On March 30, 2009, Mourning became the first Miami Heat player to have his number retired.
During his time at Indian River High School in Chesapeake, Virginia, he led the team to 51 straight victories and a state title his junior year (1987). As a senior he averaged 25 points, 15 rebounds and 12 blocked shots a game. He was named Player of the Year by USA Today, Parade, Gatorade, and Naismith. Mourning played college basketball for the Georgetown University Hoyas. He led the nation in blocked shots his freshman year and was an All American his last year there.
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Andre Agassi
Andre Kirk Agassi ( /ˈɑːndreɪ ˈæɡəsi/; born April 29, 1970) is a retired American professional tennis player and former world no. 1. Generally considered by critics and fellow players to be one of the greatest tennis players of all time, Agassi has been called the best service returner in the history of the game. Described by the BBC upon his retirement as "perhaps the biggest worldwide star in the sport's history", Agassi's performances, along with his unorthodox apparel and attitude, have seen him cited as one of the most charismatic players in the history of the game, and credited for helping revive the popularity of tennis during the 1990s.
In singles tennis, Agassi is an eight-time Grand Slam champion who competed in 15 Grand Slam finals, and an Olympic gold medalist. A multi-surface specialist, he is the first of two male players to have achieved a singles Career Golden Slam, and one of four to have achieved a singles Career Grand Slam in the Open Era (one of seven in history). He was the first male player to win all four Grand Slams on three different surfaces (hard, clay and grass), and is the last American male to win the French Open (1999) and the Australian Open (2003). Agassi also won 17 ATP Masters Series titles, the 1990 ATP Tour World Championships, and was part of a winning Davis Cup team in 1990 and 1992. He is the only male singles player in history to have won all four Grand Slam tournaments, the Olympic gold medal and the ATP Tour World Championships: a distinction dubbed as a "Career Super Slam" by Sports Illustrated.
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Andrea Jaeger
Andrea Jaeger (born June 4, 1965 in Chicago, Illinois) is a former World No. 2 professional tennis player from the United States whose brief but highly successful tennis career ended prematurely due to major shoulder injuries. Jaeger reached the singles final of Wimbledon in 1983 and the French Open in 1982. She reached the singles semifinals of the Australian Open in 1982 and of the U.S. Open in 1980 and 1982. She also won 8 singles titles. In mixed doubles, Jaeger won the French Open with Jimmy Arias in 1981. During her career, Jaeger won U.S. $1.4 million in prize money and millions more in endorsements. After retirement in 1987, she has prominently dedicated her life to public service, charities, and philanthropy. In 2006 she became Sister Andrea, an Anglican Dominican nun. She is a member of the Episcopal Church and based in Colorado, U.S.
While a student at Stevenson High School in suburban Chicago, Jaeger was the top ranked player in the United States in the 18-and-under age group. She won 13 U.S. national junior titles, including the most prominent junior titles in tennis: the 1979 Orange Bowl and 1979 Boca Raton.
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André Darrigade
André Darrigade (born Narrosse, 24 April 1929) was a French professional road bicycle racer between 1951 and 1966. Darrigade, a road sprinter won the 1959 World Championship and 22 stages of the Tour de France. Five of those were on the first day. The record has never been equalled.
André Darrigade was born at Narosse, near Dax in the forested Landes region. He came to attention at the other end of the country and on the track by beating the future world sprint champion, Antonio Maspes in a meeting at the Vélodrome d'Hiver the night before the six-day race there.
His name immediately appealed to northern crowds. René de Latour said: "It is a very 'musical' name to [northern] French ears, especially when pronounced by a southerner who rolls his Rs like a Scotsman to make it sound like Darrrrrigade. De Latour said:
Darrigade stayed in Paris and joined one of its leading clubs, the Vélo-Club d'Asnières-Courbevoie, at the invitation of Francis Pélissier, the former professional who was one of its officials. Darrigade rode again on the track at the Vél' d'Hiv, winning madisons and sprints, and won four races on the road. He turned professional in 1951 for a salary that barely covered his rent
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André Leducq
André Leducq (27 February 1904, Saint-Ouen, Seine-Saint-Denis - 18 June 1980) was a French cyclist who won the 1930 and 1932 Tour de France.
Leducq was born at Saint-Ouen. He was twice world champion as an amateur before turning professional in 1927. The following year he won Paris–Roubaix and was second in the Tour de France, becoming popular for his humour. His other victories included two Tours de France (he won 25 stages in nine rides) and the 1931 Paris–Tours.
After his retirement, he founded a professional cycling team that raced in the 1950s.
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Andy Schleck
Andy Raymond Schleck (born June 10, 1985) is a Luxembourgish professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team RadioShack-Nissan-Trek. He has been the runner-up at the Tour de France three times - in 2009, 2010 and 2011, but was later promoted to 2010 champion after Alberto Contador was found guilty of doping. He is the younger brother of Fränk Schleck, who also rides for RadioShack-Nissan-Trek. Their father Johny Schleck rode the Tour de France and Vuelta a España between 1965 and 1974.
Andy Schleck was born in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg, and is the youngest of Gaby and Johny Schleck's three sons. His older brother Fränk Schleck is also a cyclist on RadioShack-Nissan-Trek, and his oldest brother Steve Schleck is a politician in Luxembourg. Andy's father, Johny Schleck, is a former professional cyclist and rode the Tour de France at the service of 1968 winner Jan Janssen and 1973 winner Luis Ocaña, and also managed to finish in the top 20 twice: 19th in 1970 and 20th in 1967. He won a stage in the 1970 Vuelta a España and the Luxembourg National Championships. Johny's father, Gustav Schleck, also contested events in the 1930s.
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Antonin Magne
Antonin Magne (15 February 1904 in Ytrac, Cantal – 8 September 1983 in Arcachon) was a French cyclist who won the Tour de France in 1931 and 1934. He raced as a professional from 1927 to 1939 and then became a team manager. The French rider and then journalist, Jean Bobet, described him in Sporting Cyclist as "a most uninterviewable character" and "a man who withdraws into a shell as soon as he meets a journalist." His taciturn character earned him the nickname of The Monk when he was racing.
Magne was part of the Alleluia Team which, with Pierre Magne, Julien Moineau, Marius Gallotini, Arsène Alancourt, and André Cauet, won the 1927 GP Wolber, considered the unofficial world road race championship.
Magne first rode the Tour in 1927, alongside Andé Leducq in the France team. His two victories in the Tour had a dramatic quality because of the crashes, falls, bad luck and competition that he faced. He crashed in 1931 and was repeatedly attacked by the Italian Pesanti and the Belgian, Jef Demuysere. He finished the race so exhausted that he didn't start again next year. In 1934 he won again with the help of René Vietto, Georges Speicher and Roger Lapébie. Magne was the first rider to win a time trial in the Tour de France, over 80 km from La Roche-sur-Yon to Nantes in 1934.
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Arnold Palmer
Arnold Daniel Palmer (born September 10, 1929) is an American professional golfer, who is generally regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of men's professional golf. He has won numerous events on both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour, dating back to 1955. Nicknamed "The King," he is one of golf's most popular stars and its most important trailblazer, because he was the first superstar of the sport's television age, which began in the 1950s. He is part of "The Big Three" in golf, along with Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player, who are widely credited with popularizing and commercialising the sport around the world.
Palmer won the PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998, and in 1974 was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.
Palmer was born in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. He learned golf from his father, Deacon Palmer, who was head professional and greenskeeper at Latrobe Country Club, allowing young Arnold to accompany his father as he maintained the course. He attended Wake Forest University, on a golf scholarship. He left upon the death of close friend Bud Worsham and enlisted in the United States Coast Guard, where he served for three years and had some time to continue to hone his golf skills. Palmer returned to college and competitive golf. His win in the 1954 U.S. Amateur made him decide to try the pro tour for a while, and he and new bride Winifred Walzer (whom he had met at a Pennsylvania tournament) traveled the circuit for 1955.
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Arthur Ashe
Arthur Robert Ashe, Jr. (July 10, 1943 – February 6, 1993) was a former World No. 1 professional tennis player, born and raised in Richmond, Virginia. During his career, he won three Grand Slam titles, putting him among the best ever from the United States. Ashe, an African American, was the first black player ever selected to the United States Davis Cup team and the only black man to ever win the singles title at Wimbledon, the US Open, or Australian Open. He is also remembered for his efforts to further social causes.
Born in Gum Spring, Virginia, to parents Arthur Ashe Sr. and Mattie Cordell Cunningham Ashe, Arthur and his younger brother, Johnnie, suffered a tragic loss when their mother died suddenly from heart related complications during routine surgery. Arthur Ashe first attended Maggie L. Walker High School, being coached by Ronald Charity, and later coached by Robert Walter Johnson. Tired of having to travel great distances to play Caucasian youths in segregated Richmond, Ashe accepted an offer from a St. Louis tennis official to move there and attend Sumner High School. Young Ashe was recognized by Sports Illustrated for his playing.
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Barry Bonds
Barry Lamar Bonds (born July 24, 1964) is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder. Bonds played from 1986 to 2007, for the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. He is the son of former major league All-Star Bobby Bonds. He debuted in the Major Leagues with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1986 and joined the San Francisco Giants in 1993, where he stayed through 2007.
Bonds' accomplishments during his baseball career place him among the greatest baseball players of all-time. He has a record-setting seven Most Valuable Player awards, including a record-setting four consecutive MVPs. He is a 14-time All-Star and 8-time Gold Glove-winner. He holds numerous Major League Baseball records, including the all-time Major League Baseball home run record with 762 and the single-season Major League record for home runs with 73 (set in 2001), and is also the all-time career leader in both walks (2,558) and intentional walks (688).
Bonds has led a controversial career, notably as a central figure in baseball's steroids scandal. In 2007, he was indicted on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice for allegedly lying to the grand jury during the government's investigation of BALCO, by testifying that he never knowingly took any illegal steroids. The trial began March 21, 2011; he was convicted on April 13, 2011 on the obstruction of justice charge.
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Ben Hogan
William Ben Hogan (August 13, 1912 – July 25, 1997) was an American professional golfer, generally considered one of the greatest players in the history of the game. Born within six months of two other acknowledged golf greats of the twentieth century, Sam Snead and Byron Nelson, Hogan is notable for his profound influence on the golf swing theory and his legendary ball-striking ability, for which he remains renowned among players and fans.
His nine career professional major championships tie him (with Gary Player) for fourth all-time, trailing only Jack Nicklaus (18), Tiger Woods (14) and Walter Hagen (11). Furthermore, he is one of only five golfers to have won all four major championships currently open to professionals (the Masters Tournament, the British Open, the U.S. Open, and the PGA Championship), the other four being Gene Sarazen, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods.
Born in Stephenville, Texas, he was the third and youngest child of Chester and Clara (Williams) Hogan. His father was a blacksmith and the family lived ten miles southwest in Dublin until 1921, when they moved 70 miles (112 km) northeast to Fort Worth. In 1922, when Hogan was nine, his father Chester committed suicide at the family home via a self-inflicted gunshot to the chest. By some accounts Chester committed suicide in front of him, which some (including Hogan biographer James Dodson) have cited as the cause of his introverted personality in later years.
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Benoni Beheyt
Benoni Beheyt (born 27 September 1940 in Zwijnaarde) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer who raced from 1962 to 1968. Beheyt won 22 races and is most famous for winning the 1963 World Cycling Championships Road Race and stage win of the 1964 Tour de France.
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Bernard Hinault
Bernard Hinault (born 14 November 1954 in Yffiniac, Brittany) is a former French cyclist known for five victories in the Tour de France. He is one of only five cyclists to have won all three Grand Tours, and the only cyclist to have won each more than once. He won the Tour de France in 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982 and 1985. He came second in 1984 and 1986 and won 28 stages, of which 13 were individual time trials. The other four to have achieved at least five victories are Jacques Anquetil (1964), Eddy Merckx (1974), Miguel Indurain (1995) and Lance Armstrong (2003). Even among these elite riders, he is the only one to have finished either first or second in each Tour de France he finished.
Hinault was nicknamed Le Blaireau, initially for his looks, as he would often don a hairband, thus resembling a shaving brush. Later, the second meaning of this french word (the Badger) would become the dominant reason for his nickname, because the animal has the reputation of not letting go of his prey. Throughout his career, he's been known for his personality: independent, outspoken, quick to take offense and quick with a riposte. In an interview in the French magazine, Vélo, however, Hinault said the nickname had nothing to do with the animal. He said it was a local cyclists' way of saying "mate" or "buddy" in his youth - "How's it going, badger?" - and that it came to refer to him personally.
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Bill Russell
William Felton "Bill" Russell (born February 12, 1934) is a retired American professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A five-time winner of the NBA Most Valuable Player Award and a twelve-time All-Star, Russell was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty that won eleven NBA Championships during Russell's thirteen-year career. Along with Henri Richard of the National Hockey League's Montreal Canadiens, Russell holds the record for the most championships won by an athlete in a North American sports league. Before his professional career, Russell led the University of San Francisco to two consecutive NCAA championships (1955, 1956). He also won a gold medal at the 1956 Summer Olympics as captain of the U.S. national basketball team.
Russell is widely considered one of the best players in NBA history. Listed as between 6'9" (2.06 m) and 6'10" (2.08 m), Russell's shot-blocking and man-to-man defense were major reasons for the Celtics' success. He also inspired his teammates to elevate their own defensive play. Russell was equally notable for his rebounding abilities. He led the NBA in rebounds four times, and remains second all-time in both total rebounds and rebounds per game. He is one of just two NBA players (the other being prominent rival Wilt Chamberlain) to have grabbed more than fifty rebounds in a game. Though never the focal point of the Celtics' offense, Russell also scored 14,522 career points and provided effective passing.
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Billie Jean King
Billie Jean King (née Moffitt; born November 22, 1943) is a former professional tennis player from the United States. She won 12 Grand Slam singles titles, 16 Grand Slam women's doubles titles, and 11 Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. King has been an advocate against sexism in sports and society. She won "The Battle of the Sexes" in 1973, in which she defeated Bobby Riggs, a former Wimbledon men's singles champion, for $100,000, winner take all. She completed a career tour all surfaces win-loss performance of 81.76% (696-165). Her win-loss performance in all Grand Slam singles tournaments was 82.00% (190-39), at the French Open 77.77% (21-6), at Wimbledon 86.36% (95-15), at the US Open 80.55% (58–14), and at the Australian Open 80.00% (16-4).
King is the founder of the Women's Tennis Association, the Women's Sports Foundation, and owner of World Team Tennis, which was founded by her former husband, Larry King, Dennis Murphy, Frank Barman, and Jordan Kaiser.
Billie Jean Moffit was born in Long Beach, California, into a conservative Methodist family, the daughter of a fireman father and housewife mother. Her younger brother Randy Moffitt grew up to become a professional baseball player, pitching for 12 years in the major leagues for the San Francisco Giants, Houston Astros, and Toronto Blue Jays.
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Bjarne Riis
Bjarne Lykkegård Riis (born April 3, 1964 in Herning), nicknamed The Eagle from Herning (Danish: Ørnen fra Herning), is a Danish former professional road bicycle racer who placed first in the 1996 Tour de France, and is now the team owner and manager of Danish UCI ProTour outfit Team Saxo Bank. Other career highlights include placing first in the Amstel Gold Race in 1997, multiple Danish National Championships, and stage wins in the Giro d'Italia. On May 25, 2007 he admitted that he placed first in the Tour de France using banned substances, and he was no longer considered the winner by the tour's organizers. In July 2008 he is back on the list of Tour winners, but with additional notes about his use of doping.
Riis began cycling at local club Herning CK. When he was not selected for the 1984 Summer Olympics, former cyclist Kim Andersen advised Riis to start his professional career not in Italy, but in Luxembourg. His professional career started in 1986, his first result was a fifth place finish in the GP Wallonie that year. Following a few years with no personal wins, he had yet to impress when his contract ran out in 1988.
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Bob Bourne
Robert Glen Bourne (born June 21, 1954) is a retired professional ice hockey centre who played for the New York Islanders and the Los Angeles Kings of the NHL between 1974 and 1988.
Bourne was drafted 38th overall by the Kansas City Scouts in the 1974 NHL Amateur Draft, though he would never play for the organization. On September 13, 1974, he was traded to the Islanders for Bart Crashley and the rights to Larry Hornung.
Bourne spent the entire 1974–75 season with the Islanders but found himself in the minor leagues the following year. He returned to the Islanders for the 1976–77 season, and spent the next ten seasons on Long Island, recording at least thirty goals three times and between twenty and thirty goals three others. He won the Stanley Cup 4 times — 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983. He led the Islanders in playoff scoring en route to their fourth Stanley Cup in 1983.
Bourne's career ended on a high note. He was claimed by the Los Angeles Kings on waivers in October 1986 and played 2 seasons with the Kings. In his final year in the NHL he was awarded the Bill Masterton Trophy for perseverance. He was also honored by Sports Illustrated as one of several Sportsmen of the Year in 1987, as one of eight "Athletes Who Care" for their work in humanitarian causes. Bourne was singled out for his work with a school for disabled children.
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Bob Roll
Bob Roll (born July 7, 1960, in Oakland, California) is a former American professional cyclist, author, and television sports commentator. He was a member of the 7-Eleven Cycling Team until 1990 and competed for the Motorola Cycling Team in 1991. In 1992 Roll moved to Greg LeMond's Z team and added mountain biking to his racing accomplishments. He continued racing mountain bikes through 1998.
He has written Bobke: A Ride on the Wild Side of Cycling, Bobke II, and two Tour de France Companion volumes. ("Bobke" is Southern Dutch for "Bobby".) He has also had many columns published in VeloNews.
In 1998, Lance Armstrong was recovering from cancer and had dropped out of the Paris–Nice race. Armstrong's coach, Chris Carmichael, asked Roll to go to Boone, North Carolina, to ride with Armstrong for a few days. Armstrong was discouraged by Europe and on the verge of retiring. Carmichael wanted him to do one more training session, with Roll. According to Roll, "Lance had probably never met a bike racer like me...a person who could still find some happiness in such misery. We had eight hours a day for eight days of riding in the pouring rain - rain in Biblical proportions! I think Lance would've turned things around even without that time in the Appalachia[n]s, but it was a pivotal time." Armstrong went on to fourth in the Vuelta a España, and within a year and a half won his first Tour de France. (Roll's tale of the ride is in Bobke II; Armstrong's is in It's Not About the Bike.)
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Bobby Morrow
Bobby Joe Morrow (born October 15, 1935) is a former American athlete, winner of three Olympic gold medals in 1956. Morrow has been called "the dominant sprinter of the 1950s" and "the most relaxed sprinter of all time, even more so than his hero Jesse Owens".
Bobby Joe Morrow was born in Harlingen, Texas, and raised on a farm in San Benito, Texas. Before becoming a sprinter, Morrow played football for San Benito High School. Morrow also was a sprinter at Abilene Christian University and a member of the men's club Frater Sodalis.
Morrow won the 1955 AAU 100 yard title. His most successful season was in 1956, when he was chosen by Sports Illustrated as "Sportsman of the Year". Morrow won the sprint double in the national college championships and defended his AAU title. Morrow then went to the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, where he won three gold medals and was the leader of the American sprint team.
In all, Morrow won three gold medals. First, he was victorious in the 100 meter dash. He then led an American sweep of the medals in the 200 meter dash, while equaling the World Record at that distance. He won his third gold by anchoring the 4×100 meter relay team to a World Record time. The three performances are encapsulated in this youtube video.
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Bobby Orr
Robert Gordon "Bobby" Orr, OC (born March 20, 1948) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Orr played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for his entire career, the first ten seasons with the Boston Bruins, joining the Chicago Black Hawks for two more. Orr is widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest hockey players of all time. A defenceman, Orr used his ice skating speed and scoring and play-making abilities to revolutionize the position. As of 2011[update], Orr remains the only defenceman to have won the league scoring title with two Art Ross Trophies and holds the record for most points and assists in a single season by a defenceman. Orr won a record eight consecutive Norris Trophies as the NHL's best defenceman and three consecutive Hart Trophies as the league's most valuable player (MVP). Orr was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979 at age 31, the youngest to that day to be inducted into the Hall.
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Bonnie Blair
Bonnie Kathleen Blair (born March 18, 1964 in Cornwall, New York) is a retired American speedskater. She is one of the top skaters of her time, and one of the most decorated athletes in Olympic history. Blair competed for the United States in four Olympics, and in her Olympic career won five gold medals and one bronze medal.
Blair was raised in Champaign, Illinois. She attended Jefferson Middle School. After graduation from Centennial High School in Champaign, she moved to the Milwaukee area to train with the United States national speed skating team.
Blair appeared at her first Olympic games in Sarajevo in 1984. She failed to medal but finished eighth in the 500 meters. At the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Alberta, Blair won gold in the 500 meters and bronze in the 1000 meters. In the 500 meters race, Blair set a world record by completing the event in 39.10 seconds. She won both the 500 and 1000 meters (1:21.90) again at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France.
Blair took advantage of a change of Olympic rules. In 1986, the International Olympic Committee voted to stage the Winter Olympics and Summer Olympics in alternating four year cycles. Thus, the next Winter Games would be held in February 1994 rather than in February 1996. The 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway, were a coronation of sorts for Blair: She again won gold in the 500 meters (39.25) and 1000 (1:18.74) meters races, in dominating fashion. Blair finished 0.36 seconds ahead of the second best time in the 500 meters, and her 1.38 second margin in the 1000 meters race is the largest margin of victory in the history of the event. In the process she became the first American woman to win five gold medals. She also was the only American to have 6 medals at any Winter olympics, which record stood until Apolo Ohno tied it and then surpassed it at the 2010 Winter Olympics when he won a silver and two bronze medals in short track speed skating for eight career medals.
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Brett Favre
Brett Lorenzo Favre (born October 10, 1969) is a former American football quarterback who spent the majority of his career with the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He was a 20-year veteran of the NFL, having played quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons (1991), Green Bay Packers (1992–2007), New York Jets (2008) and Minnesota Vikings (2009–2010). Favre is the only quarterback in NFL history to throw for over 70,000 yards, over 500 touchdowns, over 300 interceptions, and over 10,000 pass attempts. He officially retired on January 17, 2011.
Favre started at the quarterback position for the University of Southern Mississippi for four years before being selected in the second round of the 1991 NFL Draft by Atlanta (33rd overall). He was traded to Green Bay on February 10, 1992, for the 19th pick in the 1992 NFL Draft.
Favre became the Packers' starting quarterback in the fourth game of the 1992 season, and started every game through the 2007 season. He was traded to the New York Jets and started at quarterback for the 2008 season before signing with the Vikings on August 18, 2009 as their starting quarterback. He made an NFL record 297 consecutive starts (321 including playoffs).
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Bruce Jenner
William Bruce Jenner (born October 28, 1949) is a former U.S. track and field athlete, motivational speaker, socialite and television personality. He won the gold medal for decathlon in the Montreal 1976 Summer Olympics.
Following his Olympic victory and the related recognition, his professional career evolved into being a television celebrity. By 1981 he had starred in several made-for-TV movies and was Erik Estrada's replacement on the top rated TV series CHiPs. Since the 2007 debut of Keeping Up with the Kardashians he has appeared as the step-father to the Kardashian sisters.
Bruce Jenner is originally from Mount Kisco, New York. He attended Newtown High School in Newtown, Connecticut, after spending a year at Sleepy Hollow High School in Sleepy Hollow, New York. Jenner earned a football scholarship and attended Graceland College (now Graceland University) in Iowa, but a knee injury forced him to stop playing football and he switched to the decathlon. He was mentored by Graceland's track coach L. D. Weldon, who was the first to recognize Jenner's potential and encouraged him to pursue the decathlon. Jenner debuted in the decathlon at the Drake Relays in 1970, placing fifth.
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Byron Nelson
John Byron Nelson, Jr. (February 4, 1912 – September 26, 2006) was an American PGA Tour golfer between 1935 and 1946.
Nelson and two other well-known golfers of the time, Ben Hogan and Sam Snead, were born within seven months of each other in 1912. Although he won many tournaments in the course of his relatively brief career, he is mostly remembered today for having won 11 consecutive tournaments and 18 total tournaments in 1945. He retired officially at the age of 34 to be a rancher, later becoming a commentator and lending his name to the HP Byron Nelson Championship, the first PGA Tour event to be named for a professional golfer. In 1974, Byron Nelson received the Bob Jones Award, the highest honor given by the United States Golf Association in recognition of distinguished sportsmanship in golf.
Nelson became the second recipient of the PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997, and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974. He received the 1994 Old Tom Morris Award from the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, GCSAA's highest honor. Nelson was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 2006.
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Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans (/kəˈdɛl/, born 14 February 1977) is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.
Evans turned to full-time road cycling in 2001, and gradually progressed through ranks. He finished second in 2007 and 2008 Tours de France. He became the first Australian to win the UCI ProTour (2007) and the UCI Road World Championships in 2009. Finally, he won the Tour de France in 2011, riding for BMC Racing Team, after two Tours riddled with bad luck. At 34, he was among the five oldest winners in the race's history.
Cadel Evans was born on 14 February 1977 at the Katherine Hospital, Katherine, Northern Territory, Australia, to Helen Cocks, a bank manager, and Paul Evans, a council foreman. He spent his early childhood in the small Aboriginal community of Barunga, 80 km east of Katherine. At the age of seven, he was hit in the head by a horse, and spent seven days in an induced coma. In 1986, his parents separated and he first moved with his mother to Armidale, New South Wales, and then to Eltham, Victoria, where his mother still lives. Evans attended Newling Public School in Armidale, and Eltham High School in Melbourne.Skateboarding was one of his teenage interests. His father describes him as a good student, but otherwise just an ordinary kid who would leave his toys around; "Not in [my] wildest dreams" would he imagine that his son would become a top world athlete. Cadel maintains his current Australian home in Barwon Heads, Victoria just outside of Melbourne.
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Cal Ripken, Jr.
Calvin Edwin "Cal" Ripken, Jr. (born August 8, 1960), nicknamed "Iron Man", is a former Major League Baseball shortstop and third baseman. He played his entire 21-year baseball career for the Baltimore Orioles (1981–2001).
Ripken is perhaps best known for breaking New York Yankees first baseman Lou Gehrig's record for consecutive games played, a record many deemed unbreakable. He surpassed the 56-year-old record when he played in his 2,131st consecutive game on September 6, 1995, against the California Angels in front of a sold-out crowd at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. To make the feat even more memorable, Ripken hit a home run in the previous night's game that tied Gehrig's record and another home run in his 2,131st game. Fans later voted his 2,131st game as Major League Baseball's "Most Memorable Moment" in MLB history. Ripken played in an additional 501 straight games over the next three years, and his streak ended at 2,632 games when he voluntarily removed his name from the lineup for the final Orioles home game of the 1998 season. His record 2,632 straight games spanned over seventeen seasons, from May 30, 1982, to September 20, 1998.
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Carl Lewis
Frederick Carlton "Carl" Lewis (born July 1, 1961) is an American former track and field athlete, who won 10 Olympic medals including 9 gold, and 10 World Championships medals, of which 8 were gold. His career spanned from 1979 when he first achieved a world ranking to 1996 when he last won an Olympic title and subsequently retired. Lewis became an actor and has appeared in a number of films.
Lewis was a dominant sprinter and long jumper who topped the world rankings in the 100 m, 200 m and long jump events frequently from 1981 to the early 1990s, was named Athlete of the Year by Track & Field News in 1982, 1983 and 1984, and set world records in the 100 m, 4 x 100 m and 4 x 200 m relays. His world record in the indoor long jump has stood since 1984 and his 65 consecutive victories in the long jump achieved over a span of 10 years is one of the sport’s longest undefeated streaks.
Over the course of his long athletics career, Lewis broke ten seconds for the 100 metres 15 times and twenty seconds for the 200 metres 10 times.
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Carl Yastrzemski
Carl Michael Yastrzemski ( /jəˈstrɛmski/; nicknamed "Yaz"; born August 22, 1939) is a former American Major League Baseball left fielder and first baseman. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989. Yastrzemski played his entire 23-year baseball career with the Boston Red Sox (1961–1983). He was primarily a left fielder, with part of his later career played at first base and as a designated hitter. Yastrzemski is an 18-time All-Star, the possessor of seven Gold Gloves, a member of the 3000 hit club, and the first American League player in that club to also accumulate over 400 home runs. He is second on the all-time list for games played, and third for total at-bats. He is the Red Sox' all-time leader in career RBIs, runs, hits, singles, doubles, total bases, and games played, and is second on the team's list for home runs behind another Red Sox great, Ted Williams, his predecessor in left field. In 1967, Yastrzemski achieved a peak in his career, leading the Red Sox to the American League pennant for the first time in over two decades, in that season being voted the American League MVP, and being the most recent winner of the triple crown for batters in the major leagues.
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Carlos Sastre
Carlos Sastre Candil (born 22 April 1975 in Leganés, Madrid) is a retired Spanish professional road bicycle racer and champion of the 2008 Tour de France. Sastre rode for UCI Professional Continental team Geox-TMC in 2011, before retiring. Through his consistently improved top 10 results in the Vuelta a España and good showings in the Tour de France, Sastre established himself as a strong and stable climbing specialist, and after working to improve his individual time trial skills, he became a contender for the top GC spots in the Grand Tours. In total, Sastre finished in the top ten overall of fifteen Grand Tours during his career.
When Sastre was young, professional cyclist Francisco Ignacio San Román lived in his parents's house during military service. Sastre was at first coached by his father, until he became an amateur.
Sastre signed his first professional contract in 1997 with ONCE. In his five years at ONCE he mostly served as a domestique and only managed a few wins, though he showed his strength in the mountains with several good results, most notably winning the mountain competition in the 2000 Vuelta a España.
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Chann McRae
William Chann McRae (born October 11, 1971) is an American professional road bicycle racer from Albany, Georgia. He was a professional from 1996 to 2003. He raced in the Tour de France and grew up with Lance Armstrong.
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Charlie Rose
Charles Peete "Charlie" Rose, Jr. (born January 5, 1942) is an American television talk show host and journalist. Since 1991 he has hosted Charlie Rose, an interview show distributed nationally by PBS since 1993. He has also co-anchored CBS This Morning since January 2012. Rose, along with Lara Logan, has hosted the revived CBS classic Person to Person, a news program during which celebrities are interviewed in their homes, originally hosted from 1953 to 1961 by Edward R. Murrow.
Rose was born in Henderson, North Carolina, the only child of Margaret Frazier and Charles Peete Rose, Sr., tobacco farmers who owned a country store. As a child, Rose lived above his parents' store in Henderson and helped out with the family business from age seven. Rose admitted in a Fresh Dialogues interview that as a child his insatiable curiosity was constantly getting him in trouble. A high school basketball star, Rose entered Duke University intending to pursue a degree with a pre-med track, but an internship in the office of Democratic North Carolina Senator B. Everett Jordan got him interested in politics. Rose graduated in 1964 with a bachelor's degree in history. At Duke, he was a member of the Kappa Alpha Order fraternity. He earned a Juris Doctor from the Duke University School of Law in 1968. He met his wife, Mary (née King), while attending Duke.
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Chris Evert
Christine Marie "Chris" Evert (born December 21, 1954) is a former world #1 professional tennis player from the United States. She won 18 Grand Slam singles championships, including a record seven championships at the French Open and a record six championships at the U.S. Open. She was the year-ending World No. 1 singles player in 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, and 1981.
Evert's career win–loss record in singles matches of 1,309–145 (90.05%) is the best of any professional player, man or woman, in the Open Era. On clay courts her career match win loss rate of 94.05% (316/20) remains a WTA record. In tennis writer Steve Flink's book The Greatest Tennis Matches of the Twentieth Century, he named Evert as the third best female player of the 20th century, after Steffi Graf and Martina Navratilova. Evert never lost in the first or second rounds of a Grand Slam singles tournament. She won 157 singles championships. In women's doubles, Evert won three Grand Slam titles and 29 regular tour championships.
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Christophe Bassons
Christophe Bassons (born on 10 June 1974, Mazamet, France) is a French former professional road racing cyclist whose career ended when he spoke out about doping in the Tour de France.
Christophe Bassons was born in Mazamet, in the Tarn department. He studied and qualified in civil engineering. He began cycle-racing in 1991 in mountain biking. He started racing on the road in 1992 and won the Tour du Tarn et Garonne in 1995. That same year he won the world military time-trial championship and became national time-trial champion. He turned professional in 1996 for Force Sud and then, when the team failed, for Festina, a watch and clock maker.
Bassons became known during the 1998 doping Festina scandal, when the discovery of a carload of drugs being driven to the team's riders in the Tour de France led to evidence that doping was widespread in the team. In September 1998, the newspaper France Soir published statements made to the police. Two convicted riders, Armin Meier and Christophe Moreau, said that Bassons was the only rider on the team not taking drugs.
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Claude Criquielion
Claude Criquielion (born 11 January 1957 in Lessines, Hainaut) is a former Belgian professional road bicycle racer who raced between 1979 and 1990. In 1984, Criquielion became the world road race champion in Barcelona, Spain on a gruelling course. He had five top-ten finishes in the Tour de France.
Criquielion was well placed to win a medal in the 1988 championship in Belgium. However, he crashed in sight of the line when another competitor, Steve Bauer of Canada, clashed with him. The third rider, Maurizio Fondriest, went on to win. Bauer was disqualified and Criquielion sued Bauer for assault, asking for $1.5 million in damages in a case that lasted more than three years before the judge ruled in Bauer's favor.
Criquielion was directeur sportif of the Lotto-Adecco team from 2000 to 2004. His son, Mathieu Criquielion, turned professional for the Landbouwkrediet-Colnago team in 2005; Claude Criquielion became the team's manager.
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Curt Schilling
Curtis Montague Schilling (born November 14, 1966) is a former American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He helped lead the Philadelphia Phillies to the World Series in 1993 and won World Series championships in 2001 with the Arizona Diamondbacks and in 2004 and 2007 with the Boston Red Sox. Schilling retired with a career postseason record of 11–2. His .846 postseason winning percentage is a major-league record among pitchers with at least 10 decisions.
After retiring, he founded Green Monster Games which was renamed 38 Studios. The company released Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning in February 2012, but just three months later, Schilling laid off his entire staff amid severe financial troubles that resulted in the company missing payroll the previous week.
Schilling graduated from Shadow Mountain High School in Phoenix, Arizona, in 1985, before attending Yavapai College in Prescott, Arizona.
Schilling began his professional career in the Red Sox farm system as a second-round pick in what would be the final January draft in MLB. He began his professional career with the Elmira Pioneers, a then Red Sox affiliate. After two and a half years in the minor leagues, he and Brady Anderson were traded to the Baltimore Orioles in 1988 for Mike Boddicker. His major league debut was with the Orioles (1988–1990), and he then spent one year with the Houston Astros (1991).
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Dale Murphy
Dale Bryan Murphy (born March 12, 1956 in Portland, Oregon) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and first baseman. During an 18-year baseball career, 1976–1993, he played for three different teams, but is noted for his time with the Atlanta Braves. Murphy won consecutive National League Most Valuable Player Awards (1982–1983), the National League's Silver Slugger Award four straight years (1982–1985), and the National League's Gold Glove award five straight years (1982–1986).
In 1976 Murphy began his major league career with a nineteen game stint catching with the Atlanta Braves. He appeared in only eighteen games the following season. In 1978, Murphy played first base mostly. At the plate, he slumped to a .226 batting average, though he also showed hints of his future power by hitting 23 home runs.
Murphy switched to the outfield in 1980, a move that would help initiate a decade of highly productive play in the National League. Beginning in left field, he soon switched to center field, the position at which he would find his greatest success. By 1982, the most decorated year of Murphy's career, the former bench-riding catcher had transformed himself into an All-Star MVP outfielder who appeared in each of Atlanta's 162 games. His turnaround as a fielder was equally stark. In 1978, as a first baseman, Murphy had led all National League first-baggers in errors; in 1982, spending time at each of the three outfield positions, he won his first of five consecutive Gold Gloves.
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David Zabriskie
David Zabriskie (born January 12, 1979) is a professional road bicycle racer from the United States who rides for Garmin-Barracuda. His main strength is individual time trials and his career highlights include stage wins in all three Grand Tour stage races and winning the US National Time Trial Championship seven times. Zabriskie is known for his quirky nature, including singing before stages and the interviews he does with fellow riders in the professional peloton which are posted on his web site.
In 2005, he became the third American to wear the leader's jersey at the Tour de France, after three-time Tour winner Greg LeMond, and seven-time winner Lance Armstrong.George Hincapie became the fourth American in 2006.
Zabriskie was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, and graduated from Olympus High School in 1997, and made his professional debut with the Colorado Cyclist team in 1999. After displaying his talent for time trials by winning the US National Time Trial Championships (junior and under-23 age categories) and the Grand Prix des Nations (under-23 category), Zabriskie moved on to the US Postal team in 2001. Following a year plagued by crashes and injuries, he returned to form in 2004, winning the Elite US National Time Trial Championships. He also won stage 11 of the Vuelta a España in an astonishing 162 km solo breakaway, marking his first Grand Tour stage win—especially notable among his victories for not being a time trial. In the 2005 season Zabriskie switched to Team CSC, where he racked up another Grand Tour stage victory by winning the 8th stage of the 2005 Giro d'Italia.
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Dean Smith
Dean Edwards Smith (born February 28, 1931) is a retired American head coach of men's college basketball. Originally from Emporia, Kansas, Smith has been called a “coaching legend” by the Basketball Hall of Fame. Smith is best known for his successful 36-year coaching tenure at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Smith coached from 1961 to 1997 and retired with 879 victories, which was the NCAA Division I men's basketball record at that time. Smith has the 9th highest winning percentage of any men’s college basketball coach (77.6%). During his tenure as head coach of North Carolina, the team won two national titles and appeared in 11 Final Fours.
Smith is also known for running a clean program and having a high graduation rate for his players, with 96.6% of his athletes receiving their degrees. While at North Carolina, Smith helped promote desegregation by recruiting the University’s first African American scholarship basketball player, Charlie Scott, and pushing for equal treatment for African Americans by local businesses. Smith coached and worked with numerous individuals at North Carolina who went on to achieve notable success in basketball, as either players or coaches or both. Smith retired as head coach from North Carolina in 1997, saying that he was not able to give the team the same level of enthusiasm that he had given it for years. Since retirement, Smith has used his influence to help out in various charitable ventures and political activities.
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Dennis Miller
Dennis Miller (born November 3, 1953) is an American stand-up comedian, political commentator, actor, sports commentator, and television and radio personality. He is known for his critical assessments laced with pop culture references. He rose to fame as a cast member of Saturday Night Live in 1985, and subsequently hosted a string of his own talk shows on HBO, CNBC and in syndication. He currently hosts a daily, three-hour, self-titled talk radio program, nationally syndicated by Dial Global.
Although in his early years of fame he was perceived to be quite liberal and anti-Republican, in recent years, Miller has become known for his right-leaning political opinions. He is a regular political commentator on Fox News Channel's The O'Reilly Factor in a segment called "Miller Time", and previously appeared on the network's Hannity & Colmes in a segment called "Real Free Speech".
Miller was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and grew up in Castle Shannon, a suburb of Pittsburgh, where he graduated from Keystone Oaks High School in 1971. His parents separated and Miller was raised by his mother, Norma, a dietitian. Miller is of Scottish descent. At Point Park University, he majored in journalism because he thought it would be easy: "I remember seeing All the President's Men and thinking Redford looked cool in his crinkled tie."[citation needed] He was a member of Sigma Tau Gamma Fraternity. About his social status during this period, Miller writes: "When I went to college, I lived on campus, and the guys I hung out with made me do some things I'm not proud of, although they made the characters in Revenge of the Nerds look like the Rat Pack in 1962. I myself made that kid Booger look like Remington Steele" (I Rant, Therefore I Am). Miller graduated from Point Park University in 1976.
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Denny McLain
Dennis Dale "Denny" McLain (born March 29, 1944) is an American former professional baseball player. He played as a pitcher in Major League Baseball for ten seasons, most notably for the Detroit Tigers. In 1968, McLain became the last pitcher in Major League Baseball to win 30 or more games during a season (31–6)— a feat accomplished by only thirteen players in the 20th century.
McLain was brash and outspoken, sometimes creating controversy by criticizing teammates and fans with little provocation. His stellar performance at the beginning of his professional baseball career was a marked contrast to his personal life, where he became associated with organized crime and was eventually convicted on charges of embezzlement and served time in prison.
McLain was born in Markham, Illinois and attended Mt. Carmel High School in Chicago, where he played on the baseball team as a shortstop and pitcher. As a teenager, he met his future wife, Sharyn Boudreau, the daughter of former major league player, Lou Boudreau. McLain was also musically talented, learning to play the organ from his father.
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Derek Birley
Sir Derek Birley (31 May 1926 – 14 May 2002) was an English educator and writer who had a strong interest in sport, especially cricket.
He was educated at grammar school in Hemsworth, West Yorkshire, and at Queens' College, Cambridge University.
He wrote two cricket books: The Willow Wand (1979) and the classic A Social History of English Cricket (1999), (which won the Cricket Society's Book of the Year Award and the William Hill Sports Book of the Year in 1999).
He was the founding Rector of Ulster College (later Ulster Polytechnic), and later the founding Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ulster. When he retired from education in 1991, he had overseen two decades of massive increases in provision of higher education in Northern Ireland.
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Derek Jeter
Derek Sanderson Jeter ( /ˈdʒiːtər/; born June 26, 1974) is an American baseball shortstop who has played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees. A five-time World Series champion, Jeter has been a central figure of the Yankees during their success of the 1990s and 2000s due to his clubhouse presence, on-field leadership, hitting ability, and baserunning. He is the Yankees' all-time career leader in hits (3,155), games played (2,472), stolen bases (342), and at bats (10,066). His accolades include twelve All-Star selections, five Gold Glove Awards, four Silver Slugger Awards, two Hank Aaron Awards, and the Roberto Clemente Award. Jeter is the all-time MLB leader in hits by a shortstop, and the 28th player to reach 3,000 hits.
The Yankees drafted Jeter out of high school in 1992, and he debuted in the major leagues in 1995. The following year, he became the Yankees' starting shortstop, won the Rookie of the Year Award, and helped the team win the 1996 World Series. Jeter continued to contribute during the team's championship seasons of 1998–2000; he finished third in voting for the American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award in 1998, recorded multiple career-high numbers in 1999, and won both the All-Star Game MVP and World Series MVP Awards in 2000. He has consistently placed among the AL leaders in hits and runs scored for the past ten years, and since 2003 has served as the Yankees' team captain.
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Dick Kazmaier
Richard Kazmaier (born November 23, 1930) was an American football player for Princeton University from 1949 through 1951 and winner of the 1951 Heisman Trophy. As a halfback, kicker and quarterback, he ended his career third all time in Princeton history with over 4000 yards of offense and 55 touchdowns. His career was capped in 1951 as he was named an All American as well as winning the Maxwell Award and the Heisman Trophy. The Chicago Bears drafted him in the 1952 draft, but he declined to play pro football, instead going to Harvard Business School. After spending several years in the Navy he founded Kazmaier Associated Inc, an investment firm.
Kazmaier graduated from Maumee High School in Ohio in 1948. He played football (four years), basketball (four years), track and field (four years), baseball (four years) and golf (one year) earning a letter each year in each sport.
In 2007, during a Maumee football game versus Perrysburg, Richard Kazmaier was honored by having his jersey number (#21) retired. He also donated his Heisman Trophy to Maumee High School, where it sits inside a glass case in the main hallway. The stadium at Maumee High School is named in his honor. His daughter, the late Patty Kazmaier-Sandt, was an All-Ivy member of the Princeton women's ice hockey team who died in 1990 at the age of 28 from a rare blood disease. The Patty Kazmaier Award, which was established by Dick Kazmaier to memorialize his daughter, is given to the top woman college ice hockey player in the United States at the annual Women's Frozen Four NCAA championship.
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Dick Pound
Richard William Duncan Pound, OC OQ (born March 22, 1942) is a Canadian lawyer, partner of the law firm Stikeman Elliott, the former president of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) based in Montreal, and former chancellor of McGill University. He is a former vice-president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and was a one-time candidate for the presidency of that organization.
Born in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, Pound was a swimming competitor at the 1960 Summer Olympics. He finished sixth in the 100 metre freestyle and was also on Canada’s fourth place relay team. He would later win a number of medals at the 1962 Commonwealth Games. Retiring from swimming, he accepted a role with the Canadian Olympic Committee and eventually became its president.
In 1978, he was elected to the International Olympic Committee and put in charge of negotiating television and sponsorship deals. Pound revolutionized the Olympic movement using such deals to transform the IOC into a multi-billion dollar enterprise. He became known as an outspoken critic of corruption within the IOC, while at the same time supporting the leadership of IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch. His criticisms were given a wide airing after the scandals surrounding the Salt Lake City Olympics broke, and he was then appointed head of the inquiry into the corruption. He also campaigned vehemently for stronger drug testing.
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Dizzy Dean
Jay Hanna "Dizzy" Dean (January 16, 1910 – July 17, 1974) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Browns. A brash and colorful personality, Dean was the last National League pitcher to win 30 games in one season. After his playing career, he became a popular television sports commentator. Dean was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1953.
Dean was best known for leading the 1934 "Gashouse Gang" St. Louis team. He had a 30–7 record with a 2.66 ERA during the regular season. His brother, Paul, was also on the roster, and was nicknamed "Daffy", although this was usually only done for press consumption. Though "Diz" sometimes called his brother "Daf", he typically referred to himself and his brother as "Me an' Paul".
The Gashouse Gang was the southernmost and westernmost team in the major leagues at the time, and became a de-facto "America's Team." Team members, particularly Southerners such as the Dean brothers and Pepper Martin, became folk heroes in Depression-ravaged America. Americans saw in these players, dirty and hustling rather than handsome and graceful, a spirit of hard work and perseverance, as opposed to the haughty, highly-paid New York Giants, whom the Cardinals chased for the National League pennant.
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Don Budge
John Donald ("Don" or "Donnie") Budge (June 13, 1915 – January 26, 2000) was an American tennis champion who was a World No. 1 player for five years, first as an amateur and then as a professional. He is most famous as the first player, male or female, and only American male to win in a single year the four tournaments that comprise the Grand Slam of tennis and second male player to win all 4 Grand Slams in his career after Fred Perry. He won 10 Majors of which six Grand Slams and four Pro Slams, the latter achieved on three different surfaces. Budge was considered to have the best backhand in the history of tennis, at least until the emergence of Ken Rosewall in the 1950s and 1960s.
Born in Oakland, California, Budge was the son of a Scottish immigrant and former football player - his father had played several matches for the Rangers reserve team before emigrating to the United States. Growing up, he played a variety of sports before taking up tennis. He was tall and slim and his height would later help what is still considered one of the most powerful serves of all time.[citation needed] Budge studied at the University of California, Berkeley in late 1933 but left to play tennis with the U.S. Davis Cup auxiliary team.
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Don Schollander
Donald ("Don") Arthur Schollander (born April 30, 1946) is a former Olympic swimmer for the United States. He won total of five gold medals and one silver medal at the 1964 Summer Olympics. With four gold medals, he was the most successful athlete at that Summer Olympics.
Schollander was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, and learned competitive swimming from his uncle, Newt Perry, who ran a swim school in Florida. As a boy, Schollander moved with his family to Lake Oswego, Oregon. Though his first sporting passion was football, he was too small to compete in high school football. Instead, he joined Lake Oswego High School's swim team, and in 1960, helped lead the team to an Oregon state swimming championship as a freshman.
As a teenager in 1962, Schollander moved to Santa Clara, California to train under swim coach George Haines of the budding Santa Clara Swim Club. Two years later at the age of 18, he won three freestyle events at the AAU national championships. He made the U.S. Olympic team in two individual events and two relays. Months later, he won four gold medals and set three world records at the 1964 Summer Olympics, at the time the most medals won by an American since Jesse Owens in 1936. His success helped earn him the James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States, and the AP Athlete of the Year, defeating runner-up Johnny Unitas by a wide margin. He was also named ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year.
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Dwight Gooden
Dwight Eugene Gooden (born November 16, 1964), nicknamed "Doc Gooden" or "Dr. K", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He was one of the most dominant and feared pitchers in the National League in the middle and late 1980s.
A native of Tampa, Florida, Dwight Gooden was drafted in the first round in 1982, the fifth player taken overall. He spent one season in the minors, in which he led the Class-A Carolina League in wins, strikeouts and ERA while playing for the Lynchburg Mets. Gooden had 300 strikeouts in 191 innings, a performance which convinced Triple-A Tidewater Tides manager, future Mets skipper Davey Johnson, that he was capable of making the unusual leap to the major league.
Gooden made his major-league debut on April 7, 1984 with the New York Mets at the age of 19. He quickly developed a reputation with his 98 MPH fastball and sweeping curveball, which was given the superlative nickname of "Lord Charles," in contrast with "Uncle Charlie," a common nickname for a curveball. He was dubbed "Dr. K," (by analogy with basketball's "Dr. J", Julius Erving, and also in reference to the letter "K" being the standard abbreviation for strikeout), which soon became shortened to "Doc". Gooden soon attracted a rooting section at Shea Stadium that called itself "The K Korner," and would hang up cards with a red "K" after each of his strikeouts.
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Dwyane Wade
Dwyane Tyrone Wade, Jr. (born January 17, 1982), nicknamed Flash or D-Wade, is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat. Awarded 2006 Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated, Wade has established himself as one of the most well-known and popular players in the league. He had the top selling jersey in the NBA for nearly two years, as he led the NBA in jersey sales from the 2005 NBA Playoffs, until the mid-point of the 2006–07 season.
After entering the league as the fifth pick in the 2003 NBA Draft, Wade was named to the All-Rookie team and the All-Star team the following eight seasons. In his third season, Wade helped lead the Miami Heat to their first NBA Championship in franchise history. He was named the 2006 NBA Finals MVP as he helped lead the Heat to a 4–2 series win over the Dallas Mavericks. At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Wade led the United States Men's Basketball team, commonly known as the "Redeem Team", in scoring, as they captured gold medal honors in Beijing, China. In the 2008–09 season, Wade led the league in scoring and earned his first NBA scoring title.
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Eddy Merckx
Edouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈmerks]) (born 17 June 1945 in Meensel-Kiezegem), better known as Eddy Merckx, is a Belgian former professional cyclist. The French magazine Vélo called him "the most accomplished rider that cycling has ever known." The American publication, VeloNews, called him the greatest and most successful cyclist of all time. He won the Tour de France five times, won all the monuments of cycling at least twice, with 19 monument victories in all, won the Giro d'Italia five times and the Vuelta a España once, won the world championship once as an amateur and three times as a professional, and broke the world hour record.
Eddy Merckx was one of three children born to a couple who ran a grocery in the middle-class area of Sint-Pieters-Woluwe, near Brussels, Belgium. His brother and sister are twins. The family moved to the suburb when he was young. He said:
He acquired his first racing bike, second-hand, when he was eight. His hero was Stan Ockers, who died in a fall on an Antwerp track in 1956.
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Ercole Baldini
Ercole Baldini (born January 26, 1933) is an Italian former professional road racing cyclist. The highlight of his career was his win in the 1958 Giro d'Italia.
Baldini was born at Villanova di Forlì (Emilia-Romagna).
At 21 he set the hour record for amateurs, with 44.870 km, gaining the nickname of Forlì train. His best year was 1956, in which he won a gold medal in the road race at the Summer Olympics in Melbourne, and, in September, stripped Jacques Anquetil of the hour record, riding 46.394 km at the Velodromo Vigorelli in Milan.
In 1957 he become professional and won six important races, including the Trofeo Baracchi alongside Fausto Coppi, and became Italian champion.
In 1958 Baldini won the Giro d'Italia, beating Charly Gaul on the latter's favourite terrain, climbing. He was again Italian champion and also won the World Cycling Championship.
Baldini finished 6th in the 1959 Tour de France
His career ended after surgery to a leg.
WD = Withdrew DSQ = Disqualified
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Fabian Cancellara
Fabian Cancellara (born 18 March 1981) is a Swiss professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTeam RadioShack-Nissan-Trek. A time trial specialist, he is a four-time World Time Trial Champion and is the current Olympic gold medalist. He is also a winner of Tour of Flanders, Paris–Roubaix (twice), Milan – San Remo, Tirreno–Adriatico, Tour de Suisse, Strade Bianche (twice), and four prologues of the Tour de France.
Cancellara was born in Wohlen bei Bern, a municipality near the city of Berne, Switzerland to an Italian mother and a Swiss-German father. He discovered cycling at the age of 13 after falling in love with an old family bike that he had found in the garage and immediately gave up football to concentrate on cycling.
Cancellara's cycling skills began to blossom at an early age, when he impressed as a time trialist and dominated Swiss junior cycling. Yvan Girard, Swiss national junior team coach from 1997 to 2005, was quoted saying that Cancellara was head and shoulders above everyone else in the time trials. He won the junior World Time Trial Championship in both 1998 and 1999 and at the age of 19 he came in second at the 2000 U-23 World Time Trial Championship, after which he turned professional with Mapei-Quick Step, then one of the strongest teams in the world.
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Fabio Casartelli
Fabio Casartelli (16 August 1970 – 18 July 1995) was an Italian cyclist and an Olympic gold medalist who died in a crash on the descent of the Col de Portet d'Aspet, France, during the 15th stage of the 1995 Tour de France.
He was born in Como, Italy.
Fabio Casartelli showed great promise as an amateur. He had many important wins and placings between 1990 and 1992, climaxing in winning a gold medal in the 1992 Summer Olympics road race. He finished the 194 km race in 4:35:21, a second ahead of Erik Dekker of the Netherlands and 3 ahead of Dainis Ozols of Latvia.
Casartelli began his professional career in 1993 with the Ariostea team. He won a stage in the Settimana Bergamasca race, came second in a stage of the Tour de Suisse and finished the Giro d'Italia. In 1994 he moved to ZG-Mobili. For his third professional year, he moved to Team Motorola. He placed sixth in the Spanish Clásica de Almería and third in the second stage of the Spanish Tour of Murcia. Casartelli was selected to represent his team for the 1995 Tour de France along with Alvaro Mejia, Frankie Andreu, Lance Armstrong, Steve Bauer, Kaspars Ozers, Andrea Peron, Steve Swart and Sean Yates.
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Fausto Coppi
Angelo Fausto Coppi, (15 September 1919, Castellania, Province of Alessandria – 2 January 1960, Tortona, Province of Alessandria), was the dominant international cyclist of the years each side of the Second World War. His successes earned him the title Il Campionissimo, or champion of champions. He was an all-round racing cyclist: he excelled in both climbing and time trialing, and was also a great sprinter. He won the Giro d'Italia five times (1940, 1947, 1949, 1952, 1953), the Tour de France twice (1949 and 1952), and the World Championship in 1953. Other notable results include winning the Giro di Lombardia five times, the Milan – San Remo three times, as well as wins at Paris–Roubaix and La Flèche Wallonne and setting the hour record (45.798 km) in 1942.
Coppi was one of five children born to Domenico Coppi and his wife, Angiolina Boveri, who married on 29 July 1914. Fausto was the fourth child, born at 5pm on 15 September 1919. His mother wanted to call him Angelo, but his father preferred Fausto. He was named Angelo Fausto but was known most of his life as Fausto.
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Federico Bahamontes
Federico Martín Bahamontes (born 9 July 1928) is a Spanish former professional road racing cyclist.
Bahamontes was born in Santo Domingo-Caudilla (Toledo), of Cuban descent. His family was devastated during the Spanish civil war and Bahamontes' father, Julián, took the family to Madrid as refugees. There Julian Martín lived by breaking rocks before opening a fruit and vegetable stall.
Bahamontes worked as a delivery boy. His hero and eventually his friend was Julián Berrendero, winner of the Tour of Spain in 1941 and 1942 and later selector of national teams.
He began racing in the late 1940s, winning his first race, wearing a baseball shirt on 18 July 1947. It was 12 years to the day before his first Tour de France triumph.
He took the mountains jersey and won the first stage of the 1953 Tour of Asturias at 23, while still not a full professional. The Spanish cycling federation picked him for the 1954 Tour de France the following year and his instructions from the national coach was "Try to win it." He didn't win but he did win the mountains competition and finish 25th.
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Felice Gimondi
Felice Gimondi (born 29 September 1942 in Sedrina) is an Italian former professional racing cyclist. With his 1968 victory at the Vuelta a España, only three years after becoming a professional cyclist, Gimondi, nicknamed "The Phoenix", was the second cyclist (after Jacques Anquetil) to win all three Grand Tours of road cycling: Tour de France (1965, his first year as a pro), Giro d'Italia (1967, 1969 and 1976), and Vuelta a España (1968). He remains one of only five cyclists to have done so.
Gimondi grew up cycling with his mother, a postal carrier who rode a bicycle to make her deliveries. In 1964, Gimondi rode the road race of the 1964 Olympic Games, where he finished in 33rd place. After winning the amateur version of the Tour de France (Tour de l'Avenir), he was signed, in 1965, as a professional to the Salvarani team. With the withdrawal of another cyclist from Salvarani's Tour de France team, Gimondi was added at the last minute and went on to win the tour, becoming an Italian national hero.
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Ferdinand Kübler
Ferdinand "Ferdi" Kübler (born 24 July 1919) is a retired Swiss cyclist with over 400 professional victories, including the 1950 Tour de France and the 1951 World Road Race Championship.
Kubler was born in Marthalen. He began racing professionally in 1940 but his early career was limited to Switzerland by the Nazi occupation elsewhere. He was multiple Swiss national champion and a three time winner of the Tour de Suisse.
Kubler's most successful years in international racing were 1950-1952, when the classics had resumed after the Second World War. He won the La Flèche Wallonne and Liège–Bastogne–Liège, both in 1951 and 1952. He was also World Road Race Champion in 1951, having placed second in 1949 and third in 1950.
He rode the Giro d'Italia from 1950–1952, placing fourth once, and third twice. Kubler abandoned the 1947 and 1949 Tours de France, despite an early stage win in each. In the 1950 Tour, he benefited from the absence of Fausto Coppi, sidelined after a crash in the Giro. Overcoming Gino Bartali, Kubler became champion by over nine minutes, also winning three stages. In the 1954 Tour, Kubler won the points jersey and came second behind Louison Bobet.
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Firmin Lambot
Firmin Lambot (14 March 1886 – 19 January 1964) was a Belgian bicycle racer who twice won the Tour de France.
Born in the small town of Florennes, Lambot worked as a saddler. He worked 12 hours a day, starting at 6am. He bought his first bicycle at 17 and began riding 50 km a day to and from work. His first race was in a local village; he won five francs as first prize. He then bought a racing bike.
He began racing professionally in 1908. In that year he won the championships of Flanders and Belgium. He rode the Tour de France from 1911 to 1913 but the First World War ended the race for the next five years.
When the Tour returned in 1919 it was a miserable affair of war-torn roads, fractured logistics and former contenders no longer alive to compete. Only 11 riders finished. Lambot was approached at the Buffalo track in Paris, where he had ridden a 24-hour race, to ride the Tour in the Globe Cycles team. He was second for much of the race but took the lead when Eugène Christophe broke a fork. Observers felt Lambot owed his victory more to Christophe’s bad luck than his own ability and a collection for Christophe surpassed the prize money Lambot received. His performance brought him a contract from the larger Peugeot team at 300 francs a month. He was engaged to ride just the Tour de France.
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Francesco Moser
Francesco Moser (born 19 June 1951 in Palù di Giovo, Trentino), nicknamed "Lo sceriffo" (The sheriff), is an Italian former professional road bicycle racer. He was one of the dominant riders from the mid-1970s to the early 1980s, and won the 1984 Giro d'Italia, the 1977 world road racing championship and six victories in three of the five Monuments. He began his professional career in 1973. He had an almost effortless pedal stroke that provided great power. Moser was intimidating on a bicycle but his powerful build meant he wasn’t a gifted climber.
After finishing second in 1974 behind Roger De Vlaeminck, and likewise in 1976 behind Marc Demeyer of Belgium, Moser finally won Paris–Roubaix, his favorite race, three consecutive times. In total, Moser has had seven podium finishes in Paris–Roubaix; only De Vlaeminck has more (9). In 1978, he preceded Roger De Vlaeminck and Jan Raas of the Netherlands; in 1979, in front of Roger De Vlaeminck and Hennie Kuiper of the Netherlands; and in 1980, in front of Frenchman Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle of France and German Dietrich Thurau. Moser came in third in 1981 behind Bernard Hinault and Roger De Vlaeminck, and was also third in 1983 behind Hennie Kuiper and Gilbert Duclos-Lassalle. He rode Paris–Roubaix in his final season as a professional cyclist in 1987. His other major Classics victories include the 1975 and 1978 Giro di Lombardia, and the 1984 Milan – San Remo.
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Frank Robinson
Frank Robinson (born August 31, 1935) is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder and manager. He played from 1956 to 1976, most notably for the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles. He is the only player to win league MVP honors in both the National and American Leagues. He won the Triple crown, was a member of two teams that won the World Series (the 1966 and 1970 Baltimore Orioles), and amassed the fourth-most career home runs at the time of his retirement (he is currently ninth). Robinson was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1982.
Robinson was the first African-American hired to serve as manager in Major League history. He managed the Cleveland Indians during the last two years of his playing career, compiling a 186–189 record. He went on to manage the San Francisco Giants, the Baltimore Orioles, and the Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals.
Robinson attended McClymonds High School in Oakland, California, where he was a basketball teammate of Bill Russell. During the off-season while playing for the Reds in the late 1950s, he attended Xavier University in Cincinnati.
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Frank Sinkwich
Frank Francis Sinkwich, Sr. (October 10, 1920 – October 22, 1990) won the 1942 Heisman Trophy as a player for the University of Georgia, making him the first recipient from the Southeastern Conference. In the course of a brief but celebrated career in professional football, Sinkwich was selected for the National Football League Most Valuable Player Award. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1954.
He's of Croat origin. Sinkwich was born in Croatia to his mother who had traveled back to Croatia to visit family and give birth to him. They relocated to Youngstown, Ohio when he was two years old.
According to an article Sinkwich wrote in 1988, he grew to appreciate the value of competitiveness on the streets of Youngstown's west side. "I learned early in neighborhood pickup games that I had the desire to compete", he wrote. "When people ask why I succeeded in athletics, I always tell them that I didn't want to get beat".
Sinkwich gained early recognition as a star athlete at Youngstown's Chaney High School. He went on to the University of Georgia and played under coach Wally Butts. In 1941 he led the nation in rushing yards with 209 carries for 1,103 yards. He was a two-time All-America selection and led the Bulldogs to an 11-1 season in 1942, capturing the Southeastern Conference Championship and a victory over UCLA in the 1943 Rose Bowl At the Rose Bowl in the team picture he was placed in number 52 instead of 21 because they did not want the press to be all over him. That same year, the Washington D.C. Touchdown Club honored Sinkwich as "back of the year", and he was overwhelmingly voted the Number 1 athlete for 1942 in the annual poll by the Associated Press over second-place finisher Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox, a year in which Williams was American League Batting Champion, American League Home Run Champion and hit for baseball's triple crown.
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Frankie Andreu
Frankie Andreu (born September 26, 1966) is a former professional cyclist whose career highlights include riding as team captain of the U.S. Postal Service cycling team along with Lance Armstrong in 1998, 1999 and 2000.
Frankie Andreu was born September 26, 1966 in Dearborn, Michigan. He began his cycling career in track cycling, winning the individual pursuit during the 1984 Junior National Track Cycling Championships in Trexlertown, Pennsylvania. In 1985, he placed first in the Madison during the National Track Cycling Championships in Indianapolis, Indiana. and second in the points race and team pursuit. In 1988, Andreu qualified to represent the United States Cycling Team in Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea where he placed eighth in the points race.
Andreu moved from track cycling to road cycling after signing to the 7-Eleven Pro Cycling Team in 1989 when he finished his first professional stage race, the Giro d'Italia. His highest finish in the Tour de France was second during the 18th stage of the 1993 race where he was teammates with a young Lance Armstrong on the Motorola Pro Cycling Team. Andreu finished fourth in the road race during the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia.
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François Faber
François Faber (26 January 1887, Aulnay-sur-Iton, Eure, France – died Carency, Pas-de-Calais, 9 May 1915) was a Luxembourgian/French racing cyclist. He was born in France. He was the first foreigner to win the Tour de France in 1909, and his record of winning 5 consecutive stages still stands. He died in World War I while fighting for France.
Faber's father, Jean-François, was born in Wiltz, Luxembourg, which gave his son Luxembourg nationality. His mother, Marie-Paule, was born in Lorraine. François Faber had a Luxembourg passport but lived in France and considered himself French. His half-brother was another cyclist, Ernest Paul.
Faber worked as a furniture-remover and as a docker when he raced as an amateur.
Faber was a professional from 1906 to 1914. He won 27 races. His size—1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) and 91 kg (200 lb)—and his suburb of Paris gave him the nickname The Giant of Colombes. He rode for Labor in 1906 and 1907, moved to Peugeot in 1908, then Alcyon from 1909 to 1911. He joined Automoto for 1912 before returning to Peugeot in 1913 and 1914.
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Fred Lynn
Fredric Michael "Fred" Lynn (born February 3, 1952) is an American former center fielder in Major League Baseball who played for the Boston Red Sox (1974–1980), California Angels (1981–1984), Baltimore Orioles (1985–1988), Detroit Tigers (1988–1989) and San Diego Padres (1990).
Fred Lynn was inducted into the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2002 and to the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2007.
After graduation from USC, Lynn started his career for the Red Sox with a phenomenal 1975 season in which he won the Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year awards, the first player ever to win both in the same season. (The feat has since been duplicated by Seattle Mariners right fielder Ichiro Suzuki in 2001.) Lynn and fellow rookie outfielder Jim Rice were dubbed as the “Gold Dust Twins” because of their combined baseball talents. In 1975, Lynn led the American League in doubles, runs scored and slugging percentage, finished second in the batting race with a .331 average, and won a Gold Glove Award for his defensive play. On June 18 he bombed the Tigers with 3 HR, 10 RBI, and 16 total bases in one game.
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Gastone Nencini
Gastone Nencini (Barberino di Mugello, Tuscany 1 March 1930 – Florence, 1 February 1980) was an Italian road racing cyclist who won the 1960 Tour de France and the 1957 Giro d'Italia.
Nicknamed Il Leone del Mugello, "The Lion of Mugello" (from his birthplace Barberino del Mugello, near Florence), Nencini was a powerful all-rounder, particularly strong in the mountains.
He was an amateur painter and a chain smoker. He was a gifted descender. "The only reason to follow Nencini downhill would be if you had a death wish", said the French rider Raphaël Géminiani. It was in trying to follow Nencini down a mountain that Roger Rivière missed a bend, crashed over a wall and broke his spine.
Nencini's downhill race with Henry Anglade has become part of the legend of cycling. Anglade was a proud rider and Nencini one of the fastest down hills. They met at a col in the Dolomites during the Giro d'Italia. The weather was bad and a snowstorm had forced 57 riders to abandon that day. Anglade said:
At the Futa pass, on the mountains over his native Barberino di Mugello, a monument is placed remembering him: a big bronze bas-relief portrait of him racing and the inscription who says:"Gastone Nencini. Il comune di Barberino di Mugello ed i compagni di tante battaglie ricordano il campione mugellano." (translated "Gastone Nencini. The administration of Barberino di Mugello and the comrades of many battles remember the Mugello-born champion")
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Gene Sarazen
Gene Sarazen (/ˈsɑrəzɛn/; February 27, 1902 – May 13, 1999) was an American professional golfer, one of the world's top players in the 1920s and 1930s. He is one of five golfers (along with Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods) to win all the current major championships in his career, the Career Grand Slam: U.S. Open in 1922, 1932, PGA Championship in 1922, 1923, 1933, British Open in 1932, and The Masters in 1935.
Sarazen was born in Harrison, New York as Eugenio Saraceni. Sarazen began caddying at age ten at local golf clubs, took up golf himself, and gradually developed his skills; he was essentially self-taught. He used the somewhat unusual, at the time, interlocking grip to hold the club.
Sarazen took a series of club professional jobs in the New York area from his mid-teens, and worked hard on his game. Sarazen won his first major championships – the 1922 U.S. Open and PGA Championship – at age 20. He was a contemporary and great rival of Bobby Jones, who was born in the same year; Sarazen also had many great battles with Walter Hagen, who was about ten years older. Sarazen, Jones, and Hagen were the world's dominant players during the 1920s. Rivalries among the three great champions significantly expanded interest in golf around the world during this period, and made the United States the world's dominant golf power for the first time, taking over this position from Great Britain.
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George Blanda
George Frederick Blanda ("The Grand Old Man") (September 17, 1927 – September 27, 2010) was a collegiate and professional football quarterback and placekicker. The son of a Slovak-born Pittsburgh-area coal miner, Blanda has the distinction of having played 26 seasons of Professional Football, the most in the sport's history, and had scored more points than anyone in history at the time of his retirement. Blanda retired from pro football in 1976. He was one of only three players to play in four different decades, and he holds the record for most extra points kicked. He was married to Betty Harris from December 17, 1949 until his death on September 27, 2010. He had two children.
Blanda was a quarterback and kicker at the University of Kentucky. Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant, who later won fame and set countless records at conference rivals Alabama, arrived in his sophomore year, following a 1–9 season. The Wildcats lost three games in each of the next three years.
When, years later on a return to the University of Kentucky, recalling the time he met Bryant, Blanda said: "I thought this must be what God looks like."
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George Foreman
George Edward Foreman (nicknamed "Big George") (born January 10, 1949) is a retired American professional boxer, former two-time World Heavyweight Champion, Olympic gold medalist, ordained Baptist minister, author and successful entrepreneur.
A gold medalist at the 1968 Olympics, Foreman won the World Heavyweight title with a second round knockout of then-undefeated Joe Frazier in Kingston, Jamaica in 1973. He made two successful title defenses before losing to Muhammad Ali in "The Rumble in the Jungle" in 1974. He fought on but was unable to secure another title shot and retired following a loss to Jimmy Young in 1977 and became an ordained Christian minister. Ten years later Foreman announced a comeback, and in November 1994, at age 45, he regained the Heavyweight Championship by knocking out Michael Moorer. He remains the oldest Heavyweight Champion in history. He retired in 1997 at the age of 48, with a final record of 76–5, including 68 knockouts.
Foreman has been inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame and the International Boxing Hall of Fame. The International Boxing Research Organization (IBRO) currently rates Foreman as the eighth greatest heavyweight of all-time. In 2002, he was named one of the 25 greatest fighters of the past eighty years by The Ring magazine.The Ring also ranked him as the 9th greatest puncher of all-time. He was a ringside analyst for HBO's boxing coverage for twelve years, leaving in 2004. Outside of boxing, he is a successful entrepreneur and is known for his promotion of the George Foreman Grill, which has sold over 100 million units worldwide. In 1999 he sold the naming rights to the grill for $138 million.
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George Hincapie
George Hincapié Garcés (born June 29, 1973 in Queens, New York) is an American professional road bicycle racer currently riding for UCI ProTeam BMC Racing Team. Hincapie resides in Greenville, South Carolina. He graduated from Farmingdale High School in 1991.
Hincapie is most widely known as a key domestique of Lance Armstrong, having been the only rider to assist Armstrong in all seven of his Tour de France victories. Hincapie was also a domestique for Alberto Contador in 2007 and for Cadel Evans in 2011, when both men won the Tour de France. He is one of only two riders in Tour de France history to have raced on nine Tour-winning teams. As of the end of the 2011 Tour, Hincapie has raced the Tour 16 times, finishing all but the first year.
Hincapie has several important wins of his own, starting with Gent–Wevelgem in 2001 and Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne in 2005. Also in 2005, Hincapie took two stage wins at the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré and 2nd place at Paris–Roubaix. In 2005 he also had his first stage win in the Tour de France where, on July 17, he finished seven seconds ahead of Óscar Pereiro to win stage 15 from Lézat-sur-Lèze to Pla d'Adet. More recent victories include two stages at the Tour of California (2006), the overall and a stage at the Tour of Missouri (2007), and another stage win at the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré in 2008. He is a three-time US Professional Road Race champion (1998, 2006, 2009).
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George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd President of the United States from 2001 to 2009 and the 46th Governor of Texas from 1995 to 2000. The eldest son of Barbara Bush and George H. W. Bush, he was born in New Haven, Connecticut. After graduating from Yale University in 1968 and Harvard Business School in 1975, Bush worked in oil businesses. He married Laura Welch in 1977 and ran unsuccessfully for the House of Representatives shortly thereafter. He later co-owned the Texas Rangers baseball team before defeating Ann Richards in the 1994 Texas gubernatorial election. In a close and controversial election, Bush was elected President in 2000 as the Republican candidate, defeating Vice President Al Gore in the Electoral College. Bush is the second American president to have been the son of a former president. He is also the brother of Jeb Bush, former Governor of Florida.
Terrorist attacks occurred eight months into Bush's first term as president on September 11, 2001. In response, Bush announced the War on Terror, an international military campaign which included the war in Afghanistan launched in 2001 and the war in Iraq launched in 2003. In addition to national security issues, Bush promoted policies on the economy, health care, education, and social security reform. He signed into law broad tax cuts, the PATRIOT Act, the No Child Left Behind Act, the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act, and Medicare prescription drug benefits for seniors. His tenure saw national debates on immigration, Social Security, electronic surveillance, and enhanced interrogation techniques. His administration also withdrew the U.S. from a some international treaty processes, including the Kyoto Protocol on global warming.
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Georges Ronsse
Georges Ronsse (4 March 1906, Antwerp - 4 July 1969, Berchem) was a two-time national cyclo-cross and two-time world champion road bicycle racer from Belgium, who raced between 1926 and 1938.
In addition to his several national and world championships, Ronsse won several of the classic races in road cycling including the 1925 Liège–Bastogne–Liège, the 1927 Paris–Roubaix, and the 1927, 1929 and 1930 editions of the now-defunct Bordeaux–Paris.
In 1932, Ronsse capped off his career with a Stage 4 win at the 1932 Tour de France.
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Georges Speicher
Georges Speicher (Paris, 8 June 1907 – Maisons-Laffitte, 24 January 1978) was a French cyclist who won the 1933 Tour de France along with three stage wins, and the 1933 World Cycling Championship.
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Gerrie Knetemann
Gerrie Knetemann (6 March 1951 in Amsterdam, North Holland – 2 November 2004 in Bergen) was a Dutch road bicycle racer who won the 1978 World Championship.
A four-time winner of the Ronde van Nederland, he also rode the Tour de France 11 times between 1974 and 1987, winning 10 stages, a Dutch record equalled only by Jan Raas and Joop Zoetemelk. Knetemann won 127 races as a professional.
Knetemann maintained an Amsterdam accent and a sharp sense of humour that made him a favourite with reporters and earned him television and radio appearances. His best year in the Tour de France was 1978, when he led from the sixth stage. Although he lost the leader's yellow jersey two days later, he won the stage into Lausanne and then the final stage on the Champs Elysées in Paris.
His career dwindled after a crash in A Travers la Belgique in Belgium in March 1983. Recovery took months and, although he did again ride the Tour de France, there was nothing of the once sparkling star. Knetemann did win the Amstel Gold Race in 1985. He retired from racing in 1991 and became Dutch team selector.
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Gianni Bugno
Gianni Bugno (born February 14, 1964 in Brugg, Switzerland) is a former Italian professional road racing cyclist.
Bugno was a versatile rider, able to do well in different types of races. He won numerous stages in the Tour de France, and the Milan – San Remo classic in 1990. In 1991 he won the Clásica de San Sebastián, and in 1994 he won the Ronde van Vlaanderen.
Bugno's greatest success was the double victory in the World Championship. In 1991 he beat Steven Rooks of the Netherlands and Miguel Indurain of Spain, and in 1992 finished ahead of Laurent Jalabert of France and Dmitri Konyshev of Russia.
Bugno's performance in the Grand Tours, however, was over-shadowed by Miguel Indurain. Bugno's victory in the Giro d'Italia in 1990 is considered one of the most dominant performances in that race - he led from start to finish. While he won the Giro in 1990, he finished second to Indurain in the Tour de France in 1991 and third behind Indurain and Claudio Chiappucci in 1992. In a battle in the 1992 Tour, Indurain kept his calm despite Chiappucci's attack in the Alps; Bugno had to chase and cracked in the final parts of the stage. Indurain was quoted as saying that Bugno was his biggest threat in the Tour.
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Gino Bartali
Gino Bartali, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI (born Ponte a Ema, Florence, Italy, 18 July 1914, died Florence, 5 May 2000) was a war hero and a champion road cyclist. He was the most renowned Italian cyclist before the Second World War, having won the Giro d'Italia three times (1936, 1937, 1946) and the Tour de France in 1938. His second and last Tour de France victory in 1948 gave him the largest gap between victories in the race.
Gino Bartali was the third son of four children of a smallholder, Torello Bartali. He was powerfully built, with a broad nose and a boxer's face. He earned pocket money by selling raffia to makers of covers for wine bottles. He began work in a bicycle shop when he was 13. He started racing at 13, became a promising amateur and turned professional in 1935 when he was 21. He was Italian champion the next year. On 14 November 1940 Bartali married Adriana Bani in Florence. The wedding was celebrated by Cardinal Della Costa and was blessed by Pope Pious XII, to whom Bartali donated a bicycle.
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Giuseppe Saronni
Giuseppe Saronni (born 22 September 1957 in Novara), also known as Beppe Saronni, is an Italian former racing cyclist.
Born in Novara, Piedmont, Saronni turned professional in 1977. During his career, that lasted until 1989, he won 193 races. In Italy he gave birth to a famous rivalry with Francesco Moser, like those of Alfredo Binda with Learco Guerra, and Fausto Coppi with Gino Bartali.
In 1978 Saronni won three stages in the Giro d'Italia. In total he would win 24 stages in this race, winning the overall twice (1979 and 1983).
In 1982 he won the World Cycling Championship at Goodwood, England, beating American Greg LeMond. His final sprint was so impressive that it gained him the nickname of "Goodwood rifle-shot". The previous year he had won a silver medal, as he had been overcome in the final by Freddy Maertens of Belgium. In 1982 Saronni also won the Giro di Lombardia.
At the beginning of 1983 another striking sprint gave him the Milan – San Remo classic, after three consecutive second places in that race. This was Saronni's last great classics victory.
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Greg LeMond
Gregory James LeMond (born June 26, 1961 in Lakewood, California) is a former professional road bicycle racer from the United States and a three-time winner of the Tour de France. He was born in Lakewood, California and raised in Reno, Nevada.
In 1986, LeMond became the first American and the first non-European cyclist to win the Tour de France. The following year he was shot and seriously injured in a hunting accident. He was able to return to the Tour in 1989, winning it dramatically in its final stage. He won again for the third time the following year in 1990. He is one of only nine cyclists to have won the Tour three or more times.
Greg LeMond was a standout junior rider who quickly established himself as one of the most talented cyclists in the professional circuit. After his initial success on the junior circuit he began competing against older, more seasoned competitors. He gained the attention of the US Cycling Federation's national team, riding for them at the 1979 Junior World Championships held in Argentina. There he won gold, silver and bronze medals, the highlight being his spectacular victory in the road race. He was selected for the 1980 U.S. Olympic cycling team, the youngest ever, at 18, to make the U.S. team; however, the U.S. boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow prevented him from competing there.
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Gunder Hägg
Gunder Hägg (December 31, 1918, Albacken – November 27, 2004) was a Swedish runner and multiple world record breaker of the 1940s. Gunder Hägg set over a dozen middle distance world records at events ranging from 1500 to 5000 meters, including three at both the 1500 meters and the mile, one at 3000 meters and one at 5000 meters.
Hägg and fellow Swede, Arne Andersson, lowered the record for the mile to just over four minutes (4:01.4) - accelerating the progression of the world record in the mile run. Both athletes set three world records for the mile. Hägg first set the record in July 1942 at 4:06.2, a time which was equalled by Anderson later the same month. This record was broken by Hägg (4:04.6) in September the same year. Andersson recaptured the world record in July 1943 (4:02.6), and improved it further in July 1944 (4:01.6). However, Hägg had the last word when he ran 4:01.4 in Malmö in 1945 (Hägg's record was not broken until Roger Bannister ran the first sub-4 mile in Oxford in 1954).
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Gustave Garrigou
Cyprien Gustave Garrigou (b. 24 September 1884, Vabres, France, d. 23 January 1963, Paris) was one of the best professional racing cyclists of his era. He rode the Tour de France eight times and won once. Of 117 stages, he won eight, came in the top ten 96 times and finished 65 times in the first five.
Garrigou was a thin Parisian who gained from his lightness in the mountains but had the strength to ride hard on flat stages. He had remarkable powers of recovery. As an amateur he won Paris-Amiens and Paris-Dieppe. He turned professional in 1907 and that year won the national championship, the Tour of Lombardy, Paris–Brussels and came second in the Tour de France 19 points behind teammate Lucien Petit-Breton. A team rider, in the next three years, he placed fourth in 1908, second in 1909 and third in 1910 behind winning teammates Petit-Breton, Francois Faber and Octave Lapize.
He won the Tour in 1911 surviving not only the race but death threats because fans of another French rider, Paul Duboc, believed Garrigou to be behind an incident in which Duboc collapsed in the Pyrenees and lay in agony for an hour after drinking from a poisoned bottle.
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Hans Knecht
Hans Knecht (26 September 1913 in Albisrieden – 8 March 1986 in Zürich) was a Swiss professional road racing cyclist. The highlight of his career was winning the World Cycling Championship in 1946. He was a professional cyclist from 1939 to 1949.
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Harm Ottenbros
Harm Ottenbros (born 27 June 1943 in Alkmaar) is a former Dutch road bicycle racer who raced as a professional from 1967 to 1976. Ottenbros is best remembered for capturing the gold medal and rainbow jersey at the 1969 world cycling championship road race in Zolder, Belgium. The relatively unknown Ottenbros edged Julien Stevens of Belgium by a few centimetres to take the victory.
Harmin Ottenbros, known as Harm, was a late selection for Holland's team for the world cycling championship after its leader, Jan Janssen fell ill. The Dutch federation, the KNWU, needed a replacement and Ottenbros made up the numbers. World cycling was dominated at the time by the Belgian champion Eddy Merckx, whose repeated victories had won him many enemies. "When you know how much Merckx is earning in this race," the French champion Raymond Delisle said during that year's Midi Libre, "you lose the will to compete for just the leftovers." In the world championship, reporters assessed, many riders were keener on stopping Merckx from winning than on winning themselves.
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Hein Verbruggen
Hein Verbruggen (born 21 June 1941 in Helmond) is a Dutch honorary member of the International Olympic Committee since 2008. Previously, he was a member of the IOC and Chairman of the Coordination Commission for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad in Beijing in 2008. He was president of the Union Cycliste Internationale from 1991 till 2005.
Verbruggen studied on the Nyenrode Business Universiteit. Afterwards, he became sales manager. IN 1970, when he was a sales manager at Mars, Incorporated, he convinced them to sponsor a cycling team, to get access to the Belgian market. In 1975, he became a member of the committee professional cycling of the Royal Dutch Cycling Union (KNWU).
In 1979, Verbruggen became a member of the board of the Fédération Internationale de Cyclisme Professionnel (FICP). He became vice-president in 1982, and president in 1984.
From 1991 to 2005, Verbruggen was president of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). From 1996 on, he was also member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). During that time, Verbruggen combined the FICP (for professional cyclists) and the FIAC (for amateur cyclists) in the UCI. Because the Olympic organisation had the FIAC as partners, it had been impossible before then for professional cyclists to enter the Olympic Games, but from the 1996 Summer Olympics, professional athletes could compete. In his last year, he installed the UCI ProTour.
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Hennie Kuiper
Hennie Kuiper (born 3 February 1949) is a Dutch former professional road racing cyclist. His career includes a gold medal in the Olympic road race at Munich in 1972, becoming world professional road race champion in 1975, as well as winning four of the five “Monument” classics. He rode the Tour de France 12 times, finishing second twice and winning the stage to Alpe d'Huez on two occasions. Kuiper, Ercole Baldini and Paolo Bettini are the only riders to have won both the Olympic road race and the world professional road race.
Kuiper was born in Denekamp, in Overijssel province. His serious introduction to the bicycle was to and from school in Enschede. He started participating in junior races from 14 and from 19 to 23 he won 39 times as an amateur. The climax of his amateur career was gold in the Olympic road race in Munich in 1972, riding the final 40 km alone. He also won the Tour of Britain (Milk Race) that year.
Kuiper turned professional in 1973 with the small German team Haro-Rokado. His career took off in 1975 when he signed for the Dutch team, Frisol, where he got more chances to shine and formed a partnership with José De Cauwer (who worked for Kuiper in races) that lasted until 1980. The 1975 season saw Kuiper become world champion at Yvoir in Belgium, winning a tough race over 260 km, with 21 ascents of a two-mile climb.
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Henri Cornet
Henri Jardry called Henri Cornet · (Desvres, France, 4 August 1884, died Prunay-le-Gillon, 18 March 1941) was a French cyclist who won the 1904 Tour de France. He is its youngest winner, just short of his 20th birthday.
Cornet was born in the Pas-de-Calais region of north-west France. It's not known why he changed his name from Henri Jardry to Henri Cornet. He was a talented amateur - he won Paris-Honfleur in 1903 - but little known beyond northern France and in Belgium when he entered the second Tour de France in 1904. It was his first year as a professional. The organiser, Henri Desgrange, promoted his unknown competitors to readers of L'Auto, the newspaper he edited, by giving them nicknames. He called Cornet Le Rigolo, or "the joker", for his sense of fun. He is described as cheerful, with wide-spaced eyes, a nose described as trumpet-like, and a generous mouth that spread easily into a smile.
The Tour de France had proved a success when the first race was run in 1903 and both the competition between riders and the passion of the fans who supported them rose to sometimes dangerous proportions. Riders took trains and lifts in cars or had themselves towed by drivers; a rider called Pierre Chevalier was repeatedly left exhausted in the darkness of night only to reappear in the race; the 1903 winner, Maurice Garin received food from the race director, Géo Lefèvre when others were denied. Fans beat up riders on the col de la République outside St-Étienne and dispersed only when Garin fired his gun.
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Henri Pélissier
Henri Pélissier (22 January 1889 – 1 May 1935) was a French racing cyclist from Paris and champion of the 1923 Tour de France. In addition to his 29 career victories, he was known for his long-standing feud with Tour founder Henri Desgrange and for protesting against the conditions endured by riders in the early years of the Tour. He was killed by his lover with the gun that his wife had used to commit suicide.
Pélissier was one of four brothers, three of whom became professional cyclists. He began racing professionally in 1911 and amassed important victories before the First World War, including the 1912 Milan – San Remo and three stages in the 1914 Tour de France.
After the war he resumed competition, winning Paris–Roubaix in 1919 and entering the Tour de France for the next five years. Before the 1921 Paris–Roubaix, Pélissier and his brother Francis demanded their sponsor pay them more than racers usually received. Their request was rebuffed and they rode as individuals without team support. Henri Desgrange, organiser of the Tour de France, vowed that they would never again appear on the front page of his newspaper L'Auto, only to eat his words when Pélissier emerged the champion.
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Herb Elliott
Herbert James "Herb" Elliott AC MBE (born 25 February 1938) is a former Australian athlete, one of the world's greatest middle distance runners. In August 1958 he set the world record in the mile, clocking 3:54.5, 2.7 seconds under the record held by Derek Ibbotson; later in the month he set the 1500 metres world record, running 3.36.0, 2.1 seconds under the record held by Stanislav Jungwirth. In the 1500 metres at the 1960 Rome Olympics, he won the gold medal and bettered his own world record with a time of 3:35.6.
Few people have ever exercised such absolute authority in any branch of sport as Elliott did in middle distance running from 1957 to 1961. During that span he never lost a 1500 metres or 1-mile race. During his career, he broke four minutes for the mile on 17 occasions.
Elliott is the chairman of one of the world´s largest iron ore mining companies, and of the Global Corporate Challenge health initiative.
Elliott, a native of Perth, Western Australia, attended Aquinas College, in Perth. Aquinas College is renowned for its sport culture, and it was this culture that helped Elliott achieve such heights in athletics. He also attended Cambridge University.
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Hicham El Guerrouj
Hicham El Guerrouj "King of the Mile" (Moroccan Arabic: هشام الݣروج, born September 14, 1974, Berkane) is a Moroccan former middle distance runner. He is the current holder of the 1500 metres, mile and outdoor 2000 metres world records, as well as a double Olympic gold medalist. From about 1995 until his retirement from serious competition following the 2004 Olympics, he was the dominant middle distance runner of his day.
Hicham El Guerrouj's first international triumph was in 1992 at age 18, when he was 3rd in the 5000 metres of the 1992 Junior World Championships in Seoul, behind Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia.
In 1994, he was a member of the Moroccan team in the 1994 IAAF World Road Relay Championships, which won the race in world record time.
El Guerrouj rose to international prominence in the mid-1990s with near-record times in the 1500 metres and mile. At the age of 20 he finished second in the 1500 metres at the 1995 World Championships in Gothenburg. In 1996 after setting a new personal best over 1500 metres in 3:29.59 in Stockholm, he was considered one of the favourites for the Olympic gold.
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Howard Cassady
Howard Albert "Hopalong" Cassady (born March 2, 1934) is a former college and professional American football running back. He was the Heisman Trophy winner of 1955 and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1979.
Cassady was born in Columbus, Ohio and attended the now closed Central High School.
Cassady played for the Ohio State Buckeyes from 1952-55. During his college career, he scored 37 touchdowns in 36 games. He also played defensive back; a pass was never completed on him in his four years at the university. He was twice selected as a consensus All-American, in 1954 and 1955. In 1954 the Buckeyes finished the season 10-0 and won a consensus national championship. That year Cassady finished third in the vote for the Heisman Trophy behind Alan Ameche of Wisconsin. In 1955, Cassady won the Heisman Trophy (by the largest margin at the time), the Maxwell Award, and was named the Associated Press Athlete of the Year.
Cassady earned the nickname "Hopalong" during his first game as a freshman for Ohio State. Columbus sportswriters who saw him play said he "hopped all over the field like the performing cowboy," a reference to the fictional character Hopalong Cassidy. In that game Cassady came off the bench to score three touchdowns in a win over Indiana University.
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Igor Astarloa
Igor Astarloa Askasibar (born March 29, 1976 in Ermua, Basque Country) is a retired cyclist from Spain.
Astarloa turned professional with the Italian cycling team Mercatone Uno and enjoyed his best season in 2003 with team Saeco Macchine per Caffè when he won the Flèche Wallonne and the road race title at the World Cycling Championships at Hamilton, Canada. During the 2006 transfer season it was announced that he was to leave Team Barloworld, the Continental Circuit team for which Astarloa had ridden for the last several years, and join Team Milram, a member of the UCI ProTour.
Team Milram terminated its contract with Astarloa in May 2008 following disclosures that he had shown "irregular blood values", as reported by Focus magazine. He joined the Amica Chips-Knauf team, which folded in May 2009. Soon after, in June 2009, Astarloa was one of the first five riders to fall foul of the Union Cycliste International's new biological passport system, introduced to combat doping by competitive cyclists. Astarloa was unable to secure another contract that season, and retired in January 2010.
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Ingemar Johansson
Jens Ingemar Johansson (September 22, 1932 – January 30, 2009) was a Swedish boxer and former heavyweight champion of the world. Johansson was the fifth heavyweight champion born outside the United States. In 1959 he defeated Floyd Patterson by TKO in the third round, after flooring Patterson seven times in that round, to win the World Heavyweight Championship. As a result, Johansson won the Hickok Belt as top professional athlete of the year and was named the Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year and Sports Illustrated magazine's "Sportsman of the Year".
Johansson enjoyed a successful career as a heavyweight. When he retired in 1963 he had a record of 26 wins, 17 by KO, and only 2 losses. He called his right fist "toonder and lightning" for its concussive power (it was also called "Ingo's Bingo" and the "Hammer of Thor"), and in 2003 he was ranked at #99 on The Ring's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time. He reputedly had bone trouble in his right hand on and off throughout his career as a result.
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Ivan Basso
Ivan Basso (born 26 November 1977 in Gallarate, Province of Varese) is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who is currently racing with UCI ProTeam Liquigas-Cannondale. Basso, nicknamed Ivan the Terrible, is among the best mountain riders in the professional field in the 21st century, and is considered one of the strongest stage race riders. He is a double winner of the Giro d'Italia, having won the 2006 edition and the 2010 edition of the Italian Grand Tour whilst riding for Team CSC in 2006 and for Liquigas in 2010. However, in 2007 Basso admitted he was planning to use doping and was suspended for two years. His suspension ended on October 24, 2008, and he returned to racing two days later in the Japan Cup, where he placed a close third behind Damiano Cunego and Giovanni Visconti.
He was born in Gallarate, in the province of Varese in Lombardy. There he grew up next door to Claudio Chiappucci, a former three-time stage winner in the Tour de France who was suspended for two years after being proven guilty of doping several times.
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Jack Nicklaus
Jack William Nicklaus (born January 21, 1940), nicknamed "The Golden Bear", is an American professional golfer. By winning a total of 18 career major championships while producing 19 second place and 9 third place finishes in major events on the PGA Tour over a span of 25 years, he is widely regarded as the most accomplished professional golfer of all time. Nicklaus did not play that many tournaments because he wanted to focus on the Majors, but is still second on the PGA-tournament winning list, with 73 victories.
After winning two U.S. Amateurs in 1959 and 1961, and challenging for the 1960 U.S. Open, Nicklaus turned professional toward the end of 1961. The 1962 U.S. Open was both Nicklaus' first major championship victory and his first professional win. This win over Arnold Palmer began the on-course rivalry between the two. In 1966, Nicklaus won the Masters Tournament for the second year in a row, becoming the first golfer to achieve this, and also won The Open Championship, completing his career slam of major championships. At age 26, he became the youngest to do so at the time. In 1968 and 1969, Nicklaus did not win a major tournament. He then won another Open Championship in 1970.
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Jackie Joyner-Kersee
Jacqueline "Jackie" Joyner-Kersee (born March 3, 1962) is a retired American athlete, ranked among the all-time greatest athletes in the women's heptathlon as well as in the women's long jump. She won three gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals, in those two events at four different Olympic Games. Sports Illustrated for Women magazine voted Joyner-Kersee the Greatest Female Athlete of the 20th century, just ahead of Babe Didrikson Zaharias.
After retiring as a competitive athlete, Joyner-Kersee has been involved with many philanthropic efforts and has joined the Board of Directors for USA Track & Field (USATF), the national governing body of the sport.
Jacqueline Joyner was born March 3, 1962, in East St. Louis, Illinois, and was named after Jackie Kennedy. As a high school athlete at East St. Louis Lincoln High School, she qualified for the finals in the Long Jump at the 1980 Olympic Trials, finishing 8th behind another high schooler, Carol Lewis. She was inspired to compete in multi-disciplinary track & field events after seeing a 1975 made-for-TV movie about Babe Didrikson Zaharias. Interestingly, Didrikson, the trackster, basketball player, and pro golfer, was chosen the "Greatest Female Athlete of the First Half of the 20th Century. Fifteen years later, "Sports Illustrated for Women" magazine voted Joyner-Kersee the greatest female athlete of "all time".
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Jackie Stewart
Sir John Young 'Jackie' Stewart, OBE (born 11 June 1939) is a Scottish former racing driver. Nicknamed the 'Flying Scot', he competed in Formula One between 1965 and 1973, winning three World Drivers' Championships. He also competed in Can-Am. He is well known in the United States as a color commentator (pundit) of racing television broadcasts, and as a spokesman for Ford, where his Scottish accent has made him a distinctive presence. Between 1997 and 1999, in partnership with his son, Paul, he was team principal of the Stewart Grand Prix Formula One racing team. In 2009 he was ranked fifth of the fifty greatest Formula One drivers of all time by journalist Kevin Eason who wrote: "He has not only emerged as a great driver, but one of the greatest figures of motor racing."
Stewart's family were Austin, later Jaguar, car dealers and had built up a successful business, Dumbuck Garage, in Milton, West Dunbartonshire, Scotland where Stewart was born and was educated at Dumbarton Academy. His father had been an amateurmotorcycle racer, and his brother Jimmy was a racing driver with a growing local reputation who drove for Ecurie Ecosse and competed in the 1953 British Grand Prix at Silverstone, until he went off at Copse Corner in the wet.
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Jacques Anquetil
Jacques Anquetil (8 January 1934 – 18 November 1987) was a French road racing cyclist and the first cyclist to win the Tour de France five times, in 1957 and from 1961 to 1964. He stated before the 1961 Tour that he would gain the yellow jersey on day one and wear it all through the tour, a tall order with two previous winners in the field—Charly Gaul and Federico Bahamontes—but he did just that. His victories in stage races such as the Tour were built on an exceptional ability to ride alone against the clock in individual time trial stages, which lent him the name "Monsieur Chrono".
Anquetil was:
Anquetil was the son of a builder in Mont-Saint-Aignan, in the hills above Rouen in Normandy, north-west France. He lived there with his parents, Ernest and Marie, and his brother Philippe and then at Boisguillaume in a two-storey house, "one of those houses with exposed beams that tourists think are pretty but those who live there find uncomfortable."
In 1941, his father refused contracts to work on military installations for the German occupiers and his work dried up. Other members of the family worked in strawberry farming and Anquetil's father followed them, moving to the hamlet of Bourguet, near Quincampoix. Anquetil had his first bicycle - an Alcyon - at the age of four and twice a day rode the kilometre and a half to the village and back. There he was taught by a teacher wearing clogs in a classroom heated by a smoking stove.
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Jamie Foxx
Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), professionally known as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, singer-songwriter, rapper, stand-up comedian, and talk radio host who began playing the piano when he was five years old. As an actor, his work in the film Ray earned him the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Actor as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a musical/comedy. He is also a Grammy Award winning musician, producing three albums which have charted highly on the Billboard 200: Unpredictable, which topped the chart, Best Night of My Life and Intuition.
Born in Terrell, Texas, Foxx was raised by his mother's adoptive parents. He performed in high school and was awarded with a scholarship to United States International University. In his twenties, Foxx began performing stand-up at comedy clubs, and eventually joined the cast of In Living Color in 1991; this exposure helped him land film roles and star in his own sitcom, The Jamie Foxx Show. He released his debut album, Peep This, in 1994, but he did not gain significant musical success until 2004 when he was featured in Twista's song "Slow Jamz". Also in 2004, Foxx played critically acclaimed roles in the films Collateral and Ray. He released his second album, Unpredictable, in 2005, which was helped by his collaboration on Kanye West's number-one single "Gold Digger". His third album Intuition was released in 2008 and was anchored by the single "Blame It". Foxx released his fourth studio album, Best Night of My Life, in 2010.
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Jan Janssen
Johannes Adrianus Janssen, known as Jan Janssen (born 19 May 1940, Nootdorp) is a Dutch former professional cyclist (1962–1973). He was world champion and winner of the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España. He was the first Dutch rider to win the Tour de France and the first to win the Vuelta a España.
Janssen was born at Nootdorp, a small town near The Hague and Delft. He later moved to Putte, a village on the Belgian border between Roosendaal and Antwerp. He rode the Tour de France eight times and finished all but the first time. He won seven stages and wore the yellow jersey for two days (after stage 16 in 1966 and after stage 22B in 1968). He was easily spotted in the peloton because of his blond hair and his glasses.
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Jan Ullrich
Jan Ullrich (born 2 December 1973 in Rostock, Germany) is a German former professional road bicycle racer. In 1997, he was the first German to win the Tour de France. He went on to take five second places and a fourth in 2004 as well as 3rd in 2005 (the latter result being declared void in 2012 following his doping ban). He is considered the best time-trialist in the history of the sport. In 2006, Ullrich was barred from the Tour amid speculation of having doped. He retired in late February 2007.
Ullrich won a gold and a silver in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. He also won the 1999 Vuelta a España. Although not a one-day specialist, he won the HEW Cyclassics in front of a home crowd in Hamburg in 1997, and had podium finishes in the hilly classic Clásica de San Sebastián. His victorious ride in the 1997 Tour de France led to a bicycle boom in Germany.
In February 2012, Ullrich was found guilty of a doping offence by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. He was retroactively banned from August 22, 2011, and all results gained since May 2005 were also removed from his Palmares.
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Jean Aerts
Jean Aerts (Laken, 8 September 1907 – Bruges, 15 June 1992) was a Belgian road bicycle racer who specialized as a sprinter. Aerts became the first man to win both the world amateur (1927) and professional (1935) road race championships. In 1935, Aerts captured first place and the gold medal at the professional UCI Road World Championships in Floreffe, Belgium.
In 1927, professional and amateur riders rode concurrently at the Nürburgring in Germany and Aerts finished 5th, the highest ranked amateur.
Although he lacked climbing ability for major tours, he used his sprinting ability to win 11 stages of the Tour de France, including six in 1933.
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Jean Robic
Jean Robic (born 10 June 1921 in Vouziers, Ardennes – died Claye-Souilly, 6 October 1980) was a French road racing cyclist, who won the 1947 Tour de France. Robic was a professional cyclist from 1943 to 1961. His diminutive stature (1.61m, 60 kg) and appearance was encapsulated in the nickname the hobgoblin of the Brittany moor. For faster, gravity assisted, descents he collected drinking bottles ballasted with lead or mercury at the summits of mountain climbs and "cols". After fracturing his skull in 1944 he always wore a trademark leather crash helmet.
Robic has always been described as a Breton but he was born in the Ardennes region of France, where his father had found work as a carpenter.
his father having lived in Brittany before he moved. His father was a racing cyclist and passed the interest to his son. Robic moved to Brittany when he was seven and lived at Radenac. His childhood home is in a street now named for him.
Robic moved to Paris In February 1940 and became a cycle mechanic for the Sausin company. He started racing but made a poor impression on journalists. René de Latour of Sporting Cyclist wrote:
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Jean Stablinski
Jean Stablewski, known as Jean Stablinski (born 21 May 1932, Thun-Saint-Amand, France, d. 22 July 2007) was a French professional cyclist from a family of Polish immigrants. He rode from 1952 to 1968, winning 105 races as a professional. He won the national road championship four times - 1960, 1962, 1963 and 1964 - the world road championship in 1962, the first Amstel Gold Race, in 1966 and Vuelta a España in 1958.
Jean Stablinski was the son of Polish immigrants in the mining area of the Nord region of France. His father died in a work accident in 1946 and Jean, at 14, started working in the mine to provide for his family. It was at this time that he won a bicycle in an accordion competition. Legend says that his mother was so displeased by her son's new hobby that she damaged his bike.
Jean, still known as Stablewski, became naturalised as French at 16 and rode his first races. It was while riding the Peace Race that a journalist's error in writing his name 'Stablinski' created the surname by which he was known then on.
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Jean-Marie Leblanc
Jean-Marie Leblanc (born July 27, 1944 in Nueil-sur-Argent, now Nueil-les-Aubiers, Deux-Sèvres) is a French retired professional road bicycle racer who was general director of the Tour de France from 1989 to 2005, when he reached pensionable age and was succeeded by Christian Prudhomme.
He became a professional in 1966 and rode until 1971. He gained his best results in criteriums, small tours, and single stage races, like the Grand Prix d'Aix-en-Provence (1968, 1st), the Circuit d'Armorique (1969, 1st), and the Quatre Jours de Dunkerque (1970, 2nd). Afterwards, he became a sports journalist.
Under his aegis, the Tour was modernised, most notably with the abandonment of the red and combination jerseys. He is also the Directeur Général Délégué d’Amaury Sport Organisation.
Leblanc was president of the AIOCC (Association Internationale des Organisateurs de Courses Cyclistes) from 1989 through 2004. In October 2007, he published his autobiography, Le Tour de ma Vie.
He took over from Jacques Duquesne as president of the JNP (Journalists Originating from Nord-Pas de Calais). Every Christmas it awards the 'Trophy of light' to whoever has best served the region that year. Every Spring it awards the 'Golden Pen' to the author of the best article of the region.
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Jean-Pierre Monseré
Jean-Pierre "Jempi" Monseré (8 September 1948, Roeselare, West Flanders - 15 March 1971, Sint-Pieters-Lille, Belgium) was a Belgian road racing cyclist who died while champion of the world.
Monseré was a talented amateur who turned professional for Flandria in 1969. He won the Giro di Lombardia that year. A year later he became the Belgian track omnium champion and on 16 August 1970 he won the world championship in Leicester, England. He was the second-youngest world champion after another Belgian, Karel Kaers. In 1971 he again became Belgian champion, this time track madison.
On 15 March 1971, Monseré was riding the Grote Jaarmarktprijs in Retie. On the road from Lille to Gierle he collided with a car driven on the course and died on the spot. A monument now stands at the spot. In a cruel twist of fate, in 1976 Monseré's seven-year-old son, Giovanni, died after a collision with a car, while riding his racing bike, given to him on his first communion by another world champion, Freddy Maertens.
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Jeff Fager
Jeff Fager (born December 10, 1954) is the Chairman of CBS News and the Executive Producer of 60 Minutes, the hour-long CBS news magazine created in 1968.
Fager graduated from Colgate University in 1977. As a teen, he spent some of his years in the Town of Wellesley and graduated from Wellesley High School in the class of 1973. He began his career in broadcast news in Boston and joined CBS News in 1982 from San Francisco, California station, KPIX-TV, where he was a broadcast producer.
Fager then became an Executive Producer of The CBS Evening News and held senior and field producer positions for that broadcast and other CBS News entities, including 60 Minutes; he soon became an Executive Producer of 60 Minutes II. In June 2004, he assumed the position of Executive Producer of 60 Minutes.
In February 2011, it was announced that Jeff Fager would lead the news division of CBS as Chairman of CBS News, a newly created position. In tandem with the newly appointed president David Rhodes, Fager would head CBS News while continuing to executive produce 60 Minutes.
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Jeff Foxworthy
Jeffrey Marshall "Jeff" Foxworthy (born September 6, 1958) is an American comedian, television and radio personality and author. He is a member of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, a comedy troupe which also comprises Larry the Cable Guy, Bill Engvall and Ron White. Known for his "you might be a redneck" one-liners, Foxworthy has released six major-label comedy albums. His first two albums were each certified 3×multi-Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Foxworthy has also written several books based on his redneck jokes, as well as an autobiography entitled No Shirt, No Shoes... No Problem!.
Foxworthy has also made several ventures into television, first in the mid-1990s as the star of a sitcom called, The Jeff Foxworthy Show. He has also appeared alongside Engvall and Larry the Cable Guy in several Blue Collar television specials, most notably Blue Collar TV. Since 2007, he has been the host of the quiz show Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? on Fox (2007–2009) and syndication (2009–2011). Foxworthy hosted a nationally syndicated radio show called The Foxworthy Countdown from April 1999 to December 2009.
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Jeff Gordon
Jeffery Michael "Jeff" Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He drives the No. 24 Drive to End Hunger/DuPont Chevrolet Impala for Hendrick Motorsports in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. He is a four-time series champion and a three-time Daytona 500 winner. He is third on the all-time wins list, with 85 career wins, and has the most wins in NASCAR's modern era (1972–present). In 2009, Gordon became the first driver to reach $100 million in career winnings in the Cup series.
Gordon, along with Rick Hendrick, are the co-owners of the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet, driven by Jimmie Johnson, who won five consecutive Cup championships from 2006 to 2010. Gordon also has an equity stake in his own No. 24 team. He was born in Vallejo, California, raised in Pittsboro, Indiana, and currently resides in Charlotte, North Carolina.
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Jerry Lucas
Jerry Ray Lucas (born March 30, 1940) is a former basketball player who played from the 1950s to the 1970s. He is now a memory education expert. In 1996, the NBA's 50th anniversary, he was named one of the 50 greatest players in National Basketball Association history. He was named to Sports Illustrated's five-man College All-Century Team in 1999.
Lucas was born in Middletown, Ohio, then a community of 30,000+ halfway between Dayton and Cincinnati, that in the 1940s and 1950s boasted one of the most respected high school basketball programs in the United States. Greatly encouraged, Lucas began pouring hours each day into the town's game during his early teens.
Lucas had become a local playground legend by age 15, in Sunset Park. Sunset Park was then a regional summer hotbed for high school, college and even some pro players. Future Cincinnati Royals teammates Wayne Embry and Oscar Robertson were visitors there. Lucas was already at almost his full-grown height of 6 ft 8 in (2.06 m) by age 15, out-playing college players with his advanced game.
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Jesse Owens
James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens (September 12, 1913 – March 31, 1980) was an American track and field athlete who specialized in the sprints and the long jump. He participated in the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany, where he achieved international fame by winning four gold medals: one each in the 100 meters, the 200 meters, the long jump, and as part of the 4x100 meter relay team. He was the most successful athlete at the 1936 Summer Olympics, a victory more poignant and often noted because Adolf Hitler had intended the 1936 games to showcase his Aryan ideals and prowess.
The Jesse Owens Award, USA Track and Field's highest accolade for the year's best track and field athlete, is named after him, in honor of his significant career.
James Cleveland Owens was born the seventh of eleven children of Henry Cleveland Owens and Mary Emma Fitzgerald in Oakville, Alabama on September 12, 1913. J.C., as he was called, was nine years old when the family moved to Cleveland, Ohio for better opportunities, as part of the Great Migration, when 1.5 million African Americans left the segregated South. When his new teacher asked his name (to enter in her roll book), he said "J.C.", but because of his strong Southern accent, she thought he said "Jesse". The name took, and he was known as Jesse Owens for the rest of his life.
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Jim Ryun
James Ronald ("Jim") Ryun (born April 29, 1947) is an American former track athlete and politician, who was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1996 to 2007, representing the 2nd District in Kansas. In the 2006 election, Ryun was defeated by Democratic challenger Nancy Boyda. In the Kansas Republican primary on August 5, 2008, he was defeated by Kansas State Treasurer Lynn Jenkins.
Years prior to his political career, Ryun had an athletic career that saw him become a world-class runner and the last American to hold the world record in the mile run. His career was highlighted by many world record times and a silver medal in the 1500 m at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics.
In 1966, at age nineteen, Ryun set world records in the mile and the half-mile runs, and received Sports Illustrated magazine's "Sportsman of the Year" award, as well as the James E. Sullivan Award as the nation's top amateur athlete, the ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year, and was voted Track & Field News' Athlete of the Year as the world’s best track & field athlete. Ironically, Ryun did all of this before he was permitted to run for the school he attended, University of Kansas, since NCAA rules at the time did not allow freshmen to compete in NCAA competition. In 1967 Ryun ran a world record in the indoor half mile (1:48.3) and outdoors lowered his world-record time in the mile from 3:51.3 to 3:51.1, a record that stood for almost eight years. That same year he set the world record for the 1500 meters in 3:33.1, running his last lap in a blazing 53.3 seconds and his final 1,200 meters in an amazing 2:46.6.
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Jimmie Johnson
Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975) is an American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race car driver. He currently drives the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet for Hendrick Motorsports.
Johnson was born in El Cajon, California, and began racing motorcycles at the age of five. After graduating from Granite Hills High School he competed in off-road series. He raced in Mickey Thompson Entertainment Group (MTEG), Short-course Off-road Drivers Association (SODA) and SCORE International, winning rookie of the year in each series. In 1998, Johnson and his team began stock car racing. He moved to the national American Speed Association (ASA) series for late model touring cars, and won another rookie of the year title. In 2000, he switched to the NASCAR Busch Series (now Nationwide Series).
He moved to Hendrick Motorsports in the Sprint Cup Series in 2002. After finishing fifth in the points in his first full season, he was second in 2003 and 2004 and fifth in 2005. Johnson won his first Cup series championship in 2006 and with further wins in 2007, 2008, 2009 and in 2010 became the only driver in NASCAR history to win five consecutive championships. During the 2011 season, Johnson finished sixth in points. Between 2002 and 2012, Johnson has recorded 56 wins, 232 top-tens, and 25 pole positions.
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Jimmy Kimmel
James Christian "Jimmy" Kimmel (born November 13, 1967) is an American comedian, actor, voice artist and television host. He is the host of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, a late-night talk show that airs on ABC. Prior to that, Kimmel was best known as the co-host of Comedy Central's The Man Show and Win Ben Stein's Money. Kimmel is also a television producer, having produced shows such as Crank Yankers, Sports Show with Norm Macdonald, and The Andy Milonakis Show.
Kimmel was born in the Mill Basin neighborhood of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, the eldest of three children of Joann (née Iacono), a homemaker, and James Kimmel, an IBM executive. He is Roman Catholic and, as a child, served as an altar boy. Kimmel is of German and Irish descent on his father’s side and Italian descent on his mother’s side. His uncle, Frank Potenza, appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! as a regular from 2003 until his death in 2011.
The family moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, when he was nine years old. He graduated from Ed W. Clark High School and then attended University of Nevada, Las Vegas for one year before attending Arizona State University for two years without completing a degree.
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Jimmy Smits
Jimmy Smits (born July 9, 1955) is an American actor. Smits is perhaps best known for his roles as attorney Victor Sifuentes on the 1980s legal drama L.A. Law, as NYPD Detective Bobby Simone on the 1990s police drama NYPD Blue, and as Congressman and then President Matthew Vincente Santos on The West Wing. He is also notable for his portrayal of Bail Organa in the Star Wars prequel trilogy, and Miguel Prado in Dexter. In the fall of 2010, he starred in NBC's short-lived series Outlaw, about a U.S. Supreme Court justice who leaves the bench to return to practicing law.
Smits was born in Brooklyn, New York. His father, Cornelius Smits, was a Surinamese immigrant of Dutch descent who managed a screen-printing factory. His mother, Emilina, was a Puerto Rican who worked as a nurse. Smits was raised in a strict devout Roman Catholic family. "Jimmy" is actually the name on his birth certificate, rather than "Jim" or "James." He has two sisters, Yvonne and Diana. He grew up in a working-class neighborhood and spent time in Puerto Rico during his childhood. Smits earned a bachelor's degree from Brooklyn College in 1980 and an MFA from Cornell University in 1982. Though born in New York, Smits has deep Puerto Rican roots and frequently visits the island. In 2001, he was arrested for his participation in protests against U.S. Navy bombing practices on the Puerto Rican offshore island of Vieques.
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Joe DiMaggio
Giuseppe Paulo "Joe" DiMaggio (/dɨˈmɑːʒioʊ/ or /dɨˈmædʒioʊ/; November 25, 1914 – March 8, 1999), nicknamed "Joltin' Joe" and "The Yankee Clipper", was an American Major League Baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career for the New York Yankees. He is perhaps best known for his 56-game hitting streak (May 15 – July 16, 1941), a record that still stands. DiMaggio was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1955.
A three-time MVP winner and 13-time All-Star, DiMaggio is the only player to be selected for the All-Star Game in every season he played. During his thirteen years with the Yankees, the club won ten American League pennants and nine World Series championships.
At the time of his retirement, he ranked fifth in career home runs (361) and sixth in career slugging percentage (.579). He was voted the sport's greatest living player in a poll taken in the baseball centennial year of 1969.
His brothers Vince and Dom also became major league center fielders.
DiMaggio was born in Martinez, California, the eighth of nine children born to immigrants from Italy, Giuseppe (1872–1949) and Rosalia (Mercurio) DiMaggio (1878–1951). He was delivered by a midwife identified on his birth certificate as Mrs. J. Pico. He was named after his father; "Paolo" was in honor of Giuseppe's favorite saint, Saint Paul. The family moved to San Francisco, California, when Joe was a year old.
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Joe Louis
Joseph Louis Barrow (May 13, 1914 – April 12, 1981), better known as Joe Louis, was an American professional boxer and the World Heavyweight Champion from 1937 to 1949. He is considered to be one of the greatest heavyweights of all time. Nicknamed the Brown Bomber, Louis helped elevate boxing from a nadir in popularity in the post-Jack Dempsey era by establishing a reputation as an honest, hardworking fighter at a time when the sport was dominated by gambling interests. Louis' championship reign lasted 140 consecutive months, during which he participated in 27 championship fights, 26 championship fights during his reign; the 27th, against Ezzard Charles, was a challenge to Charles' Heavyweight title and so is not included in Louis' reign. All in all, Joe was victorious in 25 successful title defenses, a record for the heavyweight division. In 2005, Louis was ranked as the #1 heavyweight of all-time by the International Boxing Research Organization, and was ranked #1 on The Ring's list of the 100 Greatest Punchers of All-Time.
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Joe Montana
Joseph Clifford "Joe" Montana, Jr. (born June 11, 1956), nicknamed Joe Cool, Golden Joe, The Golden Great and Comeback Joe, is a retired professional football player, a hall of fame quarterback with the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs. Montana started his NFL career in 1979 with San Francisco, where he played for the next 14 seasons. Traded before the 1993 season, he spent his final two years in the league with Kansas City. While a member of the 49ers, Montana started in four Super Bowl games and won all of them. Montana was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000, his first year of eligibility.
In 1989, and again in 1990, the Associated Press named Montana the NFL Most Valuable Player (MVP), and Sports Illustrated magazine named Montana the 1990 "Sportsman of the Year". Four years earlier, in 1986, Montana won the AP NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award. Montana was elected to eight Pro Bowls, as well as being voted 1st team All-Pro by the AP in 1987, 1989, and 1990. Montana had the highest passer rating in the National Football Conference (NFC) five times (1981, 1984, 1985, 1987, and 1989); and, in both 1987 and 1989, Montana had the highest passer rating in the entire NFL.
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Johan Bruyneel
Johan Bruyneel (born 23 August 1964, Izegem, Belgium) is a former road bicycle racer in professional cycling and a directeur sportif for UCI ProTour team RadioShack-Nissan-Trek. Retiring from racing in 1998, he became director of US Postal (later known as Discovery Channel), a US-based UCI ProTour cycling team. He produced eight Tour de France wins with US Postal/Discovery, with Lance Armstrong from 1999–2005 and Alberto Contador in 2007. Following the 2007 season, the team disbanded and Bruyneel became the director of the Astana team beginning in 2008, and achieved victories in each of cycling's Grand Tours with Contador with Astana.
Bruyneel was a successful professional cyclist. Early wins included the 1990 Tour de l'Avenir, the 1991 Rund um den Henninger Turm, the 1992 Grand Prix des Nations and Coppa Placci, and stage 6 (Evreux > Amiens) and finishing 7th at the 1993 Tour de France. His stage win set the record for fastest stage at 49.417 km/h, since then only broken by two cyclists.
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Johan Museeuw
Johan Museeuw (born 13 October 1965 in Varsenare) is a retired Belgian professional road bicycle racer. He was a professional from 1988 to 2004 and was particularly successful in the classic cycle races in the nineties.
Museeuw is the winner of 11 World Cup races, including six victories in "Monument" events:
He won the World Cup in 1995 & 1996. He was also the Belgian Champion in 1992 & 1996.
Museeuw won the World Cycling Championship in the road race in Lugano 1996. In that year, he also won the UCI Road World Cup, the only rider in history to accomplish both in the same year.
Museeuw also won the following classics and semi-classics:
Museeuw's father Eddy rode as a pro for two seasons without much success. Johan started his professional career in 1988 with ADR. In 1989 he was part of the ADR team in which Greg LeMond won his second Tour de France. In 1990 Museeuw went to the Lotto team for which he won two stages in the Tour de France that year. Later on he rode for the MG-GB, Mapei, Domo-Farm Frites and Quick-Step. He ended his career in the spring of 2004.
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Johann Olav Koss
Johann Olav Koss (born 29 October 1968) is a former speed skater from Norway, considered to be one of the best in history, and current assistant coach of Norway's speed skating team.
Johann Olav Koss was born in Drammen, Buskerud County, Norway. Johann Olav Koss became the Norwegian Junior Champion in 1987, but he could not compete with the world top skaters in the 1986 and 1987 World Junior Championships. In 1988, he debuted with the seniors at the World Championships in Alma-Ata, but failed to qualify for the final distance. The following year, he finished eighth in the same tournament (after a fifteenth place in the European Allround Championships), placing second on the 1,500 m. His breakthrough came in 1990, winning the World Allround Championships in Innsbruck, Austria. The following four years, he would win two more world titles (1991 and 1994), while finishing second in 1993 and third in 1992. He won the European Allround Championships in 1991 and finished second in the next three editions. Koss had a total of twenty-three World Cup wins, while winning four overall World Cup titles (the 1,500 m in 1990 and 1991, and the combined 5,000/10,000 m in 1991 and 1994).
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John Goodman
John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American film, television, and stage actor. He is best known for his role as Dan Conner on the television series Roseanne (1988–1997) for which he won a Best Actor Golden Globe Award in 1993.
Goodman was born in St. Louis, Missouri. His mother, Virginia Roos (née Loosmore), was a store clerk and waitress who worked at Jack and Phil's Bar-B-Que, and his father, Leslie F. Goodman, was a postal worker who died of a heart attack in 1954. He has a sister, Elisabeth Horvath, and a brother, Leslie.
Goodman went to Affton High School, where he played football and dabbled in theater. He then won a football scholarship to Southwest Missouri State University, now called Missouri State University. He pledged the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, but was not formally initiated until several years later. Later he discovered Southwest Missouri's drama program. He studied there with actors Kathleen Turner and Tess Harper. After a college injury ended his football career, he decided to become a professional actor, leaving Missouri for New York in 1975.
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John McEnroe
John Patrick McEnroe, Jr. (born February 16, 1959) is a former world no. 1 professional tennis player from the United States. During his career, he won seven Grand Slam singles titles (three at Wimbledon and four at the US Open), nine Grand Slam men's doubles titles, and one Grand Slam mixed doubles title. McEnroe also won a record eight season ending championships, comprising five WCT Finals titles and three Masters Grand Prix titles from twelve final appearances at these two events, a record he shares with Ivan Lendl. He posted the best single season win-loss record in the Open Era in 1984 at 96.47% (82/3). In addition he won 19 Championship Series top tier events of the Grand Prix Tour that were the precursors to the current Masters 1000.
He is best remembered for his shot-making artistry and superb volleying; for his famous rivalries with Björn Borg, Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl; for his confrontational on-court behavior which frequently landed him in trouble with umpires and tennis authorities; and for the catchphrase "You cannot be serious!" directed toward an umpire during a match at Wimbledon in 1981. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1999, and is regarded as one of the greatest tennis players of all time.
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John Wooden
John Robert Wooden (October 14, 1910 – June 4, 2010) was an American basketball player and coach. Nicknamed the "Wizard of Westwood", he won ten NCAA national championships in a 12-year period—seven in a row—as head coach at UCLA, an unprecedented feat. Within this period, his teams won a record 88 consecutive games. He was named national coach of the year six times.
As a player, Wooden was the first to be named basketball All-American three times and he won a national championship at Purdue. Wooden was named a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame as a player (inducted in 1961) and as a coach (in 1973), the first person ever enshrined in both categories. Only Lenny Wilkens and Bill Sharman have since had the same honor.
He was one of the most revered coaches and was beloved by his former players, among them Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton. Wooden was renowned for his short, simple inspirational messages to his players, including his "Pyramid of Success". These often were directed at how to be a success in life as well as in basketball.
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Johnny Lujack
John Christopher Lujack, Jr. (pronounced Lu' jack; born January 4, 1925) is a former American football quarterback and 1947 Heisman Trophy winner.
He played college football for the University of Notre Dame, and professionally for the Chicago Bears. Lujack was the first of several successful quarterbacks who hailed from Western Pennsylvania. Others include Pro Football Hall of Fame members Johnny Unitas, Joe Namath, Dan Marino, Jim Kelly, Joe Montana and George Blanda.
Lujack was born to Alice and John, Sr., in Connellsville, Pennsylvania, the youngest of four sons and fifth child in a family of six children. The family, which included older siblings Valentine ("Val"), Stanley ("Stan"), Victoria, Aloysius ("Allie"), and younger sister Dolorous, is of Polish descent. His father, John, Sr., worked for the Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad for thirty years as a boiler-maker.
He was on the Connellsville High School football team from 1939 to 1941, and was also senior class president and valedictorian. He lettered in four sports; baseball, football, basketball, and track, in high school.
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Johnny Podres
John Joseph Podres (September 30, 1932 – January 13, 2008) was an American left-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who spent most of his career with the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers. He is perhaps best remembered for being named the Most Valuable Player of the 1955 World Series, pitching a shutout in Game 7 against the New York Yankees to help bring the Dodgers their first World Series title. He later led the National League in earned run average and shutouts in 1957, and in winning percentage in 1961.
Podres helped the Dodgers win World Series championships in 1955, 1959, 1963 and 1965, although he did not pitch in the 1965 World Series itself. After the Dodgers lost the first two games to the New York Yankees, Podres pitched a complete game, seven-hit victory on his 23rd birthday in Game 3. In the climactic Game 7, Podres pitched a 2–0 shutout to bring Brooklyn its only World Series championship. Podres was given the first-ever World Series MVP Award by Sport magazine and presented with a red two-seater Corvette. Later he was honored as the Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated magazine.
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Jonathan Vaughters
Jonathan Vaughters (born June 10, 1973 in Denver) is an American former professional racing cyclist and current manager of the Garmin-Barracuda professional cycling team.
Jonathan Vaughters started competitive cycling in the 1980s, racing in the Red Zinger Mini Classics youth cycling series in Colorado. He was considered to be a natural climber, and was soon noticed. In 1993, he was second in the Tour of Venezuela, in which he participated with the U.S. amateur team. He was recruited for the next season by the professional team Santa Clara, led by José Luis Nunes, a Catholic member of Opus Dei. Despite the fears of his parents, he left for Europe in order to start his professional career. According to Vaughters, Santa Clara was a very conservative team with hostile management who even made his bike "disappear" in order to discourage him from continuing.[citation needed]
In 1997 he moved to John Wordin's Comptel Data team, entering races he described as "A thousands times easier than being in Europe." He had a successful season becoming US National Time Trial Champion, and was 3rd in the National Road Race. His successes led to him signing for U.S. Postal Service cycling team. He won the time trial of the Dauphine Libere and finished 2nd overall to Alexandre Vinokourov after losing the general classification leadership on the final stage. He then went on to win the Route du Sud in preparation for the Tour de France as part of Lance Armstrong's team that went on to Armstrong's first win. In that Tour, he earned the nickname "El Gato" (The Cat in Spanish), having landed on his feet after being thrown headfirst over his handlebars in the first stage. In the second stage, he cut his chin in a crash, and had to abandon the race. This started his reputation as a somewhat innocent victim in a long series of ill-timed crashes, with an uncanny knack for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
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Joop Zoetemelk
Hendrik Gerardus Jozef "Joop" Zoetemelk (born 3 December 1946, Rijpwetering) is a retired professional racing cyclist from the Netherlands who has emigrated to France. He started the Tour de France 16 times and finished every time, a record. He won the race in 1980 and also came eighth, fifth, fourth (three times) and second (six times). He won the world professional road championship in 1985 at 38. He retired from the sport to run a hotel at Meaux, near Paris, France.
Joop Zoetemelk started work as a carpenter. He became a speed-skater and a regional champion before turning to cycling in 1964. He joined the Swift club in Leiden and made a fast impression, winning youth races in his first season. He rode particularly well as a senior in multi-day races. He won the Tour of Yugoslavia, the Circuit des Mines, three stages and the mountains prize in the Tour of Austria, and the 1969 Tour de l'Avenir. He also won a gold medal at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City in the 100 km team time-trial with Fedor den Hertog, Jan Krekels and René Pijnen.
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Joseba Beloki
Joseba Beloki Dorronsoro (born August 12, 1973) is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer.
Beloki turned professional in 1998 with Euskaltel-Euskadi, joined Festina in 2000, and then Team ONCE in 2001. A strong climber in the high mountains and a top performer in individual time trials, he made it to the podium in each of his first three rides in the Tour de France: in 2000 (3rd place), 2001 (3rd place) and 2002 (2nd place). In 2001, Beloki also finished first overall in the Volta a Catalunya.
On 14 July 2003, during the ninth stage of the 2003 Tour de France, Beloki was in second place overall (just 40 seconds behind Lance Armstrong) and negotiating a turn at speed while descending the Cote de La Rochette, just 4 km from the stage finish at Gap. He lost control of his bicycle after locked his rear brake and the rear tire came off the wheel on a patch of tarmac that was softened by the sun, sending his rear wheel skidding first in one direction and then the other. Beloki suffered a hard fall that broke his right femur in two places, his elbow and his wrist. Armstrong was following immediately behind Beloki and, to avoid the fallen rider, headed off the road to go down the hill through the underbrush and across a small field. The crash effectively ended Beloki's career as a premier bicycle racer.
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Judi Brown
Judith ("Judi") Lynne Brown-King (born July 14, 1961) is an American athlete who competed mainly in the 400 metre hurdles.
She competed for the United States at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, where she won the silver medal in the women's 400 metre hurdles event.
Brown was a two-time gold medalist at the Pan American Games (1983, 1987), and was a twelve-time Big Ten champion in track and field events. In 1987, she was selected Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated magazine for her community involvement.
Brown holds two degrees from Michigan State University, a Bachelors degree in Audiology and Speech Science, and a Masters degree in Education. She holds a Ph.D. in Public Administration and Public Policy from Western Michigan University, from which she graduated with honors. She also is a member of the Michigan Even Start Statewide Family Literacy Consortium.
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Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, actor, and businessman. He achieved early fame when he appeared as a contestant on Star Search, and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he met future bandmate JC Chasez. Timberlake became famous in the late 1990s as the lead singer and youngest member of the boy band 'N Sync, whose launch was financed by Lou Pearlman.
In 2002, he released his debut solo album, Justified, which sold more than seven million copies worldwide. The album was a commercial success, spawning the hits "Cry Me a River" and "Rock Your Body". Timberlake continued his success with his second solo album, FutureSex/LoveSounds (2006), debuting at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, and produced the US number-one hit singles "SexyBack", "My Love", and "What Goes Around... Comes Around".
Timberlake has won six Grammy Awards and four Emmy Awards. His first two albums made him one of the most commercially successful singers in the world, each selling in excess of 7 million copies. He also has an acting career, having starred in films such as The Social Network, Bad Teacher and Friends with Benefits. His other ventures include record label Tennman Records, fashion label William Rast, and the restaurants Destino and Southern Hospitality.
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Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr., April 16, 1947) is a retired American professional basketball player. He is the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, with 38,387 points. During his career with the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers from 1969 to 1989, Abdul-Jabbar won six NBA championships and a record six regular season MVP Awards. In college at UCLA, he played on three consecutive national championship teams, and his high school team won 71 consecutive games. At the time of his retirement, Abdul-Jabbar was the NBA’s all-time leader in points scored, games played, minutes played, field goals made, field goal attempts, blocked shots, defensive rebounds, and personal fouls. Abdul-Jabbar also has been an actor, basketball coach and an author. In 2012, he was selected as a U.S. cultural ambassador.
Abdul-Jabbar was born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr., on April 16, 1947, and grew up in Manhattan in New York City, the only child of Cora Lillian, a department store price checker, and Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Sr., a transit police officer and jazz musician. At birth, he weighed 12 pounds, 10 ounces (5.73 kg), and was twenty-two-and-a-half inches (57.2 cm) long. He was raised as a Roman Catholic and attended St. Jude School in the Inwood section of Manhattan. Later in life, he converted to Islam. He initially joined the Nation of Islam in 1968, before retaking the Shahada and converting to Sunni Islam that same summer.
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Karel Kaers
Karel Kaers, born in Vosselaar, Belgium, 3 June 1914 – died Antwerp, 20 December 1972 was a professional cyclist with 30 wins. In 1934 he became the youngest world road champion, winning in Leipzig at 20. It was the first time he had ridden the race. He also won the Ronde van Vlaanderen in 1939, and the Belgian national championship in 1937.
His last race was on the track at Ordrup, near Copenhagen, Denmark, on 9 May 1948. He finished fourth in an omnium competition.
Lance Armstrong is frequently described as the youngest world champion. In fact, he was only the third youngest road champion when he took the rainbow jersey in Oslo in 1993. Armstrong was two weeks short of 22; Kaers had just turned 20. Jean-Pierre Monseré was three weeks short of 22 when he became champion in Leicester on 16 August 1970.
Karel Kaers started racing at 14 and won 37 events in his first two years, including the Belgian boys' championship on the road. He became a junior in 1931 and won the national sprint championship. He became an independent, or semi-professional, and then a full professional in 1932, riding mainly on the track until 1934.
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Ken Venturi
Kenneth Venturi (born May 15, 1931) is an American former professional golfer and golf broadcaster.
Venturi was born in San Francisco, California. He learned golf from an early age, and developed his game at Harding Park Golf Course and other public courses in the area. In the early 1950s, Venturi had been a pupil of the great Byron Nelson, and was also influenced by playing partner Ben Hogan. He won the California State Amateur Championship in 1951 and 1956, serving in the Army in Korea in the interim. Venturi first gained national attention in 1956 while still an amateur; he finished second in that year's Masters, by one shot to Jack Burke, Jr., after leading from the first round. Venturi shot a final-round 80 in very windy conditions, and relinquished a four-shot lead, which prevented him from winning outright and thus becoming the first amateur to do so in the history of The Masters. Years later it would be compared to Greg Norman's back nine collapse in 1996.
Venturi was a regular winner during his early years on the PGA Tour after turning pro at the end of 1956. He again come close to winning the Masters in 1958 and 1960, both times being edged out by Arnold Palmer.
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Kipchoge Keino
Kipchoge ("Kip") Keino (born 17 January 1940), chairman of the Kenyan Olympic Committee (KOC), is a retired Kenyan track and field athlete and two-time Olympic gold medalist. Kip Keino was among the first in a long line of successful middle and long distance runners to come from the country and has helped and inspired many of his fellow countrymen and women to become the athletics force that they are today.
Keino was born in Kipsamo, Nandi District, Kenya. Both of his parents died while he was young. He was then brought up by his aunt. After finishing school, he joined Kenya Police. Before taking athletics, he played rugby
He began his international career at the 1962 Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia where he came eleventh in the three miles. At the 1964 Summer Olympics he finished fifth in 5000 m and barely missed the 1500 m final.
On 27 August 1965, Keino lowered the 3000 m world record by over 6 seconds to 7:39.6 at his first attempt at the distance. He won two gold medals (1500 & 5000 metres) at the inaugural All-Africa Games. Later in that year he broke the 5000 m world record held by Ron Clarke clocking 13:24.2. At the 1966 Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica he won both the mile run and three mile run. In the next Commonwealth Games, Keino won the 1500 metres and was third in the 5000 metres.
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Lance Armstrong
Lance Edward Armstrong (born Lance Edward Gunderson on September 18, 1971) is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support. He last rode for UCI ProTeam Team RadioShack, a team he helped found.
In October 1996 he was diagnosed as having testicular cancer with a tumor that had metastasized to his brain and lungs. His cancer treatments included brain and testicular surgery and extensive chemotherapy, and his prognosis was originally poor. He went on to win the Tour de France each year from 1999 to 2005, and is the only person to win seven times having broken the previous record of five wins shared by Miguel Indurain, Bernard Hinault, Eddy Merckx, and Jacques Anquetil.
In 1999, he was named the ABC Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year. In 2000 he won the Prince of Asturias Award in Sports. In 2002, Sports Illustrated magazine named him Sportsman of the Year. He was also named Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for the years 2002–2005. He received ESPN's ESPY Award for Best Male Athlete in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006, and won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award in 2003. Armstrong announced his retirement from racing on July 24, 2005, at the end of the 2005 Tour de France but returned to competitive cycling in January 2009 and finished third in the 2009 Tour de France. He confirmed he had retired from competitive cycling for good on February 16, 2011.
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Lance Rentzel
Thomas Lance Rentzel (born October 14, 1943 in Flushing, New York) is a former American football wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys and the Los Angeles Rams from 1965 to 1974.
He was a four-sport star at Casady School (football, basketball, baseball and track), and also an All-America high school halfback.
Rentzel played college football at the University of Oklahoma under famous coach Bud Wilkinson, where he starred as a versatile all-around halfback from 1962 to 1964. At Oklahoma, Rentzel was known for his open field speed and propensity for big plays rushing, receiving and returning kicks.
During his senior year in 1965, he was named to the All-Big Eight Conference team. That year he was Oklahoma's top pass catcher and punter. In the Big Eight Conference his 5.4 rushing average was second only to Gayle Sayers. He was also the conference's No. 3 pass receiver and No. 2 punter with a 40.5-yard average.
He was one of three Sooners stars who missed the 1965 Gator Bowl game against Florida State University. Rentzel, offensive lineman Ralph Neely and fullback Jim Grisham signed with professional teams before the game, and were ruled ineligible for the contest, which Florida State University won 36–19 on the strength of four touchdown catches by Fred Biletnikoff.
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Larry Bird
Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is a former American NBA basketball player and coach. Drafted into the NBA sixth overall by the Boston Celtics in 1978, Bird started at small forward and power forward for thirteen seasons, spearheading one of the NBA's most formidable frontcourts that included center Robert Parish and forward Kevin McHale. Due to chronic back problems, he retired as a player in 1992. Bird was voted to the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1996 and inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1998. He served as head coach of the Indiana Pacers from 1997 to 2000. In 2003, he assumed the role of president of basketball operations for the Pacers, which he currently holds. He is the only person in NBA history to be named Most Valuable Player, Coach of the Year, and Executive of the Year.
Larry Bird was born in West Baden, Indiana, the son of Georgia (née Kerns) and Claude Joseph "Joe" Bird. He grew up in both West Baden and the adjacent town French Lick, which earned him the nickname "the Hick from French Lick" in his professional basketball career. Bird recalled how his mother would make do on the family's meager earnings: "If there was a payment to the bank due, and we needed shoes, she'd get the shoes, and then deal with them guys at the bank. I don't mean she wouldn't pay the bank, but the children always came first." According to Bird, his being poor as a child "motivates me to this day". He sometimes was sent to live with his grandmother due to the family's struggles. The Bird family's struggle with poverty was compounded by the alcoholism and personal difficulties of Joe Bird, who likely suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder from serving in the Korean War. Joe Bird committed suicide on February 3, 1975, when Larry was 18 years old.
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Laura Hillenbrand
Laura Hillenbrand (born May 15, 1967) is an American author of books and magazine articles.
Born in Fairfax, Virginia, Hillenbrand spent much of her childhood riding bareback "screaming over the hills" of her father's Sharpsburg, Maryland, farm. A favorite of hers was Come On Seabiscuit, a 1963 kiddie book. "I read it to death, my little paperback copy," she says. She studied at Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio, but was forced to leave before graduation when she contracted Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which she has struggled with ever since. She now lives in Washington, D.C, and rarely leaves her house because of the condition. Hillenbrand married Borden Flanagan, a professor of Government at American University and her college sweetheart, in 2008.
Hillenbrand's first book was the acclaimed Seabiscuit: An American Legend (2001), a non-fiction account of the career of the great racehorse Seabiscuit, for which she won the William Hill Sports Book of the Year in 2001. She says she was compelled to tell the story because she "found fascinating people living a story that was improbable, breathtaking and ultimately more satisfying than any story [she'd] ever come across." She first told the story through an essay she sold to American Heritage magazine, and the feedback was positive, so she decided to proceed with a full non-fiction book. Upon the book's release, she received rave reviews for her storytelling and research. It was made into the Academy Award nominated film Seabiscuit (2003).
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Laurent Brochard
Laurent Brochard (born on March 26, 1968 in Le Mans, France) is a retired professional road racing cyclist from France. In 1997 he won a stage of the Tour de France and became world road champion in San Sebastián, Spain.
Brochard was a runner and started cycling competitively at 19. He started with Castorama and became part of Festina cycling team. His role in Festina was super-domestique, supporting stars such as Richard Virenque but able to ride competitively when given the chance. He was implicated in the Festina scandal in the 1998 Tour de France.
After serving his suspension, Brochard joined Ag2r Prévoyance as leader and had successes in races such as Critérium International and Etoile de Béssèges. He then moved to Bouygues Télécom.
He is a fan of French comic character Marsupilami, often wearing Marsupilami logo and clothing at races.
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Learco Guerra
Learco Guerra (October 14, 1902 - February 7, 1963) was an Italian professional road racing cyclist. The highlight of his career was his overall win in the 1934 Giro d'Italia.
Laearco Guerra, born in a frazione of Bagnolo San Vito in Lombardy, gained the nickname of "Human Locomotive" for his enduring quality in plain stages. After mediocre attempts to play football, Guerra became a professional cyclist in 1928, at 26. The following year he became Italian champion, racing as an independent or semi-professional.
In 1930 he won his first Italian National Road Race Championships, the first of five straight wins. That same year he came second in the Tour de France after Italy's leader, Alfredo Binda, proved in poor form. The race was won by the Frenchman, André Leducq. In 1931 Guerra won four stages of the Giro d'Italia but not the final victory. The same year he won the world cycling championship.
In 1933 Guerra was again second in the Tour de France, and he won the Milan – San Remo. In 1934 came his greatest success, 10 stages of the Giro d'Italia and the general classification. He was also second in the world championship.
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LeBron James
LeBron Raymone James (/ləˈbrɒn/; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he was a three-time "Mr. Basketball" of Ohio in high school, and was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar while a sophomore at St. Vincent – St. Mary High School. He was selected with the number one pick in the 2003 NBA Draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Listed as a small forward, James has set numerous youngest player records since joining the league. He was named the NBA Rookie of the Year in 2003–04, was named the NBA Most Valuable Player in 2009, 2010, and 2012 and has been both an All-NBA selection and an All-Star every season since 2005. In 2010, a much-publicized free agency process ended with James signing with the Miami Heat.
James led the Cleveland Cavaliers to consecutive playoff appearances from 2006 through 2010. In 2007, the Cavaliers advanced to the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history, but lost to the San Antonio Spurs. In 2011, James and the Miami Heat advanced to the NBA Finals but lost to the Dallas Mavericks. James has been a member of the USA national team, winning a bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics and gold at the 2008 Olympics.
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Lee Trevino
Lee Buck Trevino (born December 1, 1939) is a Mexican American professional golfer. He is an icon for Mexican Americans, and is often referred to as "The Merry Mex" and "Supermex". He won six major championships over the course of his career.
Trevino was born in Dallas, Texas into a family of Mexican ancestry. He was raised by his mother, Juanita Trevino, and his grandfather, Joe Trevino, a gravedigger. Trevino never knew his father, Joseph Trevino, who left when his son was small. Trevino's childhood consisted of attending school occasionally and working to earn money for the family. At age five, he started working in the cotton fields.
Trevino was introduced to golf when his uncle gave him a few golf balls and an old golf club. He then spent his free time sneaking into nearby country clubs to practice, and began as a caddy at the Dallas Athletic Club. He soon began caddying full-time. Trevino had to leave school at 14 to go to work. He earned $30 a week as a caddy and a shoeshiner. He was also able to practice golf, since the caddies had three short holes behind their shack. After work, he would hit at least 300 balls. Trevino has claimed to have earned extra money by challenging competitors to rounds of golf where he used only a shovel and taped-up 32-ounce glass Dr. Pepper bottle.
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Leon Hart
Leon Joseph Hart (November 2, 1928 – September 24, 2002) was an American football tight end and defensive end. He was raised in Turtle Creek, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh.
He won the Heisman Trophy and the Maxwell Award while at the University of Notre Dame in 1949 and played in the National Football League for eight seasons, all with the Detroit Lions.
He holds the distinction of being the only lineman to win three National Titles in both college and the pros. He was the last and one of only two lineman ever to win the Heisman Trophy. Also, he was the only player to win the Heisman Trophy, a national championship, and be the first overall pick in the NFL draft all in the same one-year span, until Cam Newton did this in 2011.
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Lou Boudreau
Louis "Lou" Boudreau (July 17, 1917 – August 10, 2001) was an American Major League Baseball player and manager. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1970. He was also a radio announcer for the Chicago Cubs of the National League.
In 1948, he won the American League Most Valuable Player Award and managed the Cleveland Indians to the World Series title.
Boudreau was an eight-time All Star Game selection, starting three times. He won the 1944 AL batting title (.327), and led the league in doubles in 1941, 1944, and 1947. He led AL shortstops in fielding eight times. Boudreau still holds the record for hitting the most consecutive doubles in a game (four), set on July 14, 1946.
Boudreau was born in Harvey, Illinois, to a father of French ancestry and a Jewish mother. He was raised Catholic. Boudreau graduated from Thornton Township High School in Harvey, Illinois. While at Thornton, Boudreau guided the "Flying Clouds" to three straight Illinois high school championship games, finishing first in 1933 and second in 1934 and 1935.
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Louis Trousselier
Louis Trousselier (1881 - April 24, 1939) was a French racing cyclist.
He was born in Levallois-Perret (Hauts de Seine) in 1881; some sources say on January 29, others June 29. He died in Paris on April 24, 1939.
He is most famous for his 1905 victory in the 1905 Tour de France. His other major wins were Paris–Roubaix, also in 1905, and the 1908 Bordeaux–Paris. He came third in the 1906 Tour de France and won 13 stages of the Tour de France over his career.
Trousselier, known as Trou-Trou, came from a rich family which had a flower business in central Paris. For that reason, when Henri Desgrange, the first organiser of the Tour, sought to popularise competitors by giving them nicknames, he referred to Trousselier as "the florist".
Trousselier's brothers Léopold and André were also racers but they never had the success of Louis, who was only 18 when he won Paris–Roubaix-Antwerp against the stars of the day. He rode his first Tour de France in 1905, taking a few days' official leave from his service as a soldier and depending on doing well to save himself from too strong a penalty - potentially as a deserter - when he got back much later. He dominated the race winning five stages, completing the 3,021 km in 110 hours 26 minutes and 58 second at an average speed of 27.48 km. He won win 35 points ahead of Hippolyte Aucouturier (61 pts) and Jean-Baptiste Dortignacq(64pts). Victory brought him all his prizes, contracts to ride all over France and a bonus from his sponsor. But that night, in a trackside cabin in Paris, he lost the whole lot playing dice with friends.
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Louison Bobet
Louis 'Louison' Bobet (12 March 1925 - 13 March 1983) was a French professional road racing cyclist. He was the first great French rider of the post-war period and the first rider to win the Tour de France in three successive years, from 1953 to 1955. His career included the national road championship (1950 and 1951), Milan – San Remo (1951), Giro di Lombardia (1951), Critérium International (1951 & 52), Paris–Nice (1952), Grand Prix des Nations (1952), world road championship (1954), Ronde van Vlaanderen (1955), Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré (1955), Tour de Luxembourg (1955), Paris–Roubaix (1956) and Bordeaux–Paris (1959).
Louis Bobet was born one of three children above his father's baker's shop in the rue de Montfort, Saint-Méen-le-Grand, near Rennes. His father gave him a bicycle when he was two and after six months he could ride it 6 km. Bobet's father was also called Louis and the son was called Louison - little Louis - to avoid confusion The ending -on is a diminutive in French but outside Brittany Louison refers more usually to a girl. He was known as Louis in his early years as a rider, even as a professional, until the diminutive Louison gained in popularity.
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Luc Leblanc
Luc Leblanc (born on August 4, 1966 in Limoges, France) is a retired professional male cyclist from France. In 1994 he became World Road Champion.
In 1978, a drunk driver hit Luc Leblanc, aged 11, and his younger brother Gilles Leblanc, aged 8. Gilles died after the accident, while Luc had to stay in the hospital for six months. After many operations, Luc could walk again, although his left leg was 3 cm shorter than his right leg, and also weaker.
Initially, Leblanc wanted to become a priest, but after a physiotherapist's advice to take up cycling to solve his leg problems, and subsequently Raymond Poulidor's advice to become a professional cyclist, he did not become a priest.
At the 1991 Tour de France, in the 12th stage Leblanc joined the decisive attack together with Charly Mottet and Pascal Richard. Mottet won the stage, but they finished 7 minutes ahead of the classification leader LeMond, which meant that Leblanc was the new leader. The next day, Leblanc finished 12 minutes behind the winner, and lost the lead to Miguel Indurain, who would remain the leader until the end of the race.
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Lucien Aimar
Lucien Aimar (born 28 April 1941 in Hyères, Var) is a French cyclist, who won the Tour de France in 1966 and the national road championship in 1968. He is now a race organizer. He was born in Hyères, France.
Lucien Aimar came second in the Tour de l'Avenir in 1964, 42 seconds behind the Italian, Felice Gimondi. But for a one-minute penalty for an incident involving a Belgian rider, Aimar would have won. Later that year he rode the Olympic Games road race in Tokyo.
Aimar turned professional in 1965 for Ford-Gitane, a team led by Jacques Anquetil. He made sufficient impression for the manager, Raphael Géminiani, to pick him for the Tour de France in his first season. Aimar abandoned the race while climbing the col de l'Aubisque in the Pyrenees on the ninth stage.
Aimar won Genoa-Nice at the start of the season, came second on the Flèche Wallonne and won the Tour de France. His victory was based on an attack on the Aubisque, where he had pulled out the previous year, and on another attack in Turin. Each was followed by fast descending, at which he was talented. He also benefited from the support of Jacques Anquetil, riding his last Tour de France. Anquetil ensured that his team would ride in Aimar's support and then left the race. Aimar finished 1:17 ahead of the Dutchman, Jan Janssen and Anquetil's French rival, Raymond Poulidor. His season ended with ninth place in the world championship on the Nürburgring in West Germany. His ride was criticised, however, for help that he gave to the German, Rudi Altig. Aimar chased a breakaway group that included Jacques Anquetil, his partner in the French team, and took Altig with him. Altig won the title and Anquetil came second.
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Lucien Buysse
Lucien Buysse (11 September 1892 – 3 January 1980) was a Belgian cyclist and a champion of the Tour de France.
Born in Wontergem, Buysse began racing professionally in 1914, when he entered the Tour de France but did not finish. He resumed his career after World War I, entering but abandoning the Tour again in 1919 but placing third in the Paris–Roubaix classic in 1920. In 1923 he completed the Tour de France and finished in eighth place. In the 1924 and 1925 Tours, he rode with the Italian Automoto team led by Ottavio Bottecchia, where he was perhaps the first domestique in the history of the Tour. He placed third in 1924 and second in 1925.
The 1926 Tour was the longest in its history (5,745 km), with 17 stages averaging 338 km. Buysse, racing with his two brothers Jules and Michel, took the yellow jersey from Gustave Van Slembrouck on stage 10 by attacking during a furious storm on the Col d'Aspin in the Pyrenees. He gained almost an hour during the stage over his team leader Bottecchia who then abandoned. Buysse arrived in Paris as the champion despite suffering the loss of his daughter during the race.
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Lucien Petit-Breton
Lucien Georges Mazan (18 October 1882 – 20 December 1917) was a French racing cyclist (pseudonym: Lucien Petit-Breton).
He was born in Plessé, Loire-Atlantique, a part of Brittany, now part of Pays de la Loire. When he was six he moved with his parents to Buenos Aires where he took Argentine nationality. His cycling career started when he won a bike in a lottery at the age of sixteen. As his father wanted him to do a 'real' job, he adapted the nickname Lucien Breton for races, to deceive his father. Later he changed it to Petit-Breton, because there already was another cyclist called Lucien Breton.
His first notable victory was the track cycling championship of Argentina but in 1902 he was drafted in the French Army and he moved back to France. Two years later in 1904 he won the Bol d'Or track event at the second attempt, having finished second the previous year. In 1905 he broke the world hour record on the Buffalo cycling track in Paris with 41.110 km. The same year he started road-racing and finished the Tour de France in an astonishing fifth overall. In 1906, he won the third Paris–Tours race and improved on his previous performance by finishing fourth in the Tour.
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Lucien Van Impe
Lucien van Impe (born 20 October 1946 in Mere, Belgium) was a Belgian cyclist from 1969 to 1987. He excelled mainly as a climber in multiple-day races such as the Tour de France. He was the winner of the 1976 Tour de France, and six times winner of the mountains classification in the Tour de France.
Van Impe credits the start of his career to Spaniard Federico Bahamontes, a climber nicknamed the eagle of Toledo and a former Tour de France winner. In 1968 van Impe was King of the Mountains in the Tour de l'Avenir. Bahamontes used his influence to get van Impe a contract as a professional. In 1969, Van Impe started his professional career with a 12th place in the 1969 Tour de France. In 1971, Van Impe won his first Mountains classification in the Tour de France. He would repeat that five more times, a record then shared with Bahamontes. When Richard Virenque broke the record with a seventh victory in 2004, Van Impe criticized Virenque for being opportunistic rather than the best climber; he said he had himself refrained from breaking Bahamontes' record himself out of reverence.
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Luis Ocaña
Jesús Luis Ocaña Pernía (9 June 1945 – 19 May 1994) was a Spanish road bicycle racer who won the Tour de France in 1973 and the Vuelta a España in 1970.
Ocaña was born in Priego, Cuenca, Spain but his family moved to Mont-de-Marsan (Landes, France) in 1957. Ocaña took up racing in with a club in Mont-de-Marsan and began his professional career in 1968 with the Spanish Fagor team, becoming Spanish champion that year. The following year he won the prologue and two time trials, the mountains classification as well as finishing second in the Vuelta a España.
In 1970, Ocaña signed with the French team Bic. In the 1970 Vuelta a España, he battled with Augustín Tamames, losing the leader's jersey to him on the 13th stage. Ocaña time-trialled back into the jersey on the final day and won his first Grand Tour with one minute and 18 seconds over Tamames. The Spanish newspaper Dicen said Ocaña was "the best time-trialist that Spanish cycling has ever had". In the 1970 Tour de France, Ocaña won the stage to Puy-de-Dôme and finished 31st in the Tour.
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Léon Scieur
Léon Scieur (19 March 1888 in Florennes – 7 October 1969 in Florennes) was a Belgian cyclist who won the 1921 Tour de France, along with stages 3 and 10. His first great victory was the 1920 Liège–Bastogne–Liège; he won a stage and finished fourth in the 1919 and 1920 Tours de France.
Léon Scieur was the son of a farmer in Florennes, near Charleroi in Belgium. He began work as a glassmaker before being introduced to cycling by his neighbour, Firmin Lambot, who taught him to ride a bike at the age of 22.
Scieur turned professional in 1913 and rode his first Tour de France that year, without finishing. He didn't win in 1914 either - he came 14th - but Florennes celebrated nevertheless because Philippe Thys won for the second time. Thys was born in Brussels but lived in the town. Firmin Lambot came eighth.
After working as a mechanic in World War I Scieur rode the revived Tour de France in 1919 placing in fourth. He had punctured four or six times, according to reports, between Le Havre and Cherbourg. The weather was foul and he had no more spares so had to huddle in a doorway to repair one of the punctures. Mending a race tyre involved taking it from the rim, cutting the stitching that held the base together, mending the inner tube, then sewing up the tyre before replacing it. Scieur had acquired a needle and thick thread from the woman in whose doorway he was sheltering but his fingers grew too cold to use them. He asked the woman to help but the chief official, Lucien Cazalis, told him: "It's forbidden to receive help; you'll be penalised if madame threads the needle for you." Scieur completed the repair but lost the Tour to Lambot by about the time it had taken. He rode three more years after his victory but without finishing. He came fourth again in 1920, once more behind Thys.
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Manuel Estiarte
Manel Estiarte i Duocastella (born October 26, 1961 in Manresa, Spain) is a former water polo player from Spain.
Estiarte has played 578 times for the Spanish team. With the national squad he reached the finals at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics on home soil. Estiarte converted a penalty 42 seconds from full time to put Spain ahead, but nine seconds later Italy equalised and went on to win 9-8 in extra time.
Four years later, he was part of the team that made up for this painful loss by winning gold in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, defeating Croatia 7-5 in the final. The 1996 tournament was the only one of his six Olympics when Estiarte was not the tournament's top scorer
He won the World Championship at Perth 1998 after finishing in second place at Perth 1991 and Rome 1994.
Estiarte is the second Spaniard to compete at six Olympic Games, after equestrian Luis Álvarez de Cervera. As of 2010, no other Spaniards have competed in six Olympics.
Estiarte is the first water polo player to compete at six Olympic Games. (While there is a case for Welshman Paul Radmilovic to be recognized as such, one of his appearances was the 1906 Intercalated Games, which are not considered 'official'.)
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Marcel Kint
Marcel Kint (Zwevegem, 20 September 1914 – Kortrijk, 23 March 2002) was a Belgian professional road bicycle racer who won 31 races between 1935 and 1951. His finest year was 1938 when he won the World Cycling Championship, three stages of the Tour de France and the season-long competition equivalent to today's UCI ProTour.
He specialized in one-day classic cycle races and won Paris–Roubaix, Gent–Wevelgem, Paris–Brussels. He is the only three-time consecutive winner of La Flèche Wallonne.
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Marco Pantani
Marco Pantani (13 January 1970 – 14 February 2004) was an Italian road racing cyclist, widely considered one of the best climbers in professional road bicycle racing. He won both the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia in 1998, being the first Italian since Felice Gimondi in 1965 to win the Tour de France. He is the last cyclist to win the Giro and the Tour in the same year.
His attacking style and aggressive riding turned him into a fan favorite in the late 1990s. He was known as 'Il Pirata' because of his shaved head and the bandana and earrings he always wore. At 1.72 m and 57 kg, Marco Pantani had the classic build for a mountain climber. His style contrasted with that of time-trialling experts such as the five-times Tour winner Miguel Indurain.
Despite the fact that he never tested positive, his career was beset by doping allegations. In the 1999 Giro d'Italia, he was expelled due to his irregular blood values. Although he was disqualified for "health reasons", it was implied that Pantani's high haematocrit was the product of EPO use. Following later accusations, Pantani went into a depression from which he never fully recovered. He died of acute cocaine poisoning in 2004.
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Marino Basso
Marino Basso (born 1 June 1945) is an Italian former professional road racing cyclist, who won the World Cycling Championship in 1972.
Basso was born at Rettorgole di Caldogno, in the Veneto. He was one of the main sprinters of 1970s, often duelling with Belgians Patrick Sercu, Guido Reybroeck and Roger de Vlaeminck, and fellow Italian Dino Zandegù.
Basso won a total of 15 stages at the Giro d'Italia, 6 at the Tour de France and 6 at the Vuelta a España. He was Giro d'Italia's points classification winner in 1971 and the Italian national champion in 1972.
He is not related to Italian cyclist Ivan Basso.
After his professional career, Basso became team leader, currently at Preti Mangimi.
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Mario Cipollini
Mario Cipollini (CHIP-oh-LEE-nee) (born 22 March 1967 in Lucca, Tuscany), often abbreviated to "Cipo", is a retired Italian professional road cyclist most noted for his sprinting ability, the longevity of his dominance (his first pro win came in 1989, his last in 2005; 191 victories in all) and his colourful personality. His nicknames include Il Re Leone (The Lion King) and Super Mario. He is regarded as one of the best sprinters of his generation.
Cipollini's career highlights include the Road World Championships and Milan – San Remo in 2002, and 42 stages in the Giro d'Italia. Cipollini's 42nd Giro stage win in 2003 - his last stage win in that race - broke the record by Alfredo Binda that had stood since 1933. He also won 12 stages in the Tour de France and three stages in the Vuelta a España. In the 1999 Tour de France he led the peloton on the fastest stage in the history of the Tour, averaging more than 50 km/h over 194.5 km. In the same Tour, he won 4 stages in a row, setting the post-WWII record for consecutive stage wins. He has also found success in Belgium, winning Gent–Wevelgem in 1992, 1993 and 2002 (record).
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Mario Lemieux
Mario Lemieux, OC, CQ (/ˈmærioʊ ləˈmjuː/; French pronunciation: [maʁjo ləmjø]; born October 5, 1965) is a Canadian American former professional ice hockey player and co-owner of the National Hockey League's (NHL) Pittsburgh Penguins and the American Hockey League's (AHL) Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. He is widely acknowledged to be one of the best players of all time. He played 17 seasons as a forward for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the NHL between 1984 and 2006. A gifted playmaker and fast skater despite his large size, Lemieux often beat defensemen with fakes and dekes. He is currently the Penguins' principal owner and chairman of the board, having bought the team out of bankruptcy in 1999. He is the only person ever to win the Stanley Cup as both a player and an owner.
Lemieux led Pittsburgh to two Stanley Cups in 1991 and 1992, won a Stanley Cup as a chairman in 2009 with the Penguins, led Canada to an Olympic gold medal in 2002, a championship at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, and a Canada Cup in 1987. He won three Hart Trophies as the NHL's most valuable player (MVP) during the regular season, six Art Ross Trophies as the league's leading scorer, and two Conn Smythe Trophies as playoff MVP. At the time of his retirement, he was the NHL's seventh-ranked all-time scorer with 690 goals and 1,033 assists. He ranks second in NHL history with a 0.754 goals-per game average for his career, behind only Islanders great Mike Bossy (0.762). In 2004, he was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame.
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Mark Cavendish
Mark Cavendish MBE (born 21 May 1985) is a Manx professional road racing cyclist who rides for UCI ProTeam Team Sky. He rode for HTC-Highroad prior to its disbandment at the end of the 2011 season. Originally a track cyclist specialising in the madison, points race, and scratch race disciplines, he has competed on the road since 2006, rising to prominence as a sprinter. He is the 2011 Road World Champion and winner of the 2011 BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award.
On the track Cavendish won gold in the madison at the 2005 and 2008 World Championshps, with Rob Hayles and Bradley Wiggins respectively and in the scratch race at the 2006 Commonwealth Games riding for Isle of Man.
As a road cyclist he achieved eleven wins in his first professional season, equalling the record held by Alessandro Petacchi. Cavendish has won a total 20 Tour de France stages putting him joint 6th on the all-time list with Nicolas Frantz and 10th on the all-time list of Grand Tour stage winners with 33 victories. Other notable wins include the 2009 Milan – San Remo classic and the points classification in both the 2010 Vuelta a España and the 2011 Tour de France.
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Mark McGwire
Mark David McGwire (born October 1, 1963), nicknamed "Big Mac", is an American former professional baseball player who played his major league career with the Oakland Athletics and the St. Louis Cardinals. He is currently the hitting coach for the St. Louis Cardinals.
For his career, McGwire averaged a home run once every 10.61 at bats, the lowest at bats per home run ratio in baseball history (Babe Ruth is second at 11.76). In 1987, he broke the single-season home run record for rookies, with 49. In 1998, McGwire and Sammy Sosa achieved national fame for their home run-hitting prowess in pursuit of Roger Maris' single season home run record; McGwire broke the record and hit 70 home runs that year.Barry Bonds now holds the record, after hitting 73 home runs during the 2001 season.
After three years at Southern California and a stint on the 1984 U.S. Olympic team, McGwire was drafted 10th overall by the Oakland Athletics in the 1984 Major League Baseball Draft.
McGwire made the major leagues in August. As a rookie in 1987 he hit 33 homers before the All-Star break and was a unanimous choice for AL Rookie of the Year after finishing with 49 homers, 118 RBI and a .289 average. His 49 longballs smashed the old rookie record of 38, jointly held by Frank Robinson and Wally Berger. He sat out the season's final two games and gave up a chance at 50 home runs to be present at the birth of his first child.
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Mark Spitz
Mark Andrew Spitz (born February 10, 1950) is a retired American swimmer. He won seven gold medals at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games, an achievement only surpassed by Michael Phelps who won eight golds at the 2008 Olympics.
Between 1968 and 1972, Spitz won nine Olympic golds plus a silver and a bronze, five Pan American golds, 31 US Amateur Athletic Union titles and eight US National Collegiate Athletic Association titles. During those years, he set 33 world records. He was the most successful athlete at the 1972 Summer Olympics. He was named World Swimmer of the Year in 1969, 1971 and 1972.
Spitz was born to a Jewish family in Modesto, California, the first of three children of Arnold and Lenore Smith Spitz. When he was two years old, Spitz's family moved to Honolulu, Hawaii, where he swam at Waikiki Beach every day. "You should have seen that little boy dash into the ocean. He'd run like he was trying to commit suicide." Lenore Spitz told a reporter for Time (April 12, 1968). At age six his family returned to Sacramento, California, and he began to compete at his local swim club. At age nine, he was training at Arden Hills Swim Club in Sacramento with Sherm Chavoor, the swimming coach who mentored him and six other Olympic medal winners. Before he was 10, Spitz held 17 national age-group records, and one world record. At 14 his family moved to Santa Clara so Spitz could train with George F. Haines of the Santa Clara Swim Club. From 1964 to 1968 Mark trained with Haines at SCSC and Santa Clara High School. During his four years there, Mark held national high school records in every stroke and in every distance[citation needed]. It was a remarkable and unprecedented achievement. In 1966 at age 16 he won the 100 meter butterfly at the National AAU Championships, the first of his 24 AAU titles. The following year Mark set his first world record at a small California meet in the 400 meter freestyle with a time of 4:10.60, and emerged on the world swimming stage.
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Mary Lou Retton
Mary Lou Retton (born January 24, 1968) is an American gymnast and Olympic gold medalist. She was the first female gymnast from outside Eastern Europe to win the Olympic all-around title.
Retton was born in Fairmont, West Virginia, of Italian heritage (her family's original surname was "Rotunda"). Her father, Ronnie, operated a coal-industry transportation equipment business. She attended Fairmont Senior High School, but did not graduate. She competed in the Olympic games during her sophomore year.
Retton lived in Houston, Texas until 2009, when her family returned to West Virginia. She is married to former Houston real estate developer Shannon Kelley, who now works for the Fairmont State University athletic department. Together they have four daughters: Shayla Rae Kelley (born 1995), McKenna Lane Kelley (born 1997), Skyla Brae Kelley (born 2000), and Emma Jean Kelley (born 2002).
Inspired by watching Nadia Comăneci on television, Retton took up gymnastics in her hometown of Fairmont. She was coached by Gary Rafaloski. She then decided to move to Houston, Texas, to train under Romanians Béla and Márta Károlyi, who had coached Nadia Comăneci before their defection to the United States. Under the Károlyis, Retton soon began to make a name for herself in the United States, winning the American Cup in 1983 and placing second to Dianne Durham (another Károlyi student) at the US Nationals that same year. Retton missed the World Championships in 1983 due to a wrist injury. Nevertheless, Retton won the American Classic in 1983 and 1984, as well as Japan's Chunichi Cup in 1983.
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Matthew Perry
Matthew Langford Perry (born August 19, 1969) is a Canadian-American actor and comedian, best known for his Emmy-nominated role as Chandler Bing on the popular, long-running NBC television sitcom Friends. He also received acclaim for his portrayal of Ron Clark in the television movie The Ron Clark Story, accompanied by another Emmy nomination as well as a Golden Globe nomination. Perry also starred in the short-lived series Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip and has appeared in a number of films, including Fools Rush In (1997), The Whole Nine Yards (2000), and 17 Again (2009). In 2010 he expanded his resume to include both video games and voiceover work when he voiced Benny in the role-playing game Fallout: New Vegas.
Perry was the co-creator, co-writer, executive producer and star of the short-lived ABC sitcom Mr. Sunshine, which ran from February to April 2011.
Perry was born in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. His mother, Suzanne Jane Louise Morrison (née Langford), is a Canadian journalist and former press secretary to Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, and his father, John Bennett Perry, is an American actor and former model. His parents divorced before his first birthday and his mother subsequently married Keith Morrison, a broadcast journalist. Perry was raised by his mother in Ottawa, Ontario, and was enrolled at Rockcliffe Park Public School and Ashbury College. While growing up, he took a keen interest in tennis and became a top-ranked junior player.
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Maurice De Waele
Maurice De Waele (27 December 1896 Lovendegem – 14 February 1952 Maldegem) was a Belgian professional road bicycle racer.
De Waele placed 2nd in the 1927 Tour, an hour and fifty eight minutes Nicolas Frantz and 3rd in 1928, again won by Frantz. However, he is most famous for winning the 1929 Tour de France. He led the Tour until stage seven when two punctures on the way to Bordeaux cost him the yellow jersey to no less than three other rides on the same time in the general classification, Frantz, Andre Leducq and Victor Fontan. Fontan was the sole leader of the race when a broken bike led to his retirement, leaving De Waele in the lead, seventy five seconds ahead of Frantz. However, punctures to De Waele gave the lead to his nearest rival until he too suffered the same problem. With Frantz out of the running for the title, sickness in Grenoble nearly cost him too but with help from his teammates, he was led to victory.
After winning the 1929 Tour, the organiser, Henri Desgrange despaired so much of the trickery that he thought had let such a minor rider succeed that he abandoned commercially sponsored teams and ran the Tour for national teams for two decades. Desgrange had until then insisted that while riders could compete in the name of their sponsors, cooperation or tactics between those riders was not allowed. They were to consider everyone their rival and ride against them whether they had the same sponsor or not.
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Maurice Garin
Maurice-Francois Garin (3 March 1871, Arvier, Aosta Valley, Italy – 19 February 1957, Lens or Haute-Savoie,France) was a road bicycle racer best known for winning the inaugural Tour de France in 1903, and for being stripped of his title in the second Tour in 1904 along with eight others, for cheating.
Garin was born the son of Maurice Clément Garin and Maria Teresa Ozello in the Aosta Valley in north-west Italy, close to the French border. The name Garin was the most common in the village, which was French-speaking, belonging to five of the seven families. They married in 1864 when he was a 36-year-old labourer and she a 19-year-old employee of the town's hotel. They had four daughters and five sons, of whom two were twins. Maurice was the first son. The cottage in which he was born, now a ruin, still exists.
In 1885 the family left Arvier to work on the other side of the Alps. The wish for a better life is a likely explanation but does not suggest why they travelled so far, almost to the Belgian border. Speculation surrounds the move, possibly because it was in secret. To emigrate needed authority and mayors had been told by the sub-prefect of Aoste to refuse or at least make permission difficult. If the family travelled separately, it would explain the legend that Maurice, then 14, was exchanged for a round of cheese: it could have been payment to a guide to lead him clandestinely over the mountains or payment in return for custody of the son.
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Maurizio Fondriest
Maurizio Fondriest (born 15 January 1965) is a retired Italian professional road racing cyclist.
Born in Cles, Trentino, Fondriest turned professional in 1987 with the Ecoflam team. He subsequently rode for Alfa-Lum in 1988, winning the World Cycling Championships along with stages in the Tour de Suisse and Tirreno–Adriatico. In 1991, riding for Panasonic, he won the UCI Road World Cup. In 1993, riding for the Lampre team, he won Milan – San Remo, La Flèche Wallonne, the Züri-Metzgete, the Giro dell'Emilia, the general classification and two stages of Tirreno–Adriatico, three stages and the general classification of the Grand Prix du Midi Libre, a stage in the Giro d'Italia and the overall World Cup. He would never again have such a successful season, although he had another successful season with Lampre in 1995 he won a stage in the Giro d'Italia and came in second in a number of races (the Tirreno–Adriatico general classification, Milan – San Remo, Gent–Wevelgem, La Flèche Wallonne, and a stage in the Giro d'Italia).
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Maury Wills
Maurice Morning "Maury" Wills (born October 2, 1932) is a former Major League Baseball shortstop and switch-hitting batter who played most prominently with the Los Angeles Dodgers (1959–66, 1969–72), and also with the Pittsburgh Pirates (1967–68) and Montreal Expos (1969). He was an essential component of the Dodgers' championship teams in the mid-1960s, and is credited for reviving the stolen base as part of baseball strategy.
In a career of 14 seasons, Wills batted .281 with 20 home runs, 458 runs batted in, 2,134 hits, 1,067 runs, 177 doubles, 71 triples, and 586 stolen bases in 1,942 games.
As of 2009, Wills is a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers organization serving as a representative of the Dodgers Legend Bureau.
Maurice, or Sonny as he was called at Cardozo Senior High School, first showed up as an All City Pitcher in the local Washington Daily News. He played on Sal Hall's '48 Cardozo football team that went unbeaten and unscored on. In the '49–'50 school year, 3 sport standout Sonny Wills, was named All City QB in football, basketball and Pitcher in baseball. On May 8, 1950 in a game against Phelps, P Wills threw a 1-hitter and struck out 17.
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Mia Hamm
Mariel Margaret "Mia" Hamm (born on March 17, 1972, in Selma, Alabama) is a retired American soccer player. Hamm played many years as a forward for the United States women's national soccer team and was a founding member of the Washington Freedom. Hamm has scored more international goals in her career than any other player, male or female, in the history of U.S. soccer (158). She is the second most capped female player in soccer history behind Kristine Lilly, appearing in 275 international matches throughout her career.
Hamm was named the women's FIFA World Player of the Year the first two times that award was given (in 2001 and 2002), and is listed as one of FIFA's 125 best living players (as chosen by Pelé). Washington Post columnist Michael Wilbon called Hamm, "Perhaps the most important athlete of the last 15 years."
She retired from the sport in 2004, when she played her last game in the 2004 Fan Celebration Tour to commemorate the U.S. women's national team's victory in the 2004 Olympics. In 2007, her first year of eligibility, she was selected for induction into the National Soccer Hall of Fame by having 137 votes of the 141 ballots cast. Women's Professional Soccer, a professional soccer league that launched in 2009, features Hamm's silhouette in its logo.
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Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963) is a retired American professional basketball player, active entrepreneur, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats. His biography on the National Basketball Association (NBA) website states, "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time." Jordan was one of the most effectively marketed athletes of his generation and was considered instrumental in popularizing the NBA around the world in the 1980s and 1990s.
After a three-season career at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a member of the Tar Heels' national championship team in 1982, Jordan joined the NBA's Chicago Bulls in 1984. He quickly emerged as a league star, entertaining crowds with his prolific scoring. His leaping ability, illustrated by performing slam dunks from the free throw line in slam dunk contests, earned him the nicknames "Air Jordan" and "His Airness". He also gained a reputation for being one of the best defensive players in basketball. In 1991, he won his first NBA championship with the Bulls, and followed that achievement with titles in 1992 and 1993, securing a "three-peat". Although Jordan abruptly retired from basketball at the beginning of the 1993–94 NBA season to pursue a career in baseball, he rejoined the Bulls in 1995 and led them to three additional championships (1996, 1997, and 1998) as well as an NBA-record 72 regular-season wins in the 1995–96 NBA season. Jordan retired for a second time in 1999, but returned for two more NBA seasons from 2001 to 2003 as a member of the Washington Wizards.
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Michael Phelps
Michael Fred Phelps (born June 30, 1985) is an American swimmer who has, overall, won 16 Olympic medals—six gold and two bronze at Athens in 2004, and eight gold at Beijing in 2008, becoming the most successful athlete at both of these Olympic Games editions. In doing so he has twice equaled the record eight medals of any type at a single Olympics achieved by Soviet gymnast Alexander Dityatin at the 1980 Moscow Summer Games. His five gold medals in individual events tied the single Games record set by compatriot Eric Heiden in the 1980 Winter Olympics and equaled by Vitaly Scherbo at the 1992 Summer Games. Phelps holds the record for the most gold medals won in a single Olympics; his eight at the 2008 Beijing Games surpassed American swimmer Mark Spitz's seven-gold performance at Munich in 1972. Phelps' Olympic medal total is second only to the 18 Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina won over three Olympics, including nine gold. Phelps also holds the all-time record for most gold Olympic medals, at 14.
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Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher (German pronunciation: [ˈmɪçaʔeːl ˈʃuːmaxɐ] ( listen); born 3 January 1969) is a German Formula One racing driver for the Mercedes team. Schumacher is a seven-time World Champion and is widely regarded as one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time. He holds many of the formula's driver records, including most championships, race victories, fastest laps, pole positions, points scored and most races won in a single season – 13 in 2004. In 2002 he became the only driver in Formula One history to finish in the top three in every race of a season and then also broke the record for most consecutive podium finishes. According to the official Formula One website he is "statistically the greatest driver the sport has ever seen".
After beginning with karting, Schumacher won German drivers' championships in Formula König and Formula Three before joining Mercedes in the World Sportscar Championship. After one Mercedes-funded race for the Jordan Formula One team Schumacher signed as a driver for the Benetton Formula One team in 1991. After winning consecutive championships with Benetton in 1994/5, Schumacher moved to Ferrari in 1996 and won another five consecutive drivers' titles with them from 2000 to 2004. Schumacher retired from Formula One driving in 2006 staying with Ferrari as an advisor. Schumacher agreed to return for Ferrari part-way through 2009, as cover for the badly injured Felipe Massa, but was prevented by a neck injury. He later signed a three-year contract to drive for the new Mercedes GP team starting in 2010.
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Michele Ferrari
Michele Ferrari (born March 26, 1953) is an Italian physician, cycling coach and author.
Ferrari was born in Ferrara, Emilia-Romagna, where he still lives. After an early career researching and publishing papers concerning the anaerobic threshold of various athletes, he settled on his lifelong interest in the development of training programmes for professional cyclists.
One of Ferrari's earliest successes was coaching Francesco Moser to achieve the hour record in 1984, crushing the great Eddy Merckx's mark by more than a mile.
Initially Ferrari worked with Prof. Francesco Conconi in Ferrara, who developed testing techniques for human performance, using methods such as monitoring the heart rate during exercise and recovery. Another controversial Italian doctor, Luigi Cecchini, is their common disciple. They have shared the care for some cyclists throughout their careers.
From 1984 onwards Ferrari achieved extraordinary improvements in the fitness of many cyclists. Ferrari populised the use of VAM, a parameter now used in cycling as a measure of fitness and speed.
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Mickey Mantle
Mickey Charles Mantle (October 20, 1931 – August 13, 1995) was an American baseball center fielder who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees from 1951 to 1968. Mantle is regarded by many to be the greatest switch hitter of all time, and one of the greatest players in baseball history. Mantle was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974 and was elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999.
Mantle was noted for his hitting ability, both for average and for power.[citation needed] He won the Triple Crown in 1956, leading MLB in batting average, home runs, and runs batted in (RBI). He received three American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) Awards and played in twenty All-Star games. Mantle appeared in 12 World Series, winning 7 of them. He holds the records for most World Series home runs (18), RBIs (40), runs (42), walks (43), extra-base hits (26), and total bases (123). He is also the career leader in walk-off home runs, with a combined thirteen, twelve in the regular season and one in the postseason.
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Miguel Indurain
Miguel Indurain Larraya (born 16 July 1964) is a retired Spanish road racing cyclist. He won five consecutive Tours de France from 1991 and 1995, the first to do so, and the fourth athlete to win five times. He won the Giro d'Italia twice, becoming one of only seven people in history to achieve the Giro Tour double in the same season. He wore the race leader's yellow jersey in the Tour de France for 60 days. Indurain's ability and physical size—1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) and 80 kg (176 lbs)—earned him the nickname "Miguelón" or "Big Mig". He was the youngest rider ever to win the Spanish amateur national road championship, when he was 18, at 20 the youngest rider to lead the Vuelta a España, and at 20 he won a stage of the Tour de l'Avenir.
Miguel Indurain was born in the village of Villava, which is now an outlying area of Pamplona. He has three sisters – Isabel, Maria Dolores and Maria Asuncion – and a brother, Prudencio, who also became a professional cyclist. His first bicycle was a green secondhand Olmo given to him for his 10th birthday. It was stolen when he was 11 and he worked in the fields with his father to pay for a new one. He tried running, basketball, javelin and soccer from nine to 14. Then he joined the local CC Villaves and rode his first race in July 1978, an event for unlicensed riders in which he came second. He won his second race and competed every week thereafter. His hero in cycling was Bernard Hinault. At 18 he was the youngest winner of the national amateur road championship.
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Mike Krzyzewski
Michael William "Mike" Krzyzewski ( /ʃəˈʃɛvski/ shə-SHEV-ski; Polish: Krzyżewski [kʂɨˈʐɛ(f)ski]; nicknamed "Coach K"; born February 13, 1947) is an American basketball coach and former player. Since 1980, he has served as the head men's basketball coach at Duke University. At Duke, Krzyzewski has led the Blue Devils to four NCAA Championships, 11 Final Fours, 12 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) regular season titles, and 13 ACC Tournament championships. Krzyzewski is also the coach of the United States men's national basketball team, whom he led to a gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2010 FIBA World Championship. He was an assistant coach on the 1992 "Dream Team".
From 1975 to 1980, Krzyzewski was the head basketball coach at the United States Military Academy, where he played from 1966 to 1969 under Bob Knight. Krzyzewski has amassed a record 79 NCAA tournament victories, while averaging 25 wins per season. He was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame following the 2001 season. On November 15, 2011, Krzyzewski led Duke to a 74–69 victory over Michigan State at Madison Square Garden to become the winningest coach in NCAA Division I men's basketball history. Krzyzewski's 903rd victory surpassed the previous record of 902, held by his former coach, Bob Knight.
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Mike Rann
Michael David Rann CNZM (born 5 January 1953) is a former Australian politician who served as the 44th Premier of South Australia. He led the South Australian branch of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) to minority government at the 2002 election, before attaining a landslide win at the 2006 election. Rann Labor was elected to a third four-year term at the 2010 election, retaining majority government despite a swing. He resigned from the premiership in October 2011 to be succeeded by Jay Weatherill.
He is the third-longest serving Premier of South Australia behind Sir Thomas Playford and John Bannon. He also served a record 17 years as South Australian Labor parliamentary leader from September 1994 until October 2011. He was a South Australian MP in the House of Assembly from the 1985 election until his parliamentary resignation on 13 January 2012. Rann's post parliamentary career of various appointments include professor at Flinders University.
Rann was born in Sidcup, England, to working class parents. His father had served in World War II at El Alamein, while his mother was employed in an armaments factory. Most of Rann's childhood was spent with his father, an electrician in South London. In 1962, when he was nine, his family emigrated from Blackfen to a rural village in New Zealand.
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Moreno Argentin
Moreno Argentin (born 17 December 1960) is an Italian former professional cyclist (from 1981 to 1994).
Born in San Donà di Piave (Veneto), he won stages in the Tour de France, the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de Suisse. Known as Il Capo ("The Boss"), he won Liège–Bastogne–Liège four times, the La Flèche Wallonne three times and the Ronde van Vlaanderen and Giro di Lombardia once. He became Italian national champion in 1983 and 1989, and world champion in 1986.
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Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali (born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr.; January 17, 1942) is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist. Considered a cultural icon, Ali was both idolized and vilified.
Originally known as Cassius Clay, Ali changed his name after joining the Nation of Islam in 1964, subsequently converting to Sunni Islam in 1975, and more recently practicing Sufism.[clarification needed] In 1967, three years after Ali had won the World Heavyweight Championship, he was publicly vilified for his refusal to be conscripted into the U.S. military, based on his religious beliefs and opposition to the Vietnam War. Ali stated, "I ain't got no quarrel with them Viet Cong... No Viet Cong ever called me nigger" – one of the more telling remarks of the era.
Widespread protests against the Vietnam War had not yet begun, but with that one phrase, Ali articulated the reason to oppose the war for a generation of young Americans, and his words served as a touchstone for the racial and antiwar upheavals that would rock the 1960s. Ali's example inspired Martin Luther King Jr. – who had been reluctant to alienate the Johnson Administration and its support of the civil rights agenda – to voice his own opposition to the war for the first time.
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Nicolas Frantz
Nicolas Frantz (November 4, 1899 - November 8, 1985), born in Mamer, Luxembourg, was a bicycle racer with 60 professional racing victories over his 12-year career (1923 to 1934). He rode for the Thomann team in 1923 and then for Alcyon-Dunlop from 1924 to 1931. He won the Tour de France in 1927 and 1928.
Nicolas Frantz was the son of a prosperous farming family. Frantz could have taken over the farm but had no interest in it. In 1914 he rode his first race. He won. That convinced him that farming was not for him. He was close to unbeatable in Luxembourg until the start of the first world war.
Frantz, a well-built man weighing 80 kg, turned professional in 1923. He had immediate success, winning Paris-Lyon and the GP Faber. His advantage in stage races was his consistent health and fitness. He rode the Tour de France for the first time in 1924, won two stages and finished second just 35 minutes and 36 seconds behind Ottavio Bottecchia. In 1925 and 1926 he won another four stages and finished fourth and second respectively.
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Nile Kinnick
Nile Clarke Kinnick, Jr. (July 9, 1918 – June 2, 1943) was a student and a college football player at the University of Iowa. He won the 1939 Heisman Trophy and was a consensus All-American. He died during a training flight while serving as a U.S Navy aviator in World War II. Kinnick was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1951, and the University of Iowa renamed its football stadium "Kinnick Stadium" in his honor in 1972.
Nile Clarke Kinnick, Jr., was the son of Nile Clark Kinnick, Sr., and Francis Clarke. He had two younger brothers, Ben and George. His maternal grandfather, George W. Clarke, graduated from the University of Iowa in 1878 and served two two-year terms as the Governor of Iowa from 1912 to 1916.
Nile's parents were devoted to the teachings of Christian Science and helped Nile develop values of discipline, hard work, and strong morals. Nile was reportedly constantly thinking about self-improvement and working on turning personal weaknesses into strengths.
Kinnick began showing athletic aptitude at a young age as well. As a youth, he played on a Junior Legion baseball team with the future major leaguer Bob Feller.
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Norm Macdonald
Norman Gene "Norm" Macdonald (born October 17, 1963) is a Canadian stand-up comedian, writer, producer and actor. He is best known for his five seasons as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, which included anchoring Weekend Update for three years. Early in his career, he wrote for the sitcom Roseanne and made appearances on shows including The Drew Carey Show and NewsRadio. He also starred in The Norm Show from 1999 to 2001. Comedy Central named him #83 on the five-part miniseries 100 Greatest Stand-ups of All Time. He is noted as one of Conan O'Brien's favorite and most frequent guests on his various talk shows. His brother is Canadian journalist Neil Macdonald, of CBC News' Washington, D.C. bureau.
Starting February 26, 2011, Macdonald became the new host of High Stakes Poker on Game Show Network. He also hosted Sports Show with Norm Macdonald on Comedy Central, which began airing on April 12, 2011. It was announced on June 7, 2011, that the Sports Show would not be renewed for a second season, reportedly due to low ratings, even though Sports Show steadily averaged one-million viewers per episode.
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Norwegian people
Norwegians (Norwegian: nordmenn) constitute both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway. They share a common culture and speak the Norwegian language. Norwegian people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in United States, Canada and Australia.
Towards the end of the 3rd millennium BC, Proto-Indo-European speaking Battle-Axe peoples migrated to Norway bringing domesticated horses, agriculture, cattle and wheel technology to the region.
During the Viking age, Harald Fairhair unified the Norse petty kingdoms after being victorious at the The Battle of Hafrsfjord in the 880s. Two centuries of Viking expansion tapered off following the decline of Norse paganism with the adoption of Christianity in the 11th century. During The Black Death, approximately 60% of the population died and in 1397 Norway entered a union with Denmark.
In 1814, following Denmark-Norway's defeat in the Napoleonic Wars, Norway entered a union with Sweden and adopted a new constitution. Rising nationalism throughout the 19th century led to a 1905 referendum granting Norway independence. Although Norway remained officially neutral in World War I, the country was unofficially allied with the Entente powers. In World War II Norway proclaimed its neutrality, but was nonetheless occupied for five years by Nazi Germany (1940–45). In 1949, neutrality was abandoned and Norway became a member of NATO. Discovery of oil and gas in adjacent waters in the late 1960s boosted Norway's economic fortunes but in referenda held in 1972 and 1994, Norway rejected joining the EU. Key domestic issues include integration of a fast growing immigrant population, maintaining the country's generous social safety net with an aging population, and preserving economic competitiveness.
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Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic (Serbian: Новак Ђоковић or Novak Đoković; pronounced [nɔ̂ʋaːk dʑɔ̂ːkɔʋitɕ] ( listen); born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player who has been ranked World No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) since 4 July 2011. He has won five Grand Slam singles titles: the 2008, 2011 and 2012 Australian Open, the 2011 Wimbledon Championships, and the 2011 US Open. By winning three Majors in 2011, Djokovic became the sixth male player in the open era to win three Majors in a calendar year.
He is the first male player representing Serbia to win a Major singles title and the youngest player in the open era to have reached the semifinals of all four Grand Slam events, separately and consecutively. Amongst other titles, he won the Tennis Masters Cup in 2008 and was on the team which won the 2010 Davis Cup. He also won the bronze medal in singles at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. He has won 11 Masters 1000 series titles placing him joint fourth on the all time list. Djokovic has quickly moved up in the rankings of history. Tennis Channel ranked him number 40 , and former player Pat Cash said he is one of the greatest ever.
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O. J. Simpson
Orenthal James "O. J." Simpson (born July 9, 1947), nicknamed "The Juice", is a retired American college and professional football player, football broadcaster and actor. Simpson was a running back, the American Football League's Buffalo Bills' first overall pick in the 1969 Common Draft, and the first professional football player to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a season, a mark he set in 1973. While five other players have passed the 2,000 rush yard mark he stands alone as the only player to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a fourteen-game season (professional football changed to a sixteen-game season in 1978). He holds the record for the single season yards-per-game average, which stands at 143.1 ypg. Simpson was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985. He also had a successful career in acting and sports commentary.
In 1995, Simpson was acquitted of the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman after a lengthy, internationally publicized criminal trial – the People v. Simpson. In 1997 a civil court awarded a judgment against Simpson for their wrongful deaths; to date he has paid little of the $33.5 million penalty. His book, If I Did It (2006), which purports to be a first-person fictional account of the murders had he actually committed them, was withdrawn by the publisher just before its release. The book was later released by the Goldman family. In September 2007, Simpson was arrested in Las Vegas, Nevada, and charged with numerous felonies, including armed robbery and kidnapping. In 2008, he was found guilty and sentenced to thirty-three years' imprisonment, with a minimum of nine years without parole. He is serving his sentence at the Lovelock Correctional Center in Lovelock, Nevada.
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Octave Lapize
Octave Lapize (b. Montrouge, 24 October 1887 – d. Toul, 14 July 1917) was a French professional road racing cyclist and track cyclist.
Most famous for winning the 1910 Tour de France and a bronze medal at the 1908 Summer Olympics in the men's 100 kilometres, he was a three-time winner of one-day classics, Paris–Roubaix and Paris–Brussels.
In his first Tour De France in 1909, he abandoned early due to wintery conditions during the month of July, but not before he managed a Stage 2 second place behind Tour winner Francois Faber. The following year he went head-to-head with Alcyon teammate Faber who led comfortably until colliding with a dog at the foot of the Pyrenees. Lapize finally won by just 4 points helped by a number of punctures to Faber's bike on the final stage from Caen to Paris. In a total of six starts in the Tour De France between 1909 and 1914, this victory was the only one he finished.
He is noted for looking at some Tour officials on the climb of the Col du Tourmalet in the 1910 Tour de France and yelling, "Vous êtes des assassins! Oui, des assassins!' (French for 'You are murderers! Yes, murderers!')" The stage in question was 326 kilometers in length, featured 7 brutal climbs, and was raced on unsealed roads with single-gear bicycles.
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Odile Defraye
Odile Defraye (real name Odiel Defraeye; 14 July 1888, Rumbeke - 21 August 1965) was a Belgian road racing cyclist who won three stages and the overall title of the 1912 Tour de France, which was the last tour decided by a points system instead of overall best time. He was the first Belgian to win the Tour and was only invited to join Alcyon's all-French team at a late stage for publicity purposes.
At the 1913 Tour de France, Defraye held the overall lead after stages 2 through 5 before relinquishing the lead on the Tourmalet to Stage 6 and eventual winner Philippe Thys. He participated in six tours between 1909 and 1924 but his victory Tour was the only one that he completed.
Other major wins include the 1913 Milan – San Remo, a one-day classic, and four stages and the overall for the 1912 Tour of Belgium.
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Orel Hershiser
Orel Leonard Hershiser IV (born September 16, 1958) is an American former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. He is currently an analyst for Baseball Tonight and Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN and a professional poker player for PokerStars. In 1988, he won the Gold Glove, Cy Young Award, the NLCS MVP and the World Series MVP with the Dodgers.
Known for his slight frame and fierce competitive spirit, Hershiser was nicknamed "Bulldog" by team manager Tommy Lasorda.
Hershiser was born in Buffalo, New York to Mildred I. Gillman and Orel Leonard Hershiser III. From 1973 to 1975, he participated in ice hockey with the Don Mills Flyers of the Greater Toronto Hockey League. He attended Cherry Hill High School East in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, where he was the star pitcher on the school's baseball team. He first caught the attention of pro scouts as a pitcher at Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio where he was a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity.
Hershiser was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 17th round of the 1979 amateur draft and was assigned to their Class A farm team, Clinton Dodgers. He spent four more seasons in the minor leagues with AA San Antonio Dodgers and AAA Albuquerque Dukes before being called up to the major leagues.
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Oscar Camenzind
Oscar Camenzind (born 12 September 1971 in Schwyz, Switzerland) is a former professional road racing cyclist from Switzerland. He is national road champion of 1997. In 1998 he won the World Road Championship and the Giro di Lombardia, in 2000 he won the Tour de Suisse and he won Liège–Bastogne–Liège in 2001. His career came to an abrupt end when he retired from pro cycling after a positive doping test in July 2004 for erythropoietin, leading into the Athens Olympics. After confessing to the use, "I made the stupidest of mistakes", in 2005 he was sued in Swiss court in order to name his supplier, which he refused to do fearing retribution.
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Ottavio Bottecchia
Ottavio Bottecchia (born San Martino di Colle Umberto, Italy, 1 August 1894, died Gemona, Italy, 14 June 1927) was an Italian cyclist and the first Italian winner of the Tour de France. He was found dead by the roadside; the reason remains a mystery.
Bottecchia was born to a poor family of nine children. He went to school for just a year and became a bricklayer. He married and had three children. In the first world war he joined the Bersaglieri corps of the Italian army. During the conflict he received a bronze medal.
With the end of hostilities he became an avid competitive cyclist. He won the Giro del Piave, the Coppa della Vittoria, and the Duca D'Aosta in 1920 and the Coppe Gallo a Osimo, the Circuito del Piave and the Giro del Friuli in 1921.
His 5th place finish in the 1923 Giro d'Italia, the leading 'isolate' (rider without a team) attracted the leading French rider, Henri Pélissier, who asked him to join his professional team, Automoto-Hutchinson, in 1922. Pélissier had just left the J. B. Louvet team after an internal row and had taken another rider, Honoré Barthélemy, with him. Automoto was a French company that also sold in Italy. Automoto saw the chance not only of winning the Tour de France but of having a further Italian rider to stimulate foreign sales. Henri Pélissier said he had seen Bottecchia ride the Giro di Lombardia and Milan – San Remo and the team signed him. The new recruit arrived, said the writer Pierre Chany, with a skin tanned like an old leather saddle and creases to his face deep enough to be scars. His clothing was ragged and his shoes so old that they no longer had any shape. His ears stuck out so far that the Tour organiser, Henri Desgrange referred to him as "butterfly".
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Paolo Bettini
Paolo Bettini (born 1 April 1974 in Cecina, Livorno, Tuscany) is an Italian former champion road racing cyclist, and the coach of the Italian national cycling team. Considered the best classics specialist of his generation, and probably one of the strongest of all times, he won gold medals in the 2004 Athens Olympics road race and in the 2006 and 2007 World Road Race Championships. He is nicknamed Il Grillo ("the cricket") for his repeated sudden attacks and his sprinting style.
He gained prominence by winning Liège–Bastogne–Liège in 2000 and 2002. He set the record for World Cup wins in a season in 2003, winning the Milan – San Remo, HEW Cyclassics and Clásica de San Sebastián. He won the Giro di Lombardia in 2005 and 2006, the Züri-Metzgete in 2001 and 2005 and Tirreno–Adriatico in 2004.
Paolo Bettini lived with his family on the Tuscany coast. He began racing when he was seven and won 23 of his first 24 races. His first bike had a secondhand frame which his father, Giuliano, had painted orange. The components were cannibalised from other bikes. He started racing after the encouragement of his brother.
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Pat Summitt
Patricia "Pat" Head Summitt (born on June 14, 1952 in Clarksville, Tennessee) is a former women's college basketball head coach. She now serves as the head coach emeritus of the Tennessee Lady Vols basketball team. She is the all-time winningest coach in NCAA basketball history of either a men's or women's team in any division. She coached from 1974 to 2012, all with the Lady Vols, winning eight NCAA national championships, second only to the record 10 titles won by UCLA men's coach John Wooden. Summitt is the only coach in NCAA history, and one of three college coaches overall, with 1,000 victories. She was named the Naismith Basketball Coach of the Century in April 2000. In 2009, the Sporting News placed her number 11 on its list of the 50 Greatest Coaches of All Time in all sports; she was the only woman on the list. In 38 years as a coach, she never had a losing season. On April 20, 2012, the White House announced that Pat Summitt would be awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.
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Patty Sheehan
Patty Sheehan (born October 27, 1956) is an American professional golfer. She became a member of the LPGA Tour in 1980 and won six major championships and 35 LPGA Tour events in all. She is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.
Sheehan also hosts the Patty Sheehan & Friends, which is a tournament on the Legends Tour. Patty Sheehan & Friends helps aid women and children's charities all across Northern Nevada.
Sheehan was born in Middlebury, Vermont. She attended Earl Wooster High School in Reno, Nevada. She won three straight Nevada high school championships (1972–74), three straight Nevada State Amateurs (1975–78) and two straight California Women's Amateurs (1977–78). She was the runner-up at the 1979 U.S. Women's Amateur, then was the 1980 AIAW (predecessor of the NCAA) national collegiate champion. She went 4-0 as a member of the 1980 U.S. Curtis Cup team. She attended University of Nevada and San Jose State University.
Sheehan turned professional and joined the LPGA Tour in 1980. She won LPGA Rookie of the Year honors in 1981 with her first professional victory coming at the Mazda Japan Classic. She was strong throughout the 1980s, winning four times in both 1983 and 1984, and winning the LPGA Championship in both seasons. She won LPGA Tour Player of the Year in 1983 and was one of several athletes named Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year in 1987.
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Paul Kimmage
Paul Kimmage (born 7 May 1962 in Dublin, Ireland) is an award-winning sports journalist who until his departure in early 2012, wrote for the Sunday Times newspaper in the United Kingdom and is a former professional road bicycle racer.
Kimmage was born into a cycling family. His father, Christy, cycled with the Dublin Wheelers and was road race champion of Ireland in 1962 and his brothers Raphael and Kevin were also successful.
Paul Kimmage had a prominent career as an amateur, notably his 6th place at the amateur world road race championship. His brothers also enjoyed the spotlight: Raphael finished second in the 1984 Ras Tailteann while Kevin won the race in 1991.
Kimmage replicated his reputation as a successful amateur in Ireland, for the French ACBB team and the Belgian CC Wasquehal amateur team. He also represented his country at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California. Notable performances as an amateur included 5 July 1981 where he became the national road race champion ahead of the old but still competitive Paddy Flanagan. He was sixth in the 1985 amateur world road championship. He also finished ninth in a professional race, Bordeaux–Paris behind Belgian René Martens in 1985.
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Pedro Delgado
Pedro Delgado Robledo (born April 15, 1960 in Segovia), also known as Perico, is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer. He won the 1988 Tour de France, as well as the Vuelta a España in 1985 and 1989.
Delgado is 171 centimetres tall (5 ft 7-1/2 in) and used to weigh 64 kilograms (141 lb). He was a good climber, with an aggressive style, making cycling a spectacle, which gained him fans. On one hand, there were days when he was extremely successful attacking. On the other, he occasionally suffered from big losses of time due to mistakes or strokes of bad luck. He was also a good time-trialist until the nineties, when it became difficult for him to adapt to technical changes in the time-trial bicycles.
The ending of the 1987 Tour de France and the 1985 Vuelta a España and the whole 1989 Tour are among his most memorable participations in major competitions.
He works now as a sports commentator for Televisión Española during important cycling events.
Delgado took part in the Tour de France eleven times. During his first participation, when he was 23, he rose to second place in the overall classification after the 17th stage, before falling back later in the event. Since then, Delgado was determined to achieve victory in this competition.
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Pepper Martin
Johnny Leonard Roosevelt "Pepper" Martin (February 29, 1904 – March 5, 1965) was an American professional baseball player and minor league manager. He was known as the Wild Horse of the Osage because of his daring, aggressive baserunning abilities. Martin played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman and an outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals during the 1930s and early 1940s. He was best known for his heroics during the 1931 World Series, in which he was the catalyst in a Cardinals' upset victory over the Philadelphia Athletics.
Martin was an integral member of the Cardinals' teams of the 1930s that became known as the Gashouse Gang for their roguish behavior and practical jokes. Early in his career, he was labeled by some contemporary press reports as the next Ty Cobb because of his spirited, hustling style of play. However, because his headlong attitude on the playing field took a physical toll on his body, he never lived up to those initial expectations. After the end of his playing career, he continued his career in baseball as a successful minor league baseball manager.
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Pete Rose
Peter Edward Rose (born April 14, 1941), nicknamed "Charlie Hustle", is a former Major League Baseball player and manager. Rose played from 1963 to 1986, and managed from 1984 to 1989.
Rose, a switch hitter, is the all-time Major League leader in hits (4,256), games played (3,562), at-bats (14,053) and outs (10,328). He won three World Series rings, three batting titles, one Most Valuable Player Award, two Gold Gloves, the Rookie of the Year Award, and made 17 All-Star appearances at an unequaled five different positions (2B, LF, RF, 3B & 1B).
In August 1989, three years after he retired as an active player, Rose agreed to permanent ineligibility from baseball amidst accusations that he gambled on baseball games while playing for and managing the Reds, including claims that he bet on his own team. In 1991, the Baseball Hall of Fame formally voted to ban those on the "permanently ineligible" list from induction, after previously excluding such players by informal agreement among voters. In 2004, after years of public denial, Rose admitted to betting on baseball and on, but not against, the Reds. The issue of Rose's possible re-instatement, and election, to the Hall of Fame remains a contentious one throughout baseball.
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Pete Rozelle
Alvin Ray "Pete" Rozelle (/rɵˈzɛl/; March 1, 1926 – December 6, 1996) was the commissioner of the National Football League (NFL) from January 1960 to November 1989, when he retired from office. Rozelle is credited with making the NFL into one of the most successful sports leagues in the world.
Rozelle was born in South Gate, California and grew up in neighboring Lynwood, California during the Great Depression. He graduated from Compton High School in 1944, lettering in baseball and basketball. He was drafted into the Navy in 1944 and served 18 months in the Pacific on an oil tanker. Rozelle began his career at the University of San Francisco, working as a student publicist for the school's football team. He had already worked in public relations for the Los Angeles Rams front office and while in the athletic office at USF he marketed the Don's National Invitation Tournament championship basketball season of 1949 into a national media event. He graduated from USF in 1950.
He held a series of public relations jobs in Southern California, marketing the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia for a Los Angeles based company. He joined the Los Angeles Rams as its public relations specialist. By 1957, Rozelle was offered the GM job with the Rams. He turned a disorganized, unprofitable team, lost in the growing LA market, into a business success.
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Philippe Thys
Philippe Thys (real name Philippe Thijs; born, Anderlecht, Belgium, 8 October 1889 - died, Anderlecht, Belgium, 16 January 1971) was a Belgian cyclist and three times winner of the Tour de France.
In 1910, Thys won Belgium's first national cyclo-cross championship. The following year he won the Circuit Français Peugeot, followed by stage races from Paris to Toulouse and Paris to Turin. He turned professional to ride the Tour de France.
Thys won the Tour in 1913 despite breaking his bicycle fork and finding a bicycle shop to mend it. The repair cost him a 10-minute penalty but he won by just under nine minutes. Thys took the stage and the race lead when Eugène Christophe broke his fork on the way to Luchon. Marcel Buysse overtook him in the results the following day. Another broken fork on the way to Nice gave Thys the lead again but drama continued when he fell on the penultimate stage from Longwy to Dunkirk. Despite being knocked out and being penalised for help from teammates to repair his bike, he won 8 minutes and 37 seconds ahead of Gustave Garrigou, with Buysse third.
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Rafael Nadal
Rafael "Rafa" Nadal Parera (Catalan: [rəˈfɛɫ nəˈðaɫ pəˈɾeɾə]; Spanish: [rafaˈel naˈðal paˈɾeɾa]) (born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish professional tennis player and a former World No. 1. As of 28 May 2012 (2012 -05-28)[update], he is ranked No. 2 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). He is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time; his success on clay has earned him the nickname "The King of Clay", and has prompted many experts to regard him as the greatest clay court player of all time.
Nadal has won ten Grand Slam singles titles, including a record six French Open titles (tied with Bjorn Borg), the 2008 Olympic gold medal in singles, a record 21 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments, and also was part of the Spain Davis Cup team that won the finals in 2004, 2008, 2009 and 2011. He completed the Career Grand Slam by winning the 2010 US Open, being the seventh player in history, and the youngest in the open era, to achieve it. He is the second male player to complete the Career Golden Slam (winner of the four grand slams and the Olympic Gold medal) after only Andre Agassi.
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Randy Johnson
Randall David "Randy" Johnson (born September 10, 1963), nicknamed "The Big Unit", is a former American Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. During a 22-year career, he pitched for six different teams.
The 6-foot-10-inch (2.08 m) Johnson was celebrated for having one of the most dominant fastballs in the game. He regularly approached, and occasionally exceeded, 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) during his prime. He also threw a hard, biting slider. Johnson won the Cy Young Award five times, second only to Roger Clemens' seven.
Johnson finished his career first in strikeouts per nine innings pitched among starting pitchers (10.67), second all-time in total strikeouts (4,875; first among left-handed pitchers), third in hit batsmen (188), tenth in fewest hits allowed per nine innings pitched (7.24), 22nd in wins (303), and 57th in shutouts (37). He pitched two no-hitters, the second of which was the 17th perfect game in baseball history.
Johnson was born in Walnut Creek, California, to Carol Hannah and Rollen Charles “Bud” Johnson. By the time he entered Livermore High School, he was a star in baseball and basketball. In 1982, as a senior, he struck out 121 batters in 66 innings, and threw a perfect game in his last high school start. He also played on a Bercovich team that assembled top players from throughout California. After high school he was drafted in 1982 by the Atlanta Braves in the 2nd round and offered $50,000 to sign. Instead, Johnson accepted a full athletic scholarship to USC, also playing 2 years of basketball. He continued to start at the University of Southern California under coach Rod Dedeaux, but often exhibited control problems.
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René Pottier
René Pottier (5 June 1879 in Moret-sur-Loing, Seine-et-Marne – 25 January 1907 in Levallois-Perret) was a French racing cyclist
Pottier won Bordeaux–Paris in 1903 before turning professional. He came second in Paris–Roubaix 1905 and Bordeaux–Paris 1905, then third in 1906’s Paris–Roubaix, before winning the Tour de France in 1906.
He was considered the finest climber of the Tour. In the 1905 race he was first up the Ballon d’Alsace but lost the lead to Hippolyte Aucouturier after nails punctured his final spare tyre. He finished the stage only when Aucouturier gave him one of his spare tyres. Injury due to a fall on the next stage to Grenoble caused him to abandon.
The following year he took five stage wins out of thirteen and overall victory with 31 points. Again he was first up the Ballon d'Alsace but this time he stayed ahead, finishing as Dijon 48 minutes before his nearest competitor. He also won in Grenoble by fifteen minutes and at Nice by 26 minutes. He completed the 4,546 km in 189 hours, 34 minutes at an average 23.98kmh.
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Rik Van Steenbergen
Rik Van Steenbergen (Arendonk, 9 September 1924 – Antwerp, 15 May 2003) was a Belgian racing cyclist, considered to be one of the best among the great number of successful Belgian cyclists.
Van Steenbergen was born in Arendonk in a poor family. He worked as an errand boy and a cigar-roller. He began racing at 16 and became one of Belgium's best juniors from 1940 to 1942.
He started cycling as a professional during World War II in 1942, after being an amateur since he was 14. The next year, he won his first important races, and became Belgian road cycling champion. In 1944, he won the Ronde van Vlaanderen Classic, which he won again two years later.
During his career, which lasted until 1966, Van Steenbergen won several more classics: Paris–Roubaix, Paris–Brussels and Milan – San Remo. He also won the World Road Cycling Championships three times (1949 Copenhagen, 1956 Copenhagen and 1957 Waregem), equalling the (still standing) record of Alfredo Binda. His last world title, a year after his second, was won in front of a home crowd. In addition, he placed third in the first post-war championships in 1946. He held the Ruban Jaune for seven years for winning the 1948 Paris-Roubaix in a record average speed for a professional race, covering the 246 km at an average of 43.612 km per hour.
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Roger Bannister
Sir Roger Gilbert Bannister, CBE (born 23 March 1929) is an English former athlete best known for running the first mile in less than 4 minutes. Bannister became a distinguished neurologist and Master of Pembroke College, Oxford, before retiring in 2001.
Sir Roger was the inaugural recipient of the Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year award in January 1955 (1954 Sportsman of the Year).
Roger Bannister was born in Harrow, England. He went to Vaughan Primary school in Harrow before going on to be educated at Beechen Cliff School Bath, University College School, London, Exeter College and Merton College, Oxford, and at St Mary's Hospital Medical School (now part of Imperial College London).
Bannister was inspired by miler Sydney Wooderson's remarkable comeback in 1945. Eight years after setting the mile record and seeing it surpassed during the war years by the great Swedish runners Arne Andersson and Gunder Hägg, Wooderson regained his old form and challenged Andersson over the distance in several races. Wooderson lost to Andersson but set a British record of 4:04.2 in Göteborg on 9 September.
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Roger Clemens
William Roger Clemens (born August 4, 1962), nicknamed "The Rocket", is an American former baseball pitcher who played 23 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for four teams. Clemens was one of the most dominant pitchers in major league history, tallying 354 wins, a 3.12 earned run average (ERA), and 4,672 strikeouts, the third-most all time. An 11-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion, he won seven Cy Young Awards during his career, the most of any pitcher. Clemens was known for his fierce competitive nature and for his hard-throwing pitching style that he used to intimidate batters.
Clemens debuted in the major leagues in 1984 with the Boston Red Sox, whose pitching staff he anchored for 12 years. In 1986, he won the American League (AL) Cy Young Award, the AL Most Valuable Player (MVP) Award, and the All-Star Game MVP Award, and he struck out an MLB-record 20 batters in a single game. After the 1996 season, Clemens left Boston via free agency and joined the Toronto Blue Jays. In each of his two seasons with Toronto, Clemens won a Cy Young Award, as well as the pitching triple crown by leading the league in wins, ERA, and strikeouts. Prior to the 1999 season, Clemens was traded to the New York Yankees where he won his only two World Series titles. In 2003, he reached his 300th win and 4,000th strikeout in the same game. Clemens left for the Houston Astros in 2004, where he spent three seasons and won his seventh Cy Young Award. He rejoined the Yankees in 2007 for one last season.
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Roger Federer
Roger Federer (German pronunciation: [ˈfeːdəʁɐ]) (born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss professional tennis player who held the ATP No. 1 position for a record 237 consecutive weeks from 2 February 2004 to 18 August 2008. Federer has occupied the #1 ranking for 285 overall weeks, one week short of the record 286 weeks held by Pete Sampras. As of 28 May 2012, he is ranked World No. 3. Federer has won a men's record 16 Grand Slam singles titles. He is one of seven male players to capture the career Grand Slam and one of three (with Andre Agassi and Rafael Nadal) to do so on three different surfaces (clay, grass, and hard courts). He is the only male player in tennis history to have reached the title match of each Grand Slam tournament at least five times and also the final at each of the nine ATP Masters 1000 Tournaments. Many sports analysts, tennis critics, and former and current players consider Federer to be the greatest tennis player of all time.
Federer has appeared in an unprecedented 23 career Grand Slam tournament finals, including a men's record ten in a row, and appeared in 18 of 19 finals from the 2005 Wimbledon Championships through the 2010 Australian Open, the lone exception being the 2008 Australian Open. He holds the record of reaching the semifinals or better of 23 consecutive Grand Slam tournaments over five and a half years, from the 2004 Wimbledon Championships through the 2010 Australian Open. At the 2012 Australian Open, he reached a record 31st consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal. During the course of his run at the 2012 French Open in Roland Garros, Federer eclipsed Jimmy Connors long standing record of 233 match wins in Grand Slam tournaments when he defeated Adrian Ungur in a second round match.
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Roger Lapébie
Roger Lapébie (Bayonne, 16 January 1911 – Pessac, 12 October 1996) was a French racing cyclist who won the 1937 Tour de France. In addition, Lapébie won the 1934 and 1937 editions of the Critérium National. He was born at Bayonne, Aquitaine, and died in Pessac.
Lapébie won the 1937 Tour by riding 4,415 kilometers in 138 hours, 58 minutes and 31 seconds. His victory was controversial as he was the first rider to complete the race using a modern derailleur. This gave him the advantage of shifting gears without having to stop, dismount and flip the wheel as was customary of racing bicycles used at the time. Lapébie was also known to accept outside assistance in violation of the rules and was at one point penalized 90 seconds by race commissaires.
The advantages taken by Lapébie angered his Belgian rival, Sylvère Maes who won the Tour the previous year. Maes had led the race through the Alps and Pyrenees but decided to quit in protest of Lapébie's tactics and derailleur use after the 16th stage to Bordeaux. Lapébie, in second place, took the yellow jersey in the absence of Maes and kept it until Paris. The victory delighted the French but angered the cycling-proud Belgians.
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Roger Maris
Roger Eugene Maris (September 10, 1934 – December 14, 1985) was an American baseball right fielder who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) on four teams, from 1957 through 1968. Maris hit a record 61 home runs during the 1961 season for the New York Yankees, breaking Babe Ruth's single-season record of 60 home runs in 1927. Maris' record stood for the next 37 years.
Maris appeared in seven World Series games. He was a two-time American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) (1960–1961), seven-time All-Star (1959–62), and an AL Gold Glove winner in 1960. His accomplishment of 61 home runs in a season, which was greatly debated in its own time, came back to the forefront in 1998, when the record was broken by both Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa. On September 24, 2011, the 50th anniversary of Maris' home run record was celebrated in Yankee Stadium.
Roger Maris was the son of Croatian immigrants. He was born Roger Eugene Maras(he later changed his last name to Maris) in Hibbing, Minnesota. He grew up in Grand Forks and Fargo, North Dakota, where he attended Shanley High School. Maris, a gifted athlete, participated in many sports while in Fargo, and excelled at football and still holds the official high school record for most kickoff return touchdowns in a game, with four.
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Roger Pingeon
Roger Pingeon (born August 28, 1940 in Hauteville) is a retired professional road bicycle racer from France. He raced as a professional from 1964 to 1974. In 1967, Pingeon won the Tour de France. In 1969, Pingeon won the Vuelta a España and came second behind Eddy Merckx in the Tour de France.
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Roger Walkowiak
Roger Walkowiak (born March 2, 1927 in Montluçon, France) is a French former road bicycle racer who unexpectedly won the 1956 Tour de France. He was a professional rider from 1950 until 1960.
From 1930 the Tour de France had been disputed by national and regional teams. Roger Walkowiak was recruited for the French regional Nord-Est-Centre team, representing the North-east and Centre of France, despite coming from Montluçon in the South-West. He was the only rider available at late notice to replace an original team member, Gilbert Bauvin, who had been promoted to France's main team.
Walkowiak escaped on the 7th stage from Lorient to Angers in a group of 31 riders that won that day by over 18 minutes. The advantage was enough to give him the yellow jersey of the overall race lead. At this stage the race's stars did not consider this 'insignificant' rider to be a risk.
Walkowiak lost the jersey to Gerrit Voorting at the end of stage 10 which took some of the pressure off his shoulders. In the Pyrenees Belgium's Jan Adriaensens took the lead. At Aix-en-Provence (stage 15) Dutchman Wout Wagtmans took the jersey, but Walkowiak was still well placed.
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Romain Maes
Romain Maes (18 August 1913 in Zerkegem– 22 February 1983 in Groot-Bijgaarden) was a Belgian cyclist who won the 1935 Tour de France after wearing the yellow jersey of leadership from beginning to end.
Maes was the 13th child in his family. He started racing when he was 17. He turned professional in 1933 and won the Omloop van het Westen (Tour of the West). The following year he started the Tour de France and twice finished stages in second place. He then crashed on the day from Digne to Nice and left the race in an ambulance.
His win in 1935 ended a six-year run by French riders. He was a hero in Belgium.
He won Paris–Roubaix in 1936 but wasn't given the victory. The judge said he had seen the Frenchman, Georges Speicher, win. In 1938 he was well on the way to winning Paris-Brussels, leading the race by 100m with only 500m to go. He rode into the velodrome on which the race finished, crossed the line and stopped. The chasers, who had remembered that there was a further lap to ride, swept by him. Maes realised his mistake too late and Marcel Kint won.
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Romāns Vainšteins
Romāns Vainšteins (born March 3, 1973, in Talsi) is a former professional road bicycle racer from Latvia. He won the road race at the 2000 world cycling championship in Plouay, France. He covered the 269 km in 6h 15m 28s, the best of 158 starters.
In 2001 he came in 3rd in the Paris–Roubaix race, behind the winner Servais Knaven.
1995
1996
1998 - Kross (Italy)
1999 - Vini Caldirola-Sidermec (Italy)
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Ron Guidry
Ronald Ames Guidry ( /ˈɡɪdri/; born August 28, 1950), nicknamed "Louisiana Lightning" and "Gator", is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He played his entire 14-year baseball career for the New York Yankees (1975–1988). Guidry was also the pitching coach of the New York Yankees from 2006 to 2007.
Guidry was born in Lafayette, Louisiana, and began his career pitching briefly in the 1975 and 1976 seasons. In 1977, he began as a relief pitcher but was moved into the starting rotation. He helped lead the New York Yankees to a World Series championship in 1977 and 1978. In those two years combined, Guidry went 4-0 in the postseason with 3 complete games in 5 starts, allowing only nine earned runs in 371⁄3 innings pitched.
In 1978, Guidry posted a career year, one of the best in the modern era. Against the California Angels on June 17, he struck out a Yankee-record 18 batters. Guidry's 18-strikeout performance is usually cited as the launching pad of the Yankee Stadium tradition of fans standing and clapping for a strikeout with two strikes on the opposing batter.
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Rory Sparrow
Rory Darnell Sparrow (born June 12, 1958, in Suffolk, Virginia) is a retired American professional basketball player in the NBA.
Sparrow played at Eastside High School in Paterson, New Jersey, and was an inaugual inductee into the school's Hall of Fame.
He played collegiately at Villanova University, where he scored 1183 career points, and made 495 assists. In college, Sparrow made game-winning shots in the last ten seconds of the game on five occasions.
Sparrow, a 6'2" guard, was selected 75th overall (round 4, pick 6) of the 1980 NBA Draft by the New Jersey Nets. Including the Nets, he played with the Atlanta Hawks, New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, Sacramento Kings and Los Angeles Lakers over a 12-year career, retiring after the 1991-92 season. He scored the first field goal in Miami Heat history, when the franchise was created in 1988.
Throughout his 12-year career Rory Sparrow was known as one of the steadiest guards in the NBA. He had his best years with the Atlanta Hawks and the New York Knicks in the early 1980s, then went on to become a charter member of the expansion Miami Heat. In addition to his on-court success, Sparrow earned equal recognition for his tireless efforts in the community. In 1987 he was one of eight charitable athletes honored by Sports Illustrated as co-Sportsman of the Year.
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Rudi Altig
Rudi Altig (born Mannheim, Baden, Germany, 18 March 1937) is a former professional track and road racing cyclist who won the 1962 Vuelta a España and the world championship in 1966. He is now a television commentator.
Rudi Altig was born in an area which had produced good track riders. He began racing in 1952, following his older brother, Willi. The brothers teamed for madisons and other two-man races, becoming the best in the country. The British promoter, Jim Wallace, booked Altig to ride with Hans Jaroszewicz at a meeting on Herne Hill velodrome in Good Friday in 1956. He said:
Altig became national sprint champion in 1957 and 1958. Then Karly Ziegler, a coach, took over his preparation when he joined the Endspurt Mannheim club and Altig became a pursuiter. He won the 1959 national pursuit championship and won the madison championship with his brother. Later that year he beat many of the world's best pursuiters to become world champion in Amsterdam.
Altig was allowed by the Union Cycliste Internationale to turn professional in 1960 within a year of his world championship. He rode his first professional six-day, in Denmark, that winter. Wallace said:
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Rudy Dhaenens
Rudy Dhaenens (Deinze 10 April 1961 – Aalst 6 April 1998) was a Belgian professional road bicycle racer who is most famous for winning the World Cycling Championships in 1990 as a member of the Belgian national team.
Dhaenens excelled several times in the Paris–Roubaix classic race; finishing second in 1986 and third the following year. Dhaenens won the 1990 World Championship Road Race, held in Utsunomiya, Japan, ahead of Dirk De Wolf of Belgium and Gianni Bugno of Italy. In 1992, Dhaenens was forced to stop his career because of heart problems. For a long time, he was in the service of the PDM cycling team, usually as tactical captain. Dhaenens was known for his calm, reserved attitude.
He died at the age of 36 because of a car accident in Aalst while driving to the finish of the Tour of Flanders bicycle race. In his honor, the Grand Prix Rudy Dhaenens is held each year in Nevele, Belgium.
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Rulon Gardner
Rulon Gardner (born August 16, 1971) is an American Olympian who competed in the 2000 Olympic games, winning the gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling upon defeating Russian Aleksandr Karelin, who was previously undefeated in 13 years of international competition. Gardner was also a contestant on the 11th season of the Biggest Loser.
Rulon E. Gardner was born on August 16, 1971 in Afton, Wyoming. He is the son of Reed and Virginia Gardner and the last of nine children. His second great grandfather was Archibald Gardner, who was one of the early settlers of Star Valley, Wyoming. He attributes his strength to the physical labor that he performed growing up and working on the family's dairy farm.
In 2005, Gardner published his autobiography (co-written by Bob Schaller), Never Stop Pushing: My Life from a Wyoming Farm to the Olympic Medals Stand, in which he describes his Greco-Roman wrestling career, his academic struggles (as someone who suffers from a learning disability) and an account of his near-death experience when getting stranded after a snowmobile accident.
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Sammy Sosa
Samuel Peralta "Sammy" Sosa (born November 12, 1968) is a Dominican former professional baseball right fielder. Sosa played with four Major League Baseball teams over his career which spanned from 1989-2007.
Sosa's Major League career began with the Texas Rangers in 1989. After three seasons with the Chicago White Sox, Sosa became a member of the Chicago Cubs in 1992 and subsequently became one of the league's best hitters. In 1998, Sosa and Mark McGwire achieved national fame for their home run-hitting prowess in pursuit of Roger Maris' home run record. Sosa finished his career with brief stints with the Baltimore Orioles and the Texas Rangers. With the Rangers, Sosa hit his 600th career home run to become the fifth player in MLB history to reach the milestone. He is also the all-time home run leader among foreign-born MLB players. Furthermore, Sosa is one of only two National League Players to ever reach 160 RBI in a season, a milestone he reached in 2001. The other was Cubs player and RBI Champion Hack Wilson during his record setting 1930 season in which he recorded 191 RBI. Sosa is the only player to have hit 60 or more home runs in a single season three times.
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Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel Leroy Jackson (born December 21, 1948) is an American film and television actor and film producer. After becoming involved with the Civil Rights Movement, he moved on to acting in theater at Morehouse College, and then films. He had several small roles such as in the film Goodfellas before meeting his mentor, Morgan Freeman, and the director Spike Lee. After gaining critical acclaim for his role in Jungle Fever in 1991, he appeared in films such as Patriot Games, Amos & Andrew, True Romance and Jurassic Park. In 1994, he was cast as Jules Winnfield in Pulp Fiction, and his performance received several award nominations and critical acclaim.
Jackson has since appeared in over 100 films including Die Hard with a Vengeance, The 51st State, Jackie Brown, Unbreakable, The Incredibles, Black Snake Moan, Shaft, Snakes on a Plane, as well as the Star Wars prequel trilogy and small roles in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill Vol. 2 and Inglourious Basterds.
He played Nick Fury in Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger, and Marvel's The Avengers, the first five of a nine-film commitment as the character for the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise. Jackson's many roles have made him one of the highest-grossing actors at the box office. Jackson has won multiple awards throughout his career and has been portrayed in various forms of media including films, television series, and songs. In 1980, Jackson married LaTanya Richardson, with whom he has a daughter, Zoe.
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Sandy Koufax
Sanford "Sandy" Koufax ( /ˈkoʊfæks/; born Sanford Braun, December 30, 1935) is an American former left-handed baseball pitcher who played his entire 12-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers (1955–1966). Retiring at the peak of his career, in 1972 he became, at age 36 and 20 days, the youngest player ever elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame .
Koufax's career peaked with a run of six outstanding seasons from 1961 to 1966, before arthritis in his left elbow ended his career prematurely at age 30. He was named the National League's Most Valuable Player in 1963. He also won the 1963, 1965, and 1966 Cy Young Awards by unanimous votes, making him the first 3-time Cy Young winner in baseball history and the only one to win 3 times when the award was for all of baseball, not just one league. In each of his Cy Young seasons, Koufax won the pitcher's triple crown by leading the NL in wins, strikeouts, and earned run average. Koufax's totals would also have led the American League in those seasons.
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Seth Meyers
Seth Adam Meyers (born December 28, 1973) is an American actor and comedian. He currently serves as head writer for Saturday Night Live and hosts its news parody segment Weekend Update.
Meyers was born in Evanston, Illinois, the son of Hilary Claire (née Olson), a middle school French teacher, and Laurence Meyers, Jr. He attended Manchester High School West in Manchester, New Hampshire. He went on to graduate from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, where he was a member of the fraternity Phi Gamma Delta. Meyers is the older brother of Josh Meyers, who was best known as a cast member of MADtv.
Before SNL, Meyers got his improv comedy start as a member of the Northwestern University improv sketch group Mee-Ow, created by Paul Warshauer and Josh Lazar. He continued his career at ImprovOlympic with the group Preponderate as well as overseas as a cast member of Boom Chicago, an English language improv troupe based in Amsterdam, where his brother was also a cast member.
Meyers appeared with Brendan Fraser and Anita Briem in the 2008 3D film Journey to the Center of the Earth. He also makes a cameo in the 2008 film Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist as a drunk man who mistakes the main character's Yugo for a taxi. Meyers is currently writing and will star in a movie called Key Party. He also starred in the 2004 comedy See This Movie with John Cho. In July 2008, Meyers directed the web series The Line on Crackle. Meyers has hosted the Webby Awards twice, in 2008 and 2009. In 2009, Meyers hosted the Microsoft Company Meeting at Safeco Field in Seattle, WA. Meyers hosted the 2010 and 2011 ESPY Awards on ESPN. In 2011, Seth Meyers was the keynote speaker at the White House Correspondents Association Dinner on April 30; during his introductory remarks, he made a joke about Osama bin Laden's actions while in hiding, unaware that US intelligence had found bin Laden and he would be dead within hours.
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Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, folk, hip hop, country and pop. She has won nine Grammy Awards from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.
She has performed with The Rolling Stones and has sung duets with Mick Jagger,Michael Jackson, Eric Clapton, Luciano Pavarotti, John Mellencamp, Kid Rock, Michelle Branch, and Sting among others. She has performed backing vocals for Tina Turner, Michael Jackson, Don Henley and Belinda Carlisle. She also sang as part of the back up vocals for the Bob Dylan 30th Anniversary celebrating Dylan's 30 years as a recording artist. Crow has released seven studio albums, two compilations, and a live album, and has contributed to film soundtracks. She has sold 16 million albums in the United States and 35 million albums worldwide and her newest album, 100 Miles from Memphis, was released on July 20, 2010. Recently she appeared on NBC's 30 Rock, ABC's GCB and Cougar Town, Disney Channel's Hannah Montana Forever, and Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert's Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear.
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Stan Musial
Stanley Frank "Stan" Musial ( /ˈmjuːziəl/ or /ˈmjuːʒəl/; born November 21, 1920) is a retired professional baseball player who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the St. Louis Cardinals (1941–1963). Nicknamed "Stan the Man", Musial was a record 24-time All-Star selection (tied with Willie Mays), and is widely considered to be one of the greatest hitters in baseball history. He compiled 3,630 hits (ranking fourth all-time and most in a career spent with only one team). With 1,815 hits at home and 1,815 on the road, he is also considered to be the most consistent hitter of his era. He also compiled 475 home runs during his career, was named the National League's (NL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) three times, and won three World Series championship titles. Musial was a first-ballot inductee to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969 and is currently the longest tenured living Hall of Famer.
Musial was born in Donora, Pennsylvania, where he frequently played baseball in both informal and organized settings, eventually playing on the baseball team at Donora High School. Signed to a professional contract by the St. Louis Cardinals as a pitcher in 1938, Musial was converted into an outfielder prior to his major league debut in 1941. Noted for his unique batting stance, he quickly established himself as a consistent and productive hitter. In his first full season, 1942, the Cardinals won the World Series. The following year, he led the National League in six different offensive categories and earned his first MVP award. He was also named an All-Star for the first time; he would be selected to every All-Star Game in every subsequent season he played. Musial won his second World Series ring in 1944, then missed the entire 1945 season while serving with the United States Navy.
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Stan Ockers
Constant ("Stan") Ockers (3 February 1920, Borgerhout – 1 October 1956, Antwerp) was a Belgian professional racing cyclist.
He was runner-up in the Tour de France in 1950 and 1952, and the best sprinter in that race in 1955 and 1956. In 1955 he won the Classic "Ardennes double" by winning La Flèche Wallonne and the Liège–Bastogne–Liège in the same year. At this time the races were run on successive days as "Le Weekend Ardennais". He also won the World Cycling Championship that year.
Stan Ockers died after crashing during a track race in Antwerp in 1956. A year later a monument was built in Les Forges, Sprimont, in the south of Belgium.
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Stephen Roche
Stephen Roche (born 28 November 1959 in Dundrum, Dublin, Ireland) is a retired professional road racing cyclist. In a 13-year professional career, he peaked in 1987, becoming only the second cyclist to win the Triple Crown of victories in the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia stage races, plus the World road race championship. Roche's rise coincided with that of fellow Irishman Sean Kelly.
Although one of the finest cyclists of his generation and admired for his pedalling style, he struggled with knee injuries and never contended in the Grand Tours post-1987. He had 58 professional career wins.
On completion of his apprenticeship as a machinist in a Dublin dairy and following a successful amateur career in Ireland with the "Orwell Wheelers" club coached by Noel O'Neill of Dundrum (including a win in the Rás Tailteann in 1979), Roche joined the Athletic Club de Boulogne-Billancourt amateur team in Paris to prepare for the 1980 Olympic games in Moscow. Soon after his arrival Roche won the amateur Paris–Roubaix, escaping with Dirk Demol and sprinting to victory on the track at Roubaix. Roche was told by his directeur sportif that if he did not win he "would be sent home to Ireland that day".
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Steve Cauthen
Steve Cauthen (born May 1, 1960) is a retired American jockey.
Cauthen, the son of a trainer and a farrier, grew up in Walton, Kentucky around horses, which (along with his small size) made race-riding a logical career choice. He rode his first race on May 12, 1976 at Churchill Downs; he finished last, riding King of Swat. He rode his first winner (Red Pipe) less than a week later, at River Downs. His rise to prominence was meteoric; he was the nation's leader in race wins in 1977 with 487. In only his second year of riding, he became the first jockey to win $6 million in a single season, passing that mark in December 1977 on a three-year-old filly called Little Happiness in the sixth race at Aqueduct Racetrack. After that, he was called "The Six Million Dollar Man" and "Stevie Wonder."
In 1977, he won numerous awards, including Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year, Sporting News Sportsman of the Year, Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year and ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year. In the same year, he won the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Apprentice Jockey and the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey in the United States.
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Sugar Ray Leonard
Sugar Ray Leonard (born May 17, 1956) is an American retired professional boxer and occasional actor. He was named Ray Charles Leonard, after his mother's favorite singer, Ray Charles. Leonard was the first boxer to earn more than $100 million in purses, won world titles in five weight divisions and defeated future fellow International Boxing Hall of Fame inductees Wilfred Benítez, Thomas Hearns, Roberto Durán and Marvin Hagler. Leonard was named "Boxer of the Decade" for the 1980s.
Leonard, the fifth of seven children, was born in Rocky Mount, North Carolina to Cicero and Getha Leonard. He grew up in Wilmington, N.C. When he was three, the family moved to Washington, D.C. When he was ten, they settled permanently in Palmer Park, Maryland. His father worked as a supermarket night manager, his mother was a nurse.
Leonard was a shy child, and aside from the time he nearly drowned in a creek during a Seat Pleasant flood, his childhood was uneventful. He stayed home a lot, reading comic books and playing with his dog. "He never did talk too much," his mother said. "We never could tell what he was thinking. But I never had any problems with him. I never had to go to school once because of him."
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Sylvère Maes
Sylvère Maes (born 27 August 1909 in Zevekote – died 5 December 1966 in Ostend) was a Belgian cyclist, who is most famous for winning the Tour de France in 1936 and 1939. In 1937, Maes left the 1937 Tour de France together with his Belgian team while he was leading the general classification, in response to actions from French spectators and decisions from the jury.
Born in 1909 as the youngest in a family of ten children, Maes rode his first cycling race in 1928, and immediately was one of the best young riders. At the end of the 1932 season, Maes became a professional cyclist, and in a short time managed to win two races for professionals. Maes was a cyclo-cross talent, which he showed by winning the 1933 Critérium International de Cyclo-cross, considered the unofficial cyclo-cross world championship. In 1933 Maes recorded his first major victory by winning Paris–Roubaix. In the rest of his career, he would focus on the Tour de France.
In 1934, Maes made his debute in the Tour de France as an individual, but had more success than the Belgians in the national team, and was the only Belgian to win a stage. In the general classification, he finished in eighth place.
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Ted Williams
Theodore Samuel "Ted" Williams (August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 21-year Major League Baseball career as the left fielder for the Boston Red Sox (1939–1942 and 1946–1960). Williams was a two-time American League Most Valuable Player (MVP) winner, led the league in batting six times, and won the Triple Crown twice. A nineteen-time All-Star, he had a career batting average of .344, with 521 home runs, and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1966. Williams recorded a hit 34 percent of the time; he reached base an astounding 48 percent of the time.
Williams was the last player in Major League Baseball to bat over .400 in a single season (.406 in 1941). Williams holds the highest career batting average of anyone with 500 or more home runs. His career year was 1941, when he hit .406 with 37 HR, 120 RBI, and 135 runs scored. His .551 on base percentage set a record that stood for 61 years. Nicknamed "The Kid", "The Splendid Splinter", "Teddy Ballgame", "The Thumper" and, because of his hitting prowess, "The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived", Williams's career was twice interrupted by service as a U.S. Marine Corps fighter-bomber pilot. An avid sport fisherman, he hosted a television program about fishing, and he was inducted into the IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame.
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Terry Baker
For the Canadian football player of the same name see Terry Baker (Canadian football).
Terry Wayne Baker (born May 5, 1941) is a former quarterback for the Oregon State University football team. He played for them through the 1960-1962 seasons. He is most notable for winning the 1962 Heisman Trophy and playing the Final Four in the NCAA Basketball Tournament in the same school year. To date, he is the only person to have both won a Heisman Trophy and played in the Final Four.
Baker was born May 5, 1941 in Pine River, Minnesota. He attended Jefferson High School in Portland, Oregon and was a standout three-sport athlete for the Democrats.
Baker was a three-year letterwinner in basketball, and led the Democrats to the Portland Interscholastic League city championship his senior year.
Baker was also a great baseball player. He earned a letter all four years of high school in baseball and led his team to the 1959 Oregon School Activities Association state championship.
Football, however, was Baker's most dominant sport. Baker played quarterback and tailback for the Democrats. In his junior and senior seasons, the Democrats were 23-0 and won two Oregon State Athletic Association state championships. As a senior, he threw for 1,261 yards and ran for 438 yards.
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Terry Bradshaw
Terry Paxton Bradshaw (born September 2, 1948) is a former American football quarterback with the Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League (NFL). He is currently a TV analyst and co-host of Fox NFL Sunday. He played 14 seasons with Pittsburgh, won four Super Bowl titles in a six-year period (1974, 1975, 1978 and 1979), becoming the first quarterback to win three and four Super Bowls, and led the Steelers to eight AFC Central championships. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1989, his first year of eligibility.
A tough competitor, Bradshaw had a powerful – albeit at times erratic – arm and called his own plays throughout his football career. His physical skills and on-the-field leadership played a major role in Pittsburgh Steelers history. During his career, he passed for more than 300 yards in a game only seven times, but three of those performances came in the post-season, and two of those in Super Bowls. In four career Super Bowl appearances he passed for 932 yards and 9 touchdowns, both Super Bowl records at the time of his retirement. In 19 postseason games he completed 261 passes for 3,833 yards.
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The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register (it became The Times on 1 January 1788). The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times (founded in 1821) are published by Times Newspapers, since 1981 a subsidiary of News International, itself wholly owned by the News Corporation group headed by Rupert Murdoch. The Times and The Sunday Times do not share editorial staff, were founded independently and have only had common ownership since 1967.
The Times is the first newspaper to have borne that name, lending it to numerous other papers around the world, including The Times of India (1838), The Straits Times (1845), The New York Times (1851), The Irish Times (1859), the Los Angeles Times (1881), The Seattle Times (1891), The Daily Times (Malawi) (1900), The Canberra Times (1926), and The Times (Malta) (1935). For distinguishing purposes it is therefore sometimes referred to, particularly in North America, as the "London Times" or "The Times of London".
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Theo Middelkamp
Theofiel ("Theo") Middelkamp (Nieuw-Namen, 23 February 1914–Kieldrecht, 2 May 2005) was a Dutch cyclist. In 1947, Middelkamp became world champion. In 1936, he was the first Dutch cyclist ever to win a stage in the Tour de France.
Middelkamp was born as the second son in a family of nine children. At an early age, he wanted to be a footballer, but he soon realised that there was much more money to be earned in cycling, as football was not yet a professional sport in the Netherlands.
Middelkamp was the first Dutchman to win a stage in the Tour de France. When he came to the Tour, he had never even seen mountains, coming from the very flat parts of the Netherlands. However, in his first Tour, on July 14, 1936, he won the difficult mountain stage from Aix-les-Bains to Grenoble, which went over the Col du Galibier. That year, he finished 23rd overall. In 1937 he had to quit the Tour because of a fall, in which he broke a finger.
In 1938 he won the seventh stage (Bayonne-Pau). In that tour, he won 8,000 francs, much less than he could have earned in races in Flanders, and so he decided not to participate in any later Tours. As Middelkamp famously said, "I cannot live on fame and honour".
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Thor Hushovd
Thor Hushovd (born Grimstad, Aust-Agder, Norway, 18 January 1978) is a Norwegian professional road bicycle racer riding for BMC Racing Team. He is known for sprinting and time trialing and is the 2010 Norwegian and world road champion. He is the first Norwegian to lead the Tour de France, and first Scandinavian to win the road race in cycling world road championship. He is also the Scandinavian with the most stage wins in Grand Tours.
Hushovd won the under-23 time trial world championship and the under-23 versions of Paris–Roubaix and Paris–Tours before turning professional in 1998. He was Norwegian time trial champion in 2004 and 2005 and road race champion in 2004 and 2010. In 2006, he won seven UCI ProTour races and two stages of the Tour de France. He won the prologue in Strasbourg and led after the first day despite a cut arm. He continued with stitches and regained the yellow jersey after stage 2 with a third place. He won the last stage, beating Robbie McEwen in a sprint. In the 2006 Vuelta a España he won stage 6, wore the golden jersey for three stages and won the points classification
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Tiger Woods
Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975) is an American professional golfer whose achievements to date rank him among the most successful golfers of all time. Formerly the World No. 1, he is the highest-paid professional athlete in the world, having earned an estimated US$90.5 million from winnings and endorsements in 2010.
Woods turned professional in 1996, and by April 1997 he had already won his first major, the 1997 Masters. He first reached the number one position in the world rankings in June 1997. Through the 2000s, Woods was the dominant force in golf, spending 264 weeks from August 1999 to September 2004 and 281 weeks from June 2005 to October 2010 as world number one. From December 2009 to early April 2010, Woods took leave from professional golf to focus on his marriage after he admitted infidelity. His multiple infidelities were revealed by several different women, through many worldwide media sources. This was followed by a loss of form, and his ranking gradually fell to a low of #58 in November 2011. He snapped a career-long winless streak of 107 weeks when he captured the Chevron World Challenge in December 2011. As of April 8, 2012, he is ranked #8.
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Tim Duncan
Timothy Theodore "Tim" Duncan (born April 25, 1976) is an American professional basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 6-foot 11-inch (2.11 m), 255-pound (116 kg)power forward/center is a four-time NBA champion, two-time NBA MVP, three-time NBA Finals MVP, and NBA Rookie of the Year. The Spurs' team captain, he is a 13 time NBA All-Star and the only player in NBA history to be selected to both All-NBA and All-Defensive Teams during each of his first 13 seasons.
Duncan started out as a swimmer and only began playing basketball in ninth grade after Hurricane Hugo destroyed the only Olympic-sized pool on his home of St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. He soon became a standout for St. Dunstan's Episcopal High School, and had an illustrious college career with the Wake Forest University Demon Deacons, winning the Naismith College Player of the Year, USBWA College Player of the Year and John Wooden awards in his final year. Duncan graduated from college before entering the 1997 NBA Draft as the number one pick. His list of accomplishments, remarkable consistency, and leadership in the Spurs' NBA championship runs in 1999, 2003, 2005, and 2007 have led basketball experts to consider him to be one of the greatest power forwards in NBA history.
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Tom Boonen
Tom Boonen pronounced [Boʊnən] (born 15 October 1980 in Mol) is a Belgian professional road bicycle racer who won the 2005 World Road Race Championship. He is a member of the Omega Pharma-Quick Step team, and is considered a single-day road race specialist with a strong finishing sprint. His personality and looks, combined with his successes, also turned him into Belgium's main male sports idol of the mid-2000s, but he incurred censure after testing positive twice for the use of cocaine.
At the start of 2002 Boonen rode for the US Postal team, finishing third in Paris–Roubaix after an early breakaway. Fellow Belgian rider Johan Museeuw had escaped off the front of the race to a solo victory, and team captain George Hincapie crashed in a slippery section of the course leaving Boonen to ride for himself. Boonen's performance in the race compelled Museeuw – his childhood hero – to publicly declare Boonen his natural successor.
However, Boonen was not completely happy at US Postal, claiming he did not get enough chances to ride for himself. Towards the end of the year he announced he would leave the team, despite being under contract, and joined Quick Step-Davitamon at the start of 2003. The 2003 season, however, did not go well for Boonen, who saw lacklustre performance due to fatigue and a knee injury. In this season Museeuw was the undisputed team leader for the spring classics campaign.
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Tom Brady
Thomas Edward Patrick "Tom" Brady, Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American football quarterback for the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football at Michigan, Brady was drafted by the Patriots in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL Draft.
In Brady's ten seasons as a starter, the Patriots have earned trips to the Super Bowl in half of them (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLII, and XLVI), winning three of them (XXXVI, XXXVIII, and XXXIX). He has also won two Super Bowl MVP awards (XXXVI and XXXVIII), has been selected to seven Pro Bowls (and invited to eight, although he declined the 2006 invitation), and holds the NFL record for most touchdown passes in a single regular season. His career postseason record is 16–5. He also helped set the record for the longest consecutive win streak in NFL history with 21 straight wins over two seasons (2003–04), and in 2007 he led the Patriots to the first undefeated regular season since the institution of the 16-game schedule. Brady has the fourth-highest career passer rating of all time (96.4) among quarterbacks with at least 1,500 career passing attempts.
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Tom Harmon
Thomas Dudley Harmon (September 28, 1919 – March 15, 1990) was a star player in American college football, a sports broadcaster, and patriarch of a family of American actors. As a player, he won the Heisman Trophy in 1940 and is considered by some to be the greatest football player in Michigan Wolverines history.
Harmon was born in the Harmon's family home at 118 South Weston Street in Rensselaer, Indiana, in Jasper County. This house stood one block East of the Jasper County Courthouse, and was torn down in 1965. He was the youngest child of Louis A. and Rose Marie (Quinn) Harmon, who first moved to Rensselaer, Indiana from Livingston County, Illinois around 1900. In 1924, when Harmon was about 5 years old, his family moved to Gary, Indiana, but he still kept up connections with friends in Rensselaer, Indiana for many years.
Harmon attended Horace Mann High School in Gary, Indiana, graduating in 1937. While at Horace Mann High School, Harmon was already an outstanding athlete. In addition to 14 varsity letters, he was twice named All-State quarterback, Captain of the basketball team, and as a senior, won the 100 yard dash and the 200 yard low hurdles at the State Finals in Indianapolis, Indiana.
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Tom Seaver
George Thomas "Tom" Seaver (born November 17, 1944), nicknamed "Tom Terrific" and "The Franchise", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He pitched from 1967-1986 for four different teams in his career, but is noted primarily for his time with the New York Mets. During a 20-year career, Seaver compiled 311 wins, 3,640 strikeouts, 61 shutouts and a 2.86 earned run average. In 1992, he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the highest percentage ever recorded (98.84%), and has the only plaque at Cooperstown wearing a New York Mets hat. As of 2010, Tom Seaver and Gil Hodges (played for the Mets in 1962-63) are the only Met players to have their jersey numbers retired by the team (Gil Hodges' number was retired as a manager even though he also played for the Mets).
He won the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 1967, and three NL Cy Young Awards as the league's best pitcher. Seaver is the Mets' all-time leader in wins, and is considered by many baseball experts as one of the best starting pitchers in the history of baseball.
wn.com/Tom_Seaver -
Tony Danza
Tony Danza (born Antonio Salvatore Iadanza, April 21, 1951) is an American actor best known for starring on the TV series Taxi and Who's the Boss?, for which he was nominated for an Emmy Award and four Golden Globe Awards. In 1998, Danza won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Male Performer in a New Television Series for his work on the 1997 sitcom The Tony Danza Show.
Danza was born in Brooklyn, New York, to parents Anne Cammisa Iadanza (1925–1993) and Matty Iadanza (1920–1983), both of whom died from cancer. Matty Iadanza worked as a garbage man in Brooklyn. Danza's family was of Italian ancestry. He has a younger brother, Matty Jr. (born 1954), a Los Angeles restaurant owner. When Danza was 14, he and his family relocated to Malverne, New York on Long Island. Danza attended Malverne High School, graduating in 1968. In the first episode of his show "Teach: Tony Danza", Danza describes himself as a "bad student" in high school. Danza earned a bachelor's degree in history in 1972 from the University of Dubuque, which he attended on a wrestling scholarship. It was during his first year of college that he got the Robert Crumb Keep on Truckin' tattoo on his upper right arm. In a 1985 interview in Us Weekly magazine, Danza remarked, "I was playing pool with a guy who had all these tattoos, and I wanted to be friends." Danza sports a "Keep Punching" boxing gloves tattoo on his right shoulder. In college, Danza met and married his first wife. Danza was a professional boxer with a 9-3 record, with all of his fights, wins and losses, ending by knockout.
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Tony Hawk
Anthony Frank "Tony" Hawk (born May 12, 1968), nicknamed "The Birdman" is an American professional skateboarder and actor. Hawk gained significant fame for completing the first 900 as well as his licensed video game titles distributed by Activision. He is widely considered one of the most successful and influential pioneers of modern vertical skateboarding.
Raised in San Diego, California, Hawk was described as being "hyperactive" as a child. His parents supported his skateboarding because it served as an outlet for his excessive energy, and as Hawk's skills developed, he became a professional skateboarder at age fourteen. In 1999, he became the first skater to land a 900. In 2002, he created the Boom Boom HuckJam, an extreme sports exhibition and tour which launched in Las Vegas.
Throughout his career, Hawk has made numerous appearances in films and other media, as well as his own series of video games. He has also been involved in various philanthropic activities including his own Tony Hawk Foundation which helps build skateparks in underprivileged areas, and also including collaborations with other athletes in the charity Athletes for Hope.
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Tyler Hamilton
Tyler Hamilton (born March 1, 1971, Marblehead, Massachusetts) is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. He became a professional cyclist in 1995 with the US Postal Service cycling team. Hamilton was a teammate of Lance Armstrong during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France where the latter won the Yellow jersey.
Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer Olympics, and again at the 2004 Summer Olympics. In 2004, he won a gold medal at the time trial. The first doping test gave a positive result, but because the backup sample was frozen, no doping offence could be proven. After he failed further doping tests at the 2004 Vuelta a España, Hamilton was suspended for two years.
After his suspension, Hamilton came back and became national road race champion in 2008. In 2009, Hamilton failed a doping test again, and this time he was banned for eight years, which effectively caused him to retire. In July 2010, he was subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury revolving around the use of performance enhancing drugs in cycling. In May 2011, Hamilton admitted that he had used banned substances in competition, and returned his gold medal. As of May 2011, the IOC has not removed him from the result, but is studying his confession.
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Usain Bolt
The Honourable Usain St. Leo Bolt, OJ, C.D. ( /ˈjuːseɪn/; born 21 August 1986), is a Jamaican sprinter and a five-time World and three-time Olympic gold medalist. He is the world record and Olympic record holder in the 100 metres, the 200 metres and (along with his teammates) the 4×100 metres relay. He is the reigning Olympic champion in these three events, and is one of only seven athletes (along with Valerie Adams, Veronica Campbell-Brown, Jacques Freitag, Yelena Isinbayeva, Jana Pittman, Dani Samuels) to win world championships at the youth, junior, and senior level of an athletic event.
Bolt won a 200 m gold medal at the 2002 World Junior Championships, making him the competition's youngest-ever gold medalist at the time (since surpassed by Jacko Gill). In 2004, at the CARIFTA Games, he became the first junior sprinter to run the 200 m in less than 20 seconds with a time of 19.93 s, breaking the previous world junior record held by Roy Martin by two-tenths of a second. He turned professional in 2004, and although he competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics, he missed most of the next two seasons due to injuries. In 2007, he broke Don Quarrie's 200 m Jamaican record with a run of 19.75 s.
wn.com/Usain_Bolt -
Vittorio Adorni
Vittorio Adorni (born San Lazzaro di Parma, Italy, 14 November 1937) is an Italian former professional road racing cyclist .
Vittorio Adorni was a talented amateur and showed early talent at riding alone. He began racing in 1955 and won the national amateur pursuit championship in 1959 Skill at riding fast alone won him the world professional road championship nine years later.
Adorni won the Trofeo de Gasperiin 1960 and turned professional during 1961 after winning the Coppa San Geo.
Adorni won two races in his first full year as a professional in 1961, riding for Philco and winning stages of the Giro d'Italia and the Tour of Sardinia. Adorni was more a domestique than a leader but he nevertheless won the 1965 Giro and the 1968 world road race championship. The championship was on the car race circuit at Imola, Italy. He broke clear with 93 km still to ride. He finished 10 minutes ahead of the field, helped in the peloton by his Italian team-mates and also by Merckx, his normal team-mate, who did not take up the chase.
wn.com/Vittorio_Adorni -
Warrick Dunn
Warrick De'Mon Dunn (born January 5, 1975 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana) is a former American football running back, and current minority owner of the Atlanta Falcons. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 12th overall in the 1997 NFL Draft, after playing college football at Florida State. Dunn was named AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 1997 and earned three Pro Bowl selections in his career. He played for the Atlanta Falcons from 2002 to 2007 between stints in Tampa Bay. After his career, Dunn took a stake in the Falcons' ownership group led by Arthur Blank.
At Catholic High in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Dunn played quarterback, cornerback, and running back. During his sophomore year he helped lead Catholic High to the state 4A championship game for the first time in its history. He was an All-America honorable mention selection by USA Today as a senior.
On January 7, 1993, Dunn's mother Betty Smothers, an off-duty police officer escorting a businesswoman to a bank to make a night deposit, was ambushed and killed by armed robbers. Three men were sent to prison for the murder, and 2 remain on death row. Dunn, two days after his 18th birthday, became the head of his family and raised his siblings. In 2007, Dunn met with one of the convicted men at the Louisiana State Penitentiary.
wn.com/Warrick_Dunn -
Wayne Gretzky
Wayne Douglas Gretzky, CC (/ˈɡrɛtski/; born January 26, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and former head coach. He played 20 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for four teams from 1979 to 1999. Nicknamed "The Great One", he has been called "the greatest hockey player ever" by many sportswriters, players, and the NHL itself. He is the leading point-scorer in NHL history, with more assists than any other player has points, and is the only NHL player to total over 200 points in one season – a feat he accomplished four times. In addition, he tallied over 100 points in 16 professional seasons, 14 of them consecutive. At the time of his retirement in 1999, he held 40 regular-season records, 15 playoff records, and six All-Star records. In addition to being its greatest scorer, Gretzky was the most gentlemanly superstar in the modern history of the NHL. He won the Lady Byng Trophy for sportsmanship and performance five times, and he often spoke out against fighting in hockey.
wn.com/Wayne_Gretzky -
Willie Mays
Willie Howard Mays, Jr. (born May 6, 1931) is a retired American professional baseball player who played the majority of his major league career with the New York and San Francisco Giants before finishing with the New York Mets. Nicknamed The Say Hey Kid, Mays was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1979, his first year of eligibility. Most baseball fans and historians agree that Mays was the greatest all-around baseball player to have played in the Major Leagues.
Mays won two MVP awards and tied Stan Musial's record with 24 appearances in the All-Star Game. Mays ended his career with 660 home runs, third at the time of his retirement, and currently fourth all-time. An outstanding center fielder, he won a record-tying twelve Gold Gloves starting the year the award was introduced six seasons into his career.
In 1999, Mays placed second on The Sporting News' List of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, making him the highest-ranking living player. Later that year, he was also elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. Mays is one of five NL players to have eight consecutive 100-RBI seasons, along with Mel Ott, Sammy Sosa, Chipper Jones and Albert Pujols. Mays hit 50 or more home runs in both 1955 and 1965. This time span represents the longest stretch between 50 plus home run seasons for any player in Major League Baseball history.
wn.com/Willie_Mays -
Willie Stargell
Wilver Dornell "Willie" Stargell (March 6, 1940 – April 9, 2001), nicknamed "Pops" in the later years of his career, was an American professional baseball player. He played his entire 21-year Major League Baseball career as the left fielder and first baseman for the Pittsburgh Pirates (1962-1982). Over his 21-year career with the Pirates, he batted .282, with 2,232 hits, 423 doubles, 475 home runs and 1540 runs batted in, helping his team capture six National League East division titles, two National League pennants and two World Series (1971, 1979). Stargell was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1988.
Stargell was born in Earlsboro, Oklahoma, but later moved to Alameda, California where he attended Encinal High School. He was signed by the Pirates at age 22, and made his Major League debut at the end of the 1962 season. He soon became a standout player, making his first of 7 trips to the All-Star Game in 1964.
Beloved in Pittsburgh for his style of play and affable manner, Stargell was known for hitting monstrous home runs, including 7 of the 16 balls ever hit completely out of Forbes Field and several of the upper-tier home runs at its successor, Three Rivers Stadium. At one time, Stargell held the record for the longest homer in nearly half of the National League parks. Standing 6 feet 2 inches, Stargell seemed larger, with his long arms and unique bat-handling practice of holding only the knob of the bat with his lower hand combining to provide extra bat extension, Stargell's swings seemed designed to hit home runs of the Ruthian variety. When most batters would use a simple lead-weighted bat in the on-deck circle, Stargell took to warming up with a sledgehammer, adding another layer of intimidation. While standing in the batter's box, he would windmill his bat until the pitcher started his windup.
wn.com/Willie_Stargell -
Óscar Freire
Óscar Freire Gómez (born February 15, 1976 in Torrelavega, Cantabria) is a Spanish professional road bicycle racer, riding for UCI ProTeam Team Katusha. He is one of the top sprinters in road bicycle racing, having won the world championship three times, equalling Alfredo Binda, Rik Van Steenbergen and Eddy Merckx. He has also won Milan – San Remo three times.
Despite diminutive stature, Freire is a feared sprinter. He is sometimes criticized for his training, since he rides only half the distance of other cyclists.[citation needed]
Freire became professional in 1998 with Vitalicio Seguros. He won one race that year, a stage of the Vuelta a Castilla y León. He came 11th in Paris–Tours. In 1999, Freire won little until the world championship in October. He went to Verona to make up numbers in the Spanish team. He spent his prize on an elevator for his grandmother's apartment.
Freire joined Mapei in 2000. It had been ranked best team since 1994. That year he won 11 races including two stages in the Vuelta a España. He also came third place in the world championship. In 2001 he won two races and took the points competition in the Vuelta a Burgos, before becoming world champion for the second time. In 2002 he won a stage in the Tour de France.
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Óscar Pereiro
Óscar Pereiro Sío (born August 3, 1977) is a former Spanish professional road bicycle racer best known for winning the 2006 Tour de France after the original winner, Floyd Landis, was disqualified for failing a series of doping tests. Pereiro is a former member of Porta da Ravessa (2000 to 2001), Phonak Hearing Systems (2002 to 2005), Caisse d'Epargne (2006 to 2009), and the Astana cycling team (2010). After retiring from cycling in 2010, Pereiro joined his local part-time football club Coruxo FC of the Segunda División B.
Pereiro placed tenth in the 2004 Tour de France, 22 minutes 54 seconds behind Tour winner Lance Armstrong. He was awarded the Most Aggressive Rider Award in the 2005 Tour de France after powering the winning breakaways in Stages 15, 16 and 18. He was the Stage 16 winner - just edging out Spain's Xabier Zandio, Italy's Eddy Mazzoleni and Australia's Cadel Evans. His efforts on Stage 15, the toughest stage of the Tour, were highly admired by the peloton. He finished second that day to Discovery Channel's George Hincapie after "pulling" for most of the final climb up the Pla D'Adet.
wn.com/Óscar_Pereiro
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Bradley Wiggins: Lance Armstrong Doping Report Is Not A Surprise
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:45
- Updated: 17 Nov 2012
Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins tells Sky News he is not surprised at the findings of the Usada report into the Lance Armstrong doping scandal.
http://wn.com/Bradley_Wiggins_Lance_Armstrong_Doping_Report_Is_Not_A_Surprise
Lance Armstrong - Road to Paris (2001)
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 52:07
- Updated: 19 Nov 2012
Road to Paris is a 2001 documentary film showing the preparation of Lance Armstrong, then twice winner of Tour de France, and his team, US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team, for the 2001 Tour de France. The film was shot during April, covering races such as Circuit de la Sarthe, Gent--Wevelgem, Paris--Roubaix and Amstel Gold Race, mainly featuring Lance Armstrong and George Hincapie. The film was produced by Nike.
http://wn.com/Lance_Armstrong_Road_to_Paris_2001
Armstrong Defends Himself Against Doping Allegations
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 9:43
- Updated: 20 Nov 2012
Outside the Lines Interview with Lance Armstrong: June 26, 2006
http://wn.com/Armstrong_Defends_Himself_Against_Doping_Allegations
the fifth estate - Lance Armstrong: Master of Spin - Sneak Preview
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 1:47
- Updated: 20 Nov 2012
Lance Armstrong was an inspiration to millions - he overcame a deadly disease and was hailed as one of the world's greatest athletes - but insiders knew the truth. the fifth estate examines the widespread use and abuse of doping in international cycling and how Lance Armstrong kept this dark secret for years, Friday, Nov. 23 at 9 pm (9:30 NT) on CBC-TV.
http://wn.com/the_fifth_estate_Lance_Armstrong_Master_of_Spin_Sneak_Preview
Lance Armstrong's Legacy
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:10
- Updated: 14 Nov 2012
CBSSports.com columnist Gregg Doyel and SI.com columnist Andy Staples join Jim Rome to discuss Lance Armstrong's recent controversial tweet and his legacy. Watch "Rome" - Weeknights 6 ET on CBS Sports Network.
http://wn.com/Lance_Armstrong's_Legacy
Lance Armstrong cancer speech days after titles stripped [RAW VIDEO]
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 13:26
- Updated: 19 Nov 2012
Wed, Aug 29: Lance Armstrong speaks at the World Cancer Congress conference at the Montreal Convention Center (Le Palais des congrès de Montréal) in Montreal, Quebec.
http://wn.com/Lance_Armstrong_cancer_speech_days_after_titles_stripped_RAW_VIDEO_
Former Lance Armstrong teammate describes doping culture
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 7:25
- Updated: 19 Nov 2012
Former professional road cyclist Tyler Hamilton talks candidly about his cycling history, including his own doping charges and the allegations around his former teammate Lance Armstrong. See more from 7.30 at www.abc.net.au
http://wn.com/Former_Lance_Armstrong_teammate_describes_doping_culture
The Best Of Lance Armstrong
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 5:59
- Updated: 20 Nov 2012
Enjoy ! Music: Clint Mansell Requiem for a Dream - Orchestral Version
http://wn.com/The_Best_Of_Lance_Armstrong
Inside Story Americas - Lance Armstrong: Villain or hero?
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 25:16
- Updated: 10 Nov 2012
Lance Armstrong, the US cycling legend, maintains his innocence but gives up the fight against doping allegations. Is it time to re-examine the role of performance enhancement drugs in sport?
http://wn.com/Inside_Story_Americas_Lance_Armstrong_Villain_or_hero?
Superfrog Triathlon 2012: Lance Armstrong Wins!
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 9:20
- Updated: 20 Nov 2012
www.BikeWearWorld.com and www.uRide.tv were on location in Coronado, California for the annual Superfrog triathlon. This year was very different. Events sanctioned by bodies governed by the WADA code are very strict and by the book with zero tolerance for any sort of misinterpretation, so to speak. Therefore, Lance Armstrong was left no choice but to race in local, regional, national and international races with grass roots efforts. This is cool because a lot of our national local races need support and community efforts. Which brings us to mention the droves of triathletes and cycling fans that came out to support the military, local triathletes and Lance Armstrong. San Diego bike shops represented. From B&L;, Nytro, Moment, Performance, Adams... I think we saw almost everyone! Manufacturers came to support also like SPY sunglasses and Cytomax. What was weird was that Lance killed it! I don't think anyone was anticipating that, but he did awesome. Nice job all tri peeps! and Leon Griffith did amazing also...even without the 330 watt output on a power meter
http://wn.com/Superfrog_Triathlon_2012_Lance_Armstrong_Wins!
TPSM presents "The Culture of Sport and Cheating" with Lance Armstrong's lawyers
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 104:07
- Updated: 09 Nov 2012
Three of Lance Armstrong's legal team joined a panel discussion on performance enhancing drugs in sports and recent enforcement efforts of doping cases within the anti-doping code, the Court for Arbitration of Sport and US Federal prosecutions. Presented by the Texas Program in Sports and Media, an open round-table discussion featured attorneys, reporters and athletes with a variety of perspectives and experiences with the current state of affairs. Panelists included Tim Herman, partner, Howry, Breen and Herman; Bryan Daly, partner, SheppardMullin; David Ulich, partner, SheppardMullin; Mark Fainaru-Wada, reporter, ESPN; Juliet Macur, reporter, The New York Times; Jill Sterkel, former competitive swimmer, 4X Olympic medal-winner; and Dr. Steven Ungerleider, sports psychologist, author, trustee of Global Sports Development.
http://wn.com/TPSM_presents_The_Culture_of_Sport_and_Cheating_with_Lance_Armstrong's_lawyers
Ballz speak to Phil Liggett about Lance Armstrong being stripped of titles
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 15:19
- Updated: 17 Nov 2012
www.ballz.co.za - Phil Liggett speaks frankly to Ballz Visual Radio about Lance Armstrong being stripped of all of his titles. He calls the situation political and a conspiracy.
http://wn.com/Ballz_speak_to_Phil_Liggett_about_Lance_Armstrong_being_stripped_of_titles
Lance Armstrong Wins Ironman 70.3 Hawaii
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 3:16
- Updated: 20 Nov 2012
http://wn.com/Lance_Armstrong_Wins_Ironman_703_Hawaii
Report Depicts Lance Armstrong as Ring Leader of Doping Ring
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 6:15
- Updated: 15 Nov 2012
In a report by the USADA, cyclist Lance Armstrong is characterized as leader of a sophisticated team doping operation. The first established paper trail documenting allegations and evidence against him includes testimony of teammates and big payments made by wire. Ray Suarez talks to Bill Strickland of Bicycling magazine.
http://wn.com/Report_Depicts_Lance_Armstrong_as_Ring_Leader_of_Doping_Ring
Lance Armstrong Doping - Guilty?
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 6:12
- Updated: 19 Nov 2012
"Banned from cycling for life and stripped of the seven Tour de France victories that lifted him from cancer survivor to American icon, Lance Armstrong suffered a day of sporting disgrace on Friday even as he thanked supporters for a surge in donations to the foundation he launched for people touched by cancer. Hours after Armstrong announced he would not go to arbitration to dispute charges brought against him by the US Anti-Doping Agency, USADA CEO Travis Tygart announced the sanctions, its allegations now regarded as confirmed findings after Armstrong refused to go further. USADA found Armstrong participated in a team doping conspiracy that continued for years, using banned substances and prohibited blood transfusions to gain a competitive edge...".* Ana Kasparian, Cenk Uygur, and Jayar Jackson discuss on The Young Turks. *Read more here from Brent Schrotenboer from USA Today: www.usatoday.com Support The Young Turks by Subscribing bit.ly Like Us on Facebook: www.fb.com Follow Us on Twitter: bit.ly Buy TYT Merch: theyoungturks.spreadshirt.com Find out how to watch The Young Turks on Current by clicking here: www.current.com
http://wn.com/Lance_Armstrong_Doping_Guilty?
Lance Armstrong Doping Scandal: Cyclist Stripped of Seven Tour De France Titles, Banned from Cycling
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 2:44
- Updated: 20 Nov 2012
The global governing body of cycling will ban Armstrong for life. For more, click here: abcnews.go.com
http://wn.com/Lance_Armstrong_Doping_Scandal_Cyclist_Stripped_of_Seven_Tour_De_France_Titles,_Banned_from_Cycling
Lance Armstrong Tweets Provocatie Pic
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 5:01
- Updated: 17 Nov 2012
Less than a month after being stripped of his Tour de France titles, a provocative photo Tweeted by Lance Armstrong sprawled out on a couch under his cycling jerseys has the sports world puzzled. Photo: AFP/GETTY Subscribe to the WSJ Live YouTube Channel - www.youtube.com More WSJLive YouTube: www.youtube.com Facebook: www.facebook.com Twitter: twitter.com WSJ: www.wsj.com
http://wn.com/Lance_Armstrong_Tweets_Provocatie_Pic
Lance Armstrong Accepts Lifetime Ban from Cycling
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 4:49
- Updated: 15 Nov 2012
Seven-time Tour de France winner accepts US Anti-Doping Agency sanctions and could lose his titles
http://wn.com/Lance_Armstrong_Accepts_Lifetime_Ban_from_Cycling
Tyler Hamilton on Lance Armstrong doping affair
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 32:50
- Updated: 20 Nov 2012
The US '60 minutes' TV show - Tyler Hamilton confesses to using EPO, testosterone, blood transfusions, and also cortisone before the time trials. He states that Lance Armstrong also took part in this doping schedule.
http://wn.com/Tyler_Hamilton_on_Lance_Armstrong_doping_affair
Peddlers Cycling's Dirty Truth BBC Audio Magazine on the Lance Armstrong Doping Schemes 10 15 12
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 118:28
- Updated: 20 Nov 2012
http://wn.com/Peddlers_Cycling's_Dirty_Truth_BBC_Audio_Magazine_on_the_Lance_Armstrong_Doping_Schemes_10_15_12
South Park Stan Marsh Jesus Lance Armstrong
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 15:30
- Updated: 20 Nov 2012
go watch south park episodes & movie @ bit.ly South Park Season 16 Episode 1613 ~ A Scause for Applause South Park Season 16 Episode 13 ~ A Scause for Applause South Park Season 16 ~ A Scause for Applause south park season 16 a scause for applause stan marsh jesus lance armstrong
http://wn.com/South_Park_Stan_Marsh_Jesus_Lance_Armstrong
Lance Armstrong - Tour de France 2003 - Luz Ardiden
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 13:15
- Updated: 18 Nov 2012
Lance Armstrong - Tour de France 2003 - Luz Ardiden With the great crash and rising
http://wn.com/Lance_Armstrong_Tour_de_France_2003_Luz_Ardiden
Lance Armstrong-Time Trial-2005
- Order: Reorder
- Duration: 9:53
- Updated: 19 Nov 2012
Stage 1 from the 2005, with commentary
http://wn.com/Lance_Armstrong-Time_Trial-2005
Photo: AP / Hatem Moussa
18 Nov 2012
Israeli air strikes killed 16 Palestinians in Gaza on Saturday, prompting the Arab League to announce a visit to the battered enclave and a review of its Middle East peace policy. Egypt’s President...
Photo: AP / Hatem Moussa
19 Nov 2012
Gaza/Jerusalem - Israel bombed dozens of targets in the Gaza Strip on Monday and said that while it was prepared to step up its offensive by sending in troops, it preferred a diplomatic solution that...
Photo: EC / EC
19 Nov 2012
BRUSSELS/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The shadow banking system - blamed for aggravating the financial crisis - grew to a new high of $67 trillion globally last year, a top regulatory group said, calling...
Photo: UN / UN
17 Nov 2012
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel's new offensive against the Gaza Strip has turned into a political bonanza for the territory's Hamas rulers, while sidelining Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas,...
Photo: AP / Pablo Martinez Monsivais
19 Nov 2012
Yangon, November 19: Newly re-elected US President Barack Obama arrived here Monday to kick off his visit to Myanmar, becoming the first sitting US president to visit the Southeast Asian nation. As...
Camp Lejeune Marine killed in Helmand province
20 Nov 2012
The Examiner
Related topics Camp Lejeunetroop losses Afghanistan Advertisement This morning the Department of Defense announced the death of a Camp Lejeune Marine who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. Lance Cpl. Dale W. Means, 23, of Jordan, Minn., died Nov. 18, 2012, while conducting...(size: 6.6Kb)
Minn. Marine killed in action
20 Nov 2012
MSNBC
NEW PRAGUE, Minn. - The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) is confirming the death of a Minnesota Marine serving in Afghanistan. The DOD said Tuesday 23-year-old Lance Cpl. Dale Means of Jordan died Sunday while conducting combat...(size: 1.5Kb)
The Examiner
Related topics reality televisionReal Housewives of Beverly Hillstaylor armstrong Advertisement Taylor Armstrong of "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" published a new blog entry today via the Bravo website. The star of the show discussed the Foster dinner party that was documented on last night's...(size: 7.2Kb)
Homemade ‘Hostess’ orange cupcakes
20 Nov 2012
The Examiner
Related topics hostess Advertisement With the fate of Hostess being up in the air this examiner thought it would be a good idea to explore making the favorite childhood snack. You can make them at home and healthier than you can buy them in the store. Twinkies and dingdongs are also fairly easy to...(size: 10.3Kb)
Horseman seeks review of doping decision
20 Nov 2012
Scoop
Wednesday, 21 November 2012, 11:34 am Press Release: Wellington Film Society and Film Archive Final 2012 Wellington Film Society screening on Monday The final Wellington Film Society screening for 2012 is on Monday 26 November 6.15pm. At this screening of the classic film High Society we’ll...(size: 2.9Kb)
US Airways flight attendants vote to OK strike
20 Nov 2012
The Business Review
Phoenix Business Journal by Lance Murray, Digital Content Producer Date: Tuesday, November 20, 2012, 3:20pm MST - Last Modified: Tuesday, November 20, 2012, 3:21pm MST...(size: 9.2Kb)
Detroit news
By Oralandar Brand-Williams The Detroit News Comments New Boston â An investigation continued Tuesday into the vehicle crash that claimed the life of a popular 16-year-old student athlete at Huron High School. About 400 students, teachers and others attended a vigil Monday evening for 16-year-old...(size: 8.9Kb)
CBC
Had "The Catch" been "The Drop," Tony Gabriel wouldn't be in the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. The all-star tight end made one of the biggest catches in Grey Cup history, a memorable 24-yard touchdown grab that earned the Ottawa Rough Riders a stunning 23-20 win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders...(size: 8.5Kb)
San Mateo Residential Care Facility CiminoCare Congratulates Sacramento Battle of the Bands Winners
20 Nov 2012
San Francisco Chronicle
Lance Mishleau, CiminoCare's corporate marketing director, and his bandmate, Kyle McHargue, were awarded the top prize at the recently held Battle of the Bands. Citrus Heights, CA (PRWEB) November 20, 2012 CiminoCare, a San Mateo provider of affordable assisted living and residential care...(size: 2.9Kb)
The Salt Lake Tribune
The architect of the Stanford defense that subdued Oregon’s offensive attack once coached the receivers for a Utah team that suffered through a losing season in his only year in Salt Lake City. If that background seems unlikely, consider that Derek Mason’s next job was at Saint Mary’s College, which...(size: 5.0Kb)
Real Housewives of Beverly Hills Pecking Order, Episode 303: Yolanda Foster Gains Major Ground
20 Nov 2012
LA Weekly
bravotv.com See also: *L.A. Weekly's Real Housewives archives 1. Yolanda Foster (Last week: 6) But we don't get it. We just don't get it. Why are all the other Housewives flocking to the feet of this new girl when she seems about as fun to hang out with as a nun at midnight mass? Yolanda threw a...(size: 3.6Kb)
For the Tasmanian politician, see Lance Armstrong (politician).
 Armstrong at the Tour de France 2010 |
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Lance Edward Armstrong | ||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname | The Boss, Juan Pelota, Big Tex, The Texan,[1] Mellow Johnny (from maillot jaune, French for yellow jersey)[2] |
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| Born | (1971-09-18) September 18, 1971 (age 40) Plano, Texas, United States |
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| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 9 1⁄2 in)[3] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 71 kg (157 lb)[3] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||||
| Current team | Livestrong | ||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline | Road | ||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Rider | ||||||||||||||||||
| Rider type | All-Rounder | ||||||||||||||||||
| Amateur team(s) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1990–1991 1991 |
Subaru-Montgomery US National Team |
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| Professional team(s) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1992–1996 1997 1998–2004 2005 2006–2008 2009 2010–2011 2012– |
Motorola Cofidis US Postal Discovery Channel Livestrong Astana Team RadioShack Livestrong |
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| Major wins | |||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| Infobox last updated on July 26, 2008 |
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Lance Edward Armstrong (born Lance Edward Gunderson on September 18, 1971) is an American former professional road racing cyclist who won the Tour de France a record seven consecutive times after having survived testicular cancer. He is also the founder and chairman of the Lance Armstrong Foundation for cancer research and support. He last rode for UCI ProTeam Team RadioShack, a team he helped found.
In October 1996 he was diagnosed as having testicular cancer with a tumor that had metastasized to his brain and lungs. His cancer treatments included brain and testicular surgery and extensive chemotherapy, and his prognosis was originally poor. He went on to win the Tour de France each year from 1999 to 2005, and is the only person to win seven times having broken the previous record of five wins shared by Miguel Indurain, Bernard Hinault, Eddy Merckx, and Jacques Anquetil.
In 1999, he was named the ABC Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year. In 2000 he won the Prince of Asturias Award in Sports.[4] In 2002, Sports Illustrated magazine named him Sportsman of the Year. He was also named Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year for the years 2002–2005. He received ESPN's ESPY Award for Best Male Athlete in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006, and won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award in 2003. Armstrong announced his retirement from racing on July 24, 2005, at the end of the 2005 Tour de France but returned to competitive cycling in January 2009 and finished third in the 2009 Tour de France. He confirmed he had retired from competitive cycling for good on February 16, 2011.[5]
Contents |
Career[link]
Early career[link]
 |
This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (July 2011) |
Armstrong was born on September 18, 1971, at Methodist Hospital in Plano, Texas in the southern sector of Dallas.[6] At the age of 12, he began his sporting career as a swimmer at the City of Plano Swim Club and finished fourth in Texas state 1,500-meter freestyle. He abandoned swimming-only competition after seeing a poster for a junior triathlon called the Iron Kids Triathlon, which he entered and won at age 13.[7]
In the 1987–1988 Tri-Fed/Texas ("Tri-Fed" was the former name of USA Triathlon), Armstrong was the number one ranked triathlete in the 19-and-under group; second place was Chann McRae, who became a US Postal Service cycling teammate and the 2002 USPRO national champion. Armstrong's points total for 1987 as an amateur was better than the five professionals ranked that year. At 16, Armstrong became a professional triathlete and became national sprint-course triathlon champion in 1989 and 1990 at 18 and 19, respectively.[8]
It became clear that his greatest talent was for bicycle racing after he won the U.S. Amateur Championship in 1991. Representing the U.S., he finished 14th in the 1992 Summer Olympics. This performance earned him his first professional contract with Motorola. He won his first race with Motorola, the Trophee Laigueglia in Italy, beating the favourite Moreno Argentin.
In 1993, Armstrong won 10 one-day events and stage races. He stunned the cycling world when at age 21 he became one of the youngest riders to ever win the UCI Road World Championship, held in pouring rain in Norway that year. Prior to his World's win, he took his first stage win at the Tour de France, in the stage from Châlons-sur-Marne to Verdun. He was in 97th place overall when he abandoned the 1993 race in the Alps after the 12th stage.
He also collected the Thrift Drug Triple Crown of Cycling: the Thrift Drug Classic in Pittsburgh, the K-Mart West Virginia Classic, and the CoreStates USPRO national championship in Philadelphia. Thrift Drug said it would award $1 million to a rider winning all three races, a feat previously unachieved. At the USPRO championship, Armstrong sat up on his bicycle on the final lap, took out a comb, combed his hair and smiled for the cameras.
In 1994, he again won the Thrift Drug Classic and came second in the Tour DuPont in the United States. His successes in Europe were second placings in Liège–Bastogne–Liège and the Clásica de San Sebastián, where just two years before, he finished in last place as his first all-pro event in Europe.
He won the Clásica de San Sebastián in 1995, and this time won the Tour DuPont and took a handful of stage victories in Europe, including the stage to Limoges in the Tour De France. He dedicated the win to teammate Fabio Casartelli who died in a crash on the descent of the Col de Portet d'Aspet on the 15th stage, two days before.
Armstrong's successes were much the same in 1996. He became the first American to win the La Flèche Wallonne and again won the Tour DuPont. However, his performances began to suffer and he was only able to compete for five days in the Tour De France. At Atlanta he was only able to finish 6th in the time trial and 12th in the road race in the 1996 Olympic Games.
Cancer[link]
On October 2, 1996, then aged 25, Armstrong was diagnosed as having developed stage three testicular cancer (Embryonal carcinoma).[9] The cancer spread to his lungs, abdomen and brain. On that first visit to a urologist in Austin, Texas, for his cancer symptoms he was coughing up blood and had a large, painful testicular tumor. Immediate surgery and chemotherapy were required to save his life. Armstrong had an orchiectomy to remove his diseased testicle. After his surgery, his doctor stated that he had less than a 40% survival chance.[10]
The standard chemotherapeutic regimen for the treatment of this type of cancer is a cocktail of the drugs bleomycin, etoposide, and cisplatin (or Platinol) (BEP). Armstrong, however, chose an alternative, etoposide, ifosfamide, and cisplatin (VIP), to avoid the lung toxicity associated with the drug bleomycin.[10] This decision may have saved his cycling career. His primary treatment was received at the Indiana University (IU), Indianapolis, Medical Center, where Dr. Lawrence Einhorn had pioneered the use of cisplatinum to treat testicular cancer. His primary oncologist there was Dr. Craig Nichols.[10] His brain tumors were surgically removed by Scott A. Shapiro, MD, Professor of Neurosurgery at Indiana University and Resident Director, and were found to contain extensive necrosis.[11] According to Armstrong's first book, Dr. Shapiro convinced him that he was the right neurosurgeon for him by saying: "You'll have to convince me you know what you're doing," said Armstrong. "Look, I've done a large number of these," Shapiro said, "I've never had anyone die, and I've never made anyone worse." "Yeah, but why should you be the person who operates on my head?" Armstrong responded. "Because as good as you are at cycling"-he paused-"I'm a lot better at brain surgery".[10] His last chemotherapy treatment was received on December 13, 1996.
His cancer went into complete remission, and by January 1998 he was already engaged in serious training for racing, moving to Europe to race for the U.S. Postal team. A pivotal week (April 1998) in his comeback was one he spent training in the very challenging Appalachian terrain around Boone, North Carolina, with his racing friend Bob Roll.[10]
Tour de France success[link]
Before his cancer treatment, Armstrong had won two Tour de France stages. In 1993, he won the 8th stage and in 1995 he took stage 18 in honor of teammate Fabio Casartelli who crashed and died on stage 15. Armstrong dropped out of the 1996 Tour on the 7th stage after becoming ill, a few months before his diagnosis.
Armstrong's cycling comeback began in 1998 when he finished fourth in the Vuelta a España. In 1999 he won the Tour de France, including four stages. He beat the second rider, Alex Zülle, by 7 minutes 37 seconds. However, the absence of Jan Ullrich (injury) and Marco Pantani (drug allegations) meant Armstrong had not yet proven himself against the biggest names. Stage wins included the prologue, stage eight, an individual time trial in Metz, an Alpine stage on stage nine, and the second individual time trial on stage 19.
In 2000, Ullrich and Pantani returned to challenge Armstrong. The race that began a six-year rivalry between Ullrich and Armstrong ended in victory for Armstrong by 6 minutes 2 seconds over Ullrich. Armstrong took one stage in the 2000 Tour, the second individual time trial on stage 19. In 2001, Armstrong again took top honors, beating Ullrich by 6 minutes 44 seconds. In 2002, Ullrich did not participate due to suspension, and Armstrong won by seven minutes over Joseba Beloki.
The pattern returned in 2003, Armstrong taking first place and Ullrich second. Only 1 minute 1 second separated the two at the end of the final day in Paris. U.S. Postal won the team time trial on stage four, while Armstrong took stage 15, despite being knocked off on the ascent to Luz Ardiden, the final climb, when a spectator's bag caught his right handlebar. Ullrich waited for him, which brought Ullrich fair-play honors.[12]
In 2004, Armstrong finished first, 6 minutes 19 seconds ahead of German Andreas Klöden. Ullrich was fourth, a further 2 minutes 31 seconds behind. Armstrong won a personal best five individual stages, plus the team time trial. He became the first since Gino Bartali in 1948 to win three consecutive mountain stages; 15, 16, and 17. The individual time trial on stage 16 up Alpe d'Huez was won in style by Armstrong as he passed Ivan Basso on the way despite setting out two minutes after the Italian. He won sprint finishes from Basso in stages 13 and 15 and made up a significant gap in the last 250 m to nip Klöden at the line in stage 17. He won the final individual time trial, stage 19, to complete his personal record of stage wins.
In 2005, Armstrong was beaten by David Zabriskie in the Stage 1 time trial by 2 seconds, despite passing Ullrich on the road. His Discovery Channel team won the team time trial, while Armstrong won the final individual time trial. In the mountain stages, Armstrong was attacked multiple times mostly by Ivan Basso, but also by T-mobile leaders Jan Ullrich, Andreas Kloden and Alexandre Vinokourov and former teammate Levi Leipheimer. But still, the American champion handled them well, maintained his lead and, on some occasions, increased it. To complete his record-breaking feat, Armstrong crossed the line on the Champs-Élysées on July 24 to win his 7th consecutive Tour, finishing 4m 40s ahead of Basso, with Ullrich third. Another record achieved that year, was that Armstrong completed the tour at the highest pace in the race's history: his average speed over the whole tour being 41.7 km/h(26 mph).[13][14]
On July 24, 2005, Armstrong officially announced his retirement from professional cycling after his 7th consecutive Tour de France win.[15]
Comeback[link]
Astana: 2009[link]
See also: 2009 Astana season
Armstrong announced on September 9, 2008 that he would return to pro cycling with the express goal of participating in the 2009 Tour de France.[16] "After talking with my children, my family and my closest friends, I have decided to return to professional cycling in order to raise awareness of the global cancer burden", Armstrong said on his livestrong.org website.[17] VeloNews reported that Armstrong would race for no salary or bonuses and would post his internally tested blood results online.[18]
The announcement ended speculation that he would return with Astana in the Tour of California, Paris–Nice, the Tour de Georgia and the Dauphiné-Libéré. Astana missed the 2008 Tour de France after Alexandre Vinokourov was ejected from the 2007 Tour for blood doping.
Australian ABC radio reported on September 24, 2008 that Armstrong would compete in the UCI Tour Down Under through Adelaide and surrounding areas in January 2009. UCI rules say a cyclist has to be in an anti-doping program for six months before an event, but UCI allowed Armstrong to compete.[19] The Premier of South Australia, Mike Rann, declared that Armstrong's participation would make the tour "the biggest sporting event in South Australian history."[20]
In October 2008, Armstrong confirmed he would compete in the 2009 Giro d'Italia, his first participation.[21]
On January 17, Armstrong said at a press conference for the Tour Down Under that his comeback was motivated by spending most of his days spreading the Livestrong message and raising national awareness of cancer.[22][23] Though his fitness levels had supposedly returned to peak condition,[24] Armstrong placed 29th in the race.[25] Armstrong said he considered this a successful result, as the thousands of fans who flocked to Adelaide to see him compete – booking every hotel room in the city[24] – added A$17 million to the South Australian economy, and the government rewarded his effort by pledging A$4.1 million towards the construction of a centre for cancer research.[26]
Armstrong's Trek bicycle was stolen while he was in Sacramento, California, for the Amgen Tour of California. This time-trial bike was returned to the Sacramento police by an anonymous citizen on February 18, 2009, four days after it disappeared from the Astana team truck. A police statement read, "The facts surrounding how the person came into possession of the bicycle are not being released at this time due to an ongoing investigation."[27]
In February 2009, Armstrong was confirmed to compete in the Tour of Ireland from August 19–23, 2009, before then participating in the Livestrong Global Cancer Summit from August 24–26th in Dublin.[28] The Astana Cycling team confirmed in early March that Armstrong would return to Europe to continue his comeback season with races at Milan – San Remo and the Vuelta a Castilla y León.[29] He had to retire from the 2009 Vuelta a Castilla y León during the first stage after crashing in a rider pileup in Baltanás, Spain and breaking his collarbone.[30]
Armstrong flew back to Austin, Texas, for corrective surgery, which was successful, and was back training on a bicycle within four days of his operation.[31] On April 10, 2009, a controversy emerged between the French anti-doping agency AFLD and Armstrong and his team manager, Johan Bruyneel, stemming from a March 17, 2009 encounter with an AFLD anti-doping official who visited Armstrong after a training ride in Beaulieu-sur-Mer. When the official arrived, Armstrong claims he asked—and was granted—permission to take a shower while Bruyneel checked the official's credentials. In late April, the AFLD cleared Armstrong of any wrongdoing.[32] Armstrong returned to racing after his collarbone injury at the Tour of the Gila in New Mexico on April 29.[33]
On July 7, in the fourth stage of the 2009 Tour de France, Armstrong narrowly failed to win the yellow jersey after his Astana team won the team time trial. His Astana team won the 39 km lap of Montpellier but Armstrong ended up just over two tenths of a second (0.22) outside of Fabian Cancellara's overall lead.[34] Armstrong finished the 2009 Tour de France in third place overall, 5:24 behind the overall winner, his Astana teammate Alberto Contador.
Team RadioShack: 2010–11[link]
On July 21, 2009, Armstrong announced that he would return to the Tour de France in 2010.[35] RadioShack was named as the main sponsor for Armstrong's 2010 team, named Team RadioShack.[36][37] Armstrong made his 2010 season debut at the 2010 Tour Down Under where he finished 25th out of the 127 riders that completed the race. He made his European season debut at the 2010 Vuelta a Murcia finishing in 7th place overall. Armstrong was also set to compete in several classics such as the Milan – San Remo, Amstel Gold Race, Liège–Bastogne–Liège, and the Tour of Flanders, but bouts with gastroenteritis forced his withdrawal from three of the four races.[38] Armstrong returned to the United States in mid-April to compete in the Tour of Gila and May's Amgen Tour of California, both as preparation for the Tour de France. However, he crashed outside Visalia early in stage 5 of the Tour of California and had to withdraw from the race.[39] He showed fine shape after recovering from the Tour of California crash, placing second in the Tour of Switzerland and third in the Tour of Luxembourg.
On June 28, Armstrong announced via Twitter that the 2010 edition would be his final Tour de France.[40] Armstrong put in an impressive performance in the Tour de France prologue TT, finishing third, but was plagued by crashes in later stages that put him out of GC contention, especially a serious crash in stage 8. He rallied for the brutal Pyreneean stage 16, working as a key player in a successful break that included teammate Chris Horner. He finished his last tour in 23rd place, 39 minutes 20 seconds behind former winner Alberto Contador.[41] He was also a key rider in helping Team RadioShack win the team competition, beating Caisse D’Epargne by 9 minutes, 15 seconds.
In October, he announced the end of international career after the Tour Down Under of January 2011. He stated that after January 2011 he will only race in the U.S. with the Radioshack domestic team.[42]
Armstrong announced his retirement from competitive cycling 'for good' on February 16, 2011, while still facing a US federal investigation into doping allegations.[5][43]
Physical attributes[link]
Armstrong has recorded an aerobic capacity of 83.8 mL/kg/min (VO2 max),[44][45] much higher than the average person (40–50), but lower than some other Tour De France winners, such as Miguel Indurain (88.0, although reports exist that Indurain tested at 92–94) and Greg LeMond (92.5).[46] At his peak, he had a resting heart rate of 32–34 beats per minute (bpm) with a maximum heart rate of 201 bpm.[47]
Collaboration of sponsors[link]
Armstrong revolutionized the support behind his well-funded teams, asking sponsors and suppliers to contribute and act as part of the team.[48] For example, rather than having the frame, handlebars, and tires designed and developed by separate companies with little interaction, his teams adopted a Formula One relationship with sponsors and suppliers named "F-One",[49] taking full advantage of the combined resources of several organizations working in close communication. The team, Trek, Nike, AMD, Bontrager (a Trek company), Shimano, Sram, Giro and Oakley, collaborated for an array of products.
Family and personal life[link]
Armstrong was born to Linda Mooneyham, a secretary, and Eddie Charles Gunderson, a route manager for The Dallas Morning News. His great-grandfather was the son of Norwegian immigrants.[50] He was named after Lance Rentzel, a Dallas Cowboys wide receiver. His father left his mother when Lance was two and has two other children from another relationship. His mother later married Terry Keith Armstrong, a wholesale salesman, who adopted Lance in 1974. Armstrong refuses to meet his birth father.[51]
Armstrong met Kristin Richard in June 1997. They married on May 1, 1998 and had three children: Luke David, born October 1999, and twins Isabelle Rose and Grace Elisabeth, born November 2001. The pregnancy was possible through sperm Armstrong banked three years earlier, prior to chemotherapy and surgery.[52] The couple filed for divorce in September 2003. At Armstrong's request, his children flew in for the Tour de France podium ceremony in 2005, where Luke helped his father hoist the trophy, while his daughters (in yellow dresses) held the stuffed lion mascot and bouquet of yellow flowers.
Armstrong began dating singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow in the autumn of 2003 and revealed their relationship in January 2004. The couple announced their engagement in September 2005 and their split in February 2006.
In December 2008, Armstrong announced that his girlfriend, Anna Hansen, was pregnant with his child. The couple started dating in July 2008 after meeting through Armstrong's charity work. Although it was believed that Armstrong could no longer father children, after having undergone chemotherapy for testicular cancer, this child was conceived naturally.[53] The baby boy, Maxwell Edward Armstrong, was born on June 4, 2009 in Aspen, Colorado. Armstrong announced the birth via Twitter.[54] Armstrong has become a popular Twitter user, with precisely 3,385,486 followers on April 10, 2012. [55]
In April 2010, Armstrong, using Twitter, announced that Anna Hansen was having his fifth child. Olivia Marie Armstrong was born October 18, 2010.[56]
Armstrong owns homes in Austin, Texas, and Aspen, Colorado, as well as a ranch in the Texas Hill Country.[57] Armstrong is a fan of the University of Texas Longhorns college football program and is often seen on the sidelines supporting the team.
With regard to religion, he is agnostic, quoted as saying, "at the end of the day, if there was indeed some body or presence standing there to judge me, I hoped I would be judged on whether I had lived a true life, not on whether I believed in a certain book, or whether I'd been baptized. If there was indeed a god at the end of my days, I hoped he didn't say, 'But you were never a Christian, so you're going the other way from heaven.' If so, I was going to reply, 'You know what? You're right. Fine.' "[58]
Allegations of doping[link]
For much of the second phase of his career, Armstrong has faced persistent allegations of doping. A number of high-profile cyclists and assorted journalists have alleged that he cheated. However, no allegations have ever been substantiated, and Armstrong retains respect and prestige in many circles.[59]
In addition, Armstrong has been criticised for his disagreements with outspoken opponents of doping such as Paul Kimmage[60][61] and Christophe Bassons.[62][63] Bassons wrote a number of articles for a French newspaper during the 1999 Tour de France which made references to doping in the peloton. Subsequently, Armstrong had an altercation with Bassons during the 1999 Tour De France where Bassons said Armstrong rode up alongside on the Alpe d'Huez stage to tell him "it was a mistake to speak out the way I [Bassons] do and he [Armstrong] asked why I was doing it. I told him that I'm thinking of the next generation of riders. Then he said 'Why don't you leave, then?'"[64] Armstrong confirmed the story. On the main evening news on TF1, a national television station, Armstrong said: "His accusations aren't good for cycling, for his team, for me, for anybody. If he thinks cycling works like that, he's wrong and he would be better off going home".[65] Kimmage, a professional cyclist in the 1980s who later became a sports journalist, referred to Armstrong as a "cancer in cycling".[63] He also asked Armstrong questions in relation to his "admiration for dopers" at a press conference at the Tour of California in 2009, provoking a scathing reaction from Armstrong.[63] This spat continued and is exemplified by Kimmage's articles in The Sunday Times.[66]
Armstrong has continually denied using illegal performance-enhancing drugs and has described himself as the most tested athlete in the world.[67] A 1999 urine sample showed traces of corticosteroid in an amount that was not in the positive range. A medical certificate showed he used an approved cream for saddle sores which contained the substance.[68]
From his return to cycling in the fall of 2008 through March 2009, Armstrong submitted to 24 unannounced drug tests by various anti-doping authorities. All of the tests were negative for performance-enhancing drugs.[69][70]
U.S. federal prosecutors pursued allegations of doping by Armstrong from 2010–2012. The effort convened a grand jury to investigate doping charges, including taking statements under oath from Armstrong's former team members and other associates; met with officials from France, Belgium, Spain, and Italy; and requested samples from the French anti-doping agency. The investigation was led by federal agent Jeff Novitzky, who also investigated suspicions of steroid use by baseball players Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens. The probe was terminated on Feb 3, 2012 with no charges filed.[71]
Specific allegations[link]
Armstrong has been criticized for working with controversial trainer Michele Ferrari. Greg LeMond described himself as "devastated" on hearing of them working together, while Tour de France organizer Jean-Marie Leblanc said, "I am not happy the two names are mixed."[72] Following Ferrari's later-overturned conviction for "sporting fraud" and "abuse of the medical profession", Armstrong suspended his professional relationship with him, saying that he had "zero tolerance for anyone convicted of using or facilitating the use of performance-enhancing drugs" and denying that Ferrari had ever "suggested, prescribed or provided me with any performance-enhancing drugs."[73] Ferrari was later absolved of all charges by an Italian appeals court of the sporting fraud charges as well as charges of abusing his medical license to write prescriptions. The court stated that it overturned his conviction "because the facts do not exist" to support the charges.[74] Ferrari, however, is still banned from practicing medicine with cyclists by the Italian Cycling Federation. According to Italian law enforcement authorities, Armstrong met with Ferrari as recently as 2010 in a country outside of Italy.[75]
In 2004, reporters Pierre Ballester and David Walsh published a book alleging Armstrong had used performance-enhancing drugs (L. A. Confidentiel – Les secrets de Lance Armstrong). It contains allegations by Armstrong's former masseuse, Emma O'Reilly, who claimed Armstrong once asked her to dispose of used syringes and to give him makeup to conceal needle marks on his arms.[76] Another figure in the book, Steve Swart, claims he and other riders, including Armstrong, began using drugs in 1995 while members of the Motorola team, a claim denied by other team members.[77][78] Allegations in the book were reprinted in the UK newspaper The Sunday Times in a story by deputy sports editor Alan English in June 2004. Armstrong sued for libel, and the paper settled out of court after a High Court judge in a pre-trial ruling stated that the article "meant accusation of guilt and not simply reasonable grounds to suspect."[79] The newspaper's lawyers issued the statement: "The Sunday Times has confirmed to Mr. Armstrong that it never intended to accuse him of being guilty of taking any performance-enhancing drugs and sincerely apologized for any such impression." (See also[80] in The Guardian). The same authors (Pierre Ballester and David Walsh) subsequently published "L.A. Official" and "Le Sale Tour" (The Dirty Trick), further cementing their claims that Armstrong used performance-enhancing drugs throughout his career.
On March 31, 2005, Mike Anderson filed a brief[81] in Travis County District Court in Texas, as part of a legal battle following his termination in November 2004 as an employee of Armstrong. Anderson worked for Armstrong for two years as a personal assistant. In the brief, Anderson claimed that he discovered a box of androstenone while cleaning a bathroom in Armstrong's apartment in Girona, Spain.[82] Androstenone is not on the list of banned drugs. Anderson stated in a subsequent deposition that he had no direct knowledge of Armstrong using a banned substance. Armstrong denied the claim and issued a counter-suit.[83] The two men reached an out-of-court settlement in November 2005; the terms of the agreement were not disclosed.[84]
On August 23, 2005, L'Équipe, a major French daily sports newspaper, reported on its front page under the headline "le mensonge Armstrong" ("The Armstrong Lie") that 6 urine samples taken from the cyclist during the prologue and five stages of the 1999 Tour de France, frozen and stored since at "Laboratoire national de dépistage du dopage de Châtenay-Malabry" (LNDD), had tested positive for erythropoietin (EPO) in recent retesting conducted as part of a research project into EPO testing methods.[85][86] Armstrong immediately replied on his website, saying, "Unfortunately, the witch hunt continues and tomorrow's article is nothing short of tabloid journalism. The paper even admits in its own article that the science in question here is faulty and that I have no way to defend myself. They state: 'There will therefore be no counter-exam nor regulatory prosecutions, in a strict sense, since defendant's rights cannot be respected.' I will simply restate what I have said many times: I have never taken performance enhancing drugs."[87] In October 2008, the AFLD gave Armstrong the opportunity to have samples taken during the 1998 and 1999 Tours de France retested.[88] Armstrong immediately refused, saying, "the samples have not been maintained properly." Head of AFLD Pierre Bordry stated: "Scientifically there is no problem to analyze these samples – everything is correct" and "If the analysis is clean it would have been very good for him. But he doesn't want to do it and that's his problem."[89] However, according to the results of an investigative report by Emile Vrijman (a Dutch lawyer and the former head of the Dutch anti-doping agency, which he headed for ten years), who was appointed by the UCI to head an independent investigations into the LNDD lab’s findings, it was determined that the analysis of the urine samples were conducted improperly and that they “did not satisfy any standard for doping control testing.”[90][91] Vrijman’s report went on to state that handling and testing of the samples fell so far short of scientific standards, and that “the process that generated those results and the subsequent reports was so deficient” that it was "completely irresponsible" to suggest that the results could "constitute evidence of anything,” and cleared Armstrong of any wrongdoing.[91][92][93][94] But WADA rejected these conclusions stating "The Vrijman report is so lacking in professionalism and objectivity that it borders on farcical.".[95]
In June 2006, French newspaper Le Monde reported claims by Betsy and Frankie Andreu during a deposition that Armstrong had admitted using performance-enhancing drugs to his physician just after brain surgery in 1996. The Andreus' testimony was related to litigation between Armstrong and SCA Promotions, a Texas company attempting to withhold a $5-million bonus; this was settled out of court with SCA paying Armstrong and Tailwind Sports $7.5 million, to cover the $5-million bonus plus interest and lawyers' fees. The testimony stated "And so the doctor asked him a few questions, not many, and then one of the questions he asked was... have you ever used any performance-enhancing drugs? And Lance said yes. And the doctor asked, what were they? And Lance said, growth hormone, cortisone, EPO, steroids and testosterone."[96] Armstrong suggested Betsy Andreu may have been confused by possible mention of his post-operative treatment which included steroids and EPO that are taken to counteract wasting and red-blood-cell-destroying effects of intensive chemotherapy.[97] The Andreus' allegation was not supported by any of the eight other people present, including Armstrong's doctor Craig Nichols,[98] or his medical history. According to Greg LeMond (who has been embroiled with his own disputes with Armstrong), he (LeMond) had a recorded conversation,[99] the transcript of which was reviewed by National Public Radio, with Stephanie McIlvain (Armstrong's contact at Oakley Inc.) in which she said of Armstrong's alleged admission 'You know, I was in that room. I heard it.' However, McIlvain has contradicted LeMond allegations on the issue and denied under oath that the incident in question ever occurred in her sworn testimony.[96]
In July 2006, the Los Angeles Times published a story on the allegations raised in the SCA case.[100] The report cited evidence at the trial including the results of the LNDD test and an analysis of these results by an expert witness.[101] From the LA Times article: "The results, Australian researcher Michael Ashenden testified in Dallas, show Armstrong's levels rising and falling, consistent with a series of injections during the Tour. Ashenden, a paid expert retained by SCA Promotions, told arbitrators the results painted a "compelling picture" that the world's most famous cyclist "used EPO in the '99 Tour."[102] Ashenden's finding were disputed by the Vrijman report, which pointed to procedural and privacy issues in dismissing the LNDD test results. The LA Times article also provided information on testimony given by Armstrong's former teammate, Swart, Andreu and his wife Betsy and instant messaging conversation between Andreu and Jonathan Vaughters regarding blood-doping in the peloton. Vaughters signed a statement disavowing the comments and stating he had: "no personal knowledge that any team in the Tour de France, including Armstrong's Discovery team in 2005, engaged in any prohibited conduct whatsoever." Andreu signed a statement affirming the conversation took place as indicated on the instant messaging logs submitted to the court. The SCA trial was settled out of court, and the LA Times reported: "Though no verdict or finding of facts was rendered, Armstrong called the outcome proof that the doping allegations were baseless." The L.A. Times' article provides a review of the disputed positive EPO test, allegations and sworn testimony against Armstrong, but notes that: "They are filled with conflicting testimony, hearsay and circumstantial evidence admissible in arbitration hearings but questionable in more formal legal proceedings."[103]
On May 20, 2010, former U.S. Postal teammate Floyd Landis accused Armstrong of doping in 2002 and 2003, and claimed that U.S. Postal team director Johan Bruyneel had bribed former UCI president Hein Verbruggen to keep quiet about a positive Armstrong test in 2002.[104][105] Landis admitted there was no documentation that supports these claims.[106] However, in July 2010 the president of the UCI, Pat McQuaid, revealed that Armstrong made two donations to the UCI: $25,000 in 2002, used by the juniors anti-doping program, and $100,000 in 2005, to buy a blood testing machine, and documentation of those payments does exist.[107] Landis also maintains that he witnessed Armstrong receiving multiple blood transfusions, and dispensing testosterone patches to his teammates on the United States Postal Service Team.[108] On May 25, 2010, The International Cycling Union disputed comments from Floyd Landis, "Due to the controversy following the statements made by Floyd Landis, the International Cycling Union wishes to stress that none of the tests revealed the presence of EPO in the samples taken from riders at the 2001 Tour of Switzerland," the UCI said in a statement. "The UCI has all the documentation to prove this fact." According to ESPN, "Landis claimed that Armstrong tested positive while winning in 2002, a timeline Armstrong himself said left him 'confused,' because he did not compete in the event in 2002."[109]
On May 19, 2011, former Armstrong teammate Tyler Hamilton told CBS News that he and Armstrong had together taken EPO before and during the 1999, 2000, and 2001 Tours de France. Armstrong's attorney, Mark Fabiani, responded that Hamilton was lying.[110] The accompanying 60 Minutes investigation alleges that two other former Armstrong teammates, Frankie Andreu and George Hincapie, have told federal investigators that they witnessed Armstrong taking banned substances, including EPO, or supplied Armstrong with such substances.[111] Fabiani stated in response that, "We have no way of knowing what happened in the grand jury and so can't comment on these anonymously sourced reports."[112] Hamilton further claimed that Armstrong tested positive for EPO during the 2001 Tour de Suisse; 60 Minutes reported that the Union Cycliste Internationale intervened to conceal those test results, and that donations from Armstrong totaling US$125,000 may have played into said actions.[113] Martial Saugy, chief of the Swiss anti-doping agency, later confirmed that they found four urine samples suspicious of EPO use at the 2001 race, but said there was no "positive test" and claimed not to know whether the suspicious results belonged to Armstrong. As a result, Armstrong's lawyers demanded an apology from 60 Minutes.[114] Instead of apologizing, CBS News chairman Jeff Fager said CBS News stands by its report as "truthful, accurate and fair", and added that the suspicious tests which Saugy confirmed to exist have been linked to Armstrong "by a number of international officials".[115]
On February 2, 2012, U.S. federal prosecutors officially dropped their investigation with no charges.[116]
Handling of urine tests[link]
In October 2005, in response to calls from the International Olympic Committee and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for an independent investigation, the UCI appointed Dutch lawyer Emile Vrijman to investigate the handling of urine tests by the French national anti-doping laboratory, LNDD. Vrijman was head of the Dutch anti-doping agency for ten years; since then he has worked as a defense attorney defending high-profile athletes against doping charges.[90] Vrijman's report cleared Armstrong because of improper handling and testing.[92][93] The report said tests on urine samples were conducted improperly and fell so short of scientific standards that it was "completely irresponsible" to suggest they "constitute evidence of anything."[94] The recommendation of the commission's report was no disciplinary action against any rider on the basis of LNDD research. It also called upon the WADA and LNDD to submit themselves to an investigation by an outside independent authority.[91] The WADA rejected these conclusions stating "The Vrijman report is so lacking in professionalism and objectivity that it borders on farcical.".[95] The IOC Ethics Commission subsequently censured Dick Pound, the President of WADA and a member of the IOC, for his statements in the media that suggested wrongdoing by Armstrong.
In April 2009, Dr. Michael Ashenden said that "the LNDD absolutely had no way of knowing athlete identity from the sample they're given. They have a number on them, but that's never linked to an athlete's name. The only group that had both the number and the athlete's name is the federation, in this case it was the UCI." He added "There was only two conceivable ways that synthetic EPO could've gotten into those samples. One, is that Lance Armstrong used EPO during the '99 Tour. The other way it could've got in the urine was if, as Lance Armstrong seems to believe, the laboratory spiked those samples. Now, that's an extraordinary claim, and there's never ever been any evidence the laboratory has ever spiked an athlete's sample, even during the Cold War, where you would've thought there was a real political motive to frame an athlete from a different country. There's never been any suggestion that it happened."[117]
Dr. Michael Ashenden's statements are at odds with the findings of the Vrijman report "According to Mr. Ressiot, the manner in which the LNDD had structured the results table of its report – i.e. listing the sequence of each of the batches, as well as the exact number of urine samples per batch, in the same (chronological) order as the stages of the 1999 Tour de France they were collected at – was already sufficient to allow him to determine the exact stage these urine samples referred to and subsequently the identity of the riders who were tested at that stage." The Vrijman report also says "Le Monde of July 21 and 23, 1999 reveal that the press knew the contents of original doping forms of the 1999 Tour de France".[91]
Armstrong's work outside of cycling[link]
In 1997, Armstrong founded the Lance Armstrong Foundation, which supports people affected by cancer. The foundation has become one of the top 10 groups funding cancer research in the U.S., raising more than $325 million from the sale of yellow Livestrong bracelets[118] During his original retirement beginning after the 2005 season, he also maintained other interests. He was the pace car driver of the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 for the 2006 Indianapolis 500.
In 2007, Armstrong with Andre Agassi, Muhammad Ali, Warrick Dunn, Jeff Gordon, Mia Hamm, Tony Hawk, Andrea Jaeger, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Mario Lemieux, Alonzo Mourning, and Cal Ripken, Jr. founded Athletes for Hope, a charity which helps professional athletes get involved in charitable causes and inspires non-athletes to volunteer and support the community.[119] In 2008 and 2009 he appeared on the PBS Kids show Arthur as himself. In these two appearances he taught biking skills and helped spread cancer awareness, respectively.
In August 2009, Armstrong headlined the inaugural charity ride "Pelotonia" in Columbus, Ohio, riding over 100 miles on Saturday with the large group of cyclists. He personally addressed the riders the Friday evening before the two-day ride and helped the ride raise millions for cancer research.[120]
Marathon[link]
Armstrong ran the 2006 New York City Marathon with friends Robert McElligott and Lewis Miles. With Nike, he assembled a pace team of Alberto Salazar, Joan Benoit Samuelson, and Hicham El Guerrouj to help him reach 3 hours. He struggled with shin splints and was on pace for a little above 3 hours but pushed through the last 5 miles (8.0 km) to 2h 59m 36s, finishing 856th. He said the race was extremely difficult compared to the Tour de France. "For the level of condition that I have now, that was without a doubt the hardest physical thing I have ever done. I never felt a point where I hit the wall. It was really a gradual progression of fatigue and soreness."[121] The NYC Marathon had a dedicated camera on Armstrong throughout the event.[122] This camera, according to Armstrong, pushed him to continue through points in which he would have normally "stopped and stretched". He also helped raise $600,000 for his LiveStrong campaign during the run.
Armstrong ran the 2007 NYC Marathon in 2h 46m 43s finishing 232nd.[123] On April 21, 2008, he ran the Boston Marathon in 2h 50m 58s, finishing in the top 500.[124]
Triathlon[link]
Armstrong made his return to triathlon in the inaugural Ironman 70.3 Panama race, on February 12, 2012. He raced in the Professional category, finishing with a time of 3:50:55, 2nd overall to Bevan Docherty.[125] Armstrong's splits were 19:22 for the 1.2 mile swim, 2:10:18 for the 56 mile bike, and 1:17:01 for the run.[126] He also entered half-Ironman distance races in Texas (7th[127]) and St. Croix (3rd[128]) before breaking through with a victory at Ironman 70.3 Florida in an overall time of 3:45:38[129]. Armstrong also plans to race in Ironman France in an attempt to qualify for the 2012 World Ironman Championship in Kona, Hawaii.[130]
Politics[link]
In the New York Times, teammate George Hincapie hinted that Armstrong would run for Governor of Texas after cycling. In the July 2005 issue of Outside, Armstrong hinted at running for governor, although "not in '06".[131] Armstrong and former president George W. Bush, a Republican and fellow Texan, call themselves friends. Bush called Armstrong in France to congratulate him after his 2005 victory, and in August 2005, The Times reported the President had invited Armstrong to his Prairie Chapel Ranch to go mountain biking.[132] In a 2003 interview with The Observer, Armstrong said: "He's a personal friend, but we've all got the right not to agree with our friends."[133]
In August 2005, Armstrong hinted he had changed his mind about politics. In an interview with Charlie Rose on PBS on August 1, 2005, Armstrong pointed out that running for governor would require the commitment that led him to retire from cycling. Again, on August 16, 2005, Armstrong told a local Austin CBS affiliate[134] that he was no longer considering politics:
"The biggest problem with politics or running for the governor—the governor's race here in Austin or in Texas—is that it would mimic exactly what I've done: a ton of stress and a ton of time away from my kids. Why would I want to go from pro cycling, which is stressful and a lot of time away, straight into politics?"[citation needed]
He does intend to be involved in politics as an activist for change in cancer policies, however. In a May 2006 interview with Sports Illustrated, Armstrong is quoted: "I need to run for one office, the presidency of the Cancer Fighters' Union of the World."[citation needed] Sports Illustrated quoted Armstrong that he fears halving his influence with legislators if he chose one side in politics. His foundation lobbies on behalf of cancer patients before United States Congress.
Armstrong is currently co-chair of a California campaign committee to pass the California Cancer Research Act, a ballot measure to be decided by California voters on June 5, 2012.[135] If passed, the measure is projected to generate over $500 million dollars annually for cancer research by levying a new $1-per-pack tax on tobacco products in California. Revenues will also be spent on smoking-cessation programs, and tobacco law-enforcement.[136]
Teams and victories[link]
Main article: List of career achievements by Lance Armstrong
Filmography[link]
- The Road to Paris (himself, 2000 documentary)
- Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (himself, cameo)
Accolades[link]
- United States Olympic Committee (USOC) SportsMan of the Year (1999, 2001, 2002, 2003)
- Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year (2002, 2003, 2004, 2005)
- World's Most Outstanding Athlete Award, Jesse Owens International Trophy (2000)
- Reuters Sportsman of the Year (2003)
- Prince of Asturias Award in Sports (2000)
- Sports Ethics Fellows by the Institute for International Sport (2003)
- Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year (2003)
- Laureus World Sports Award for Comeback of the Year (2000)
- Trophee de L'Academie des Sport [France] (2004)
- Vélo d'Or Award by Velo Magazine in France (1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004)
- Mendrisio d'Or Award in Switzerland (1999)
- Premio Coppi-Bici d'Oro Trophy by the Fausto Coppi foundation in conjunction with La Gazzetta dello Sport (1999, 2000)
- Marca Legend Award by Marca, a Spanish sports daily in Madrid (2004)
- BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award (2003)
- ESPY Award for Best Male Athlete (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006)
- ESPY Award for GMC Professional Grade Play Award (2005)
- ESPY Award for Best Comeback Athlete (2000)
- ESPN/Intersport's ARETE Award for Courage in Sport (Professional Division) (1999)
- ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year (1999)
- Favorite Athlete award at Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards (2006)
- Presidential Delegation to the XIX Olympic Winter Games (2002)[137]
- Sports Illustrated magazine's Sportsman of the Year (2002)
- VeloNews magazine's International Cyclist of the Year (2000, 2001, 2003, 2004)
- VeloNews magazine's North American Male Cyclist of the Year (1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2005)
- William Hill Sports Book of the Year: It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life (2000)[138]
- Union Cycliste Internationale: World Number 1 Ranked Elite Men's Cyclist (1996)
- Triathlon magazine's Rookie of the Year (1988)
- Pace car driver for the Indianapolis 500 (2006)
- An asteroid, 1994 JE9 was named 12373 Lancearmstrong in honor of him.
- Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters, Tufts University (2006)
- Mildred "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias Courage Award presented by the United States Sports Academy (1999)
See also[link]
References[link]
- ^ Gayle King Radio Show, Fed Ex http://www.oprah.com/media/20080601_oaf_20080619_oaf_gk
- ^ Lance Armstrong, Sally Jenkins: Every Second Counts, Chapter 1, (ISBN 0-385-50871-9), Broadway Books 2003.
- ^ a b TDF (2009). Astana – Lance Armstrong. Retrieved on 2009-07-04 from http://www.letour.fr/2009/TDF/RIDERS/us/coureurs/22.html.
- ^ "Lance Armstrong". http://www.fundacionprincipedeasturias.org/ing/04/premiados/trayectorias/trayectoria657.html. Retrieved September 15, 2008.
- ^ a b "Lance Armstrong confirms retirement from cycling". BBC News website. February 16, 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/cycling/9399280.stm. Retrieved 2011=02-16.
- ^ "Bike Friendly Oak Cliff: BFOC interviews Lance Armstrong’s mom, Linda Armstrong Kelly". bikefriendlyoc.wordpress.com. July 20, 2009. http://bikefriendlyoc.wordpress.com/2009/07/20/bfoc-interviews-lance-armstrongs-mom-linda-armstrong-kelly/. Retrieved January 8, 2011.
- ^ "LanceArmstrong.com". LanceArmstrong.com (located under "Bio" section). http://www.lancearmstrong.com/.
- ^ "Breaking Away: Lance Armstrong of the U.S. is the world cycling champ. Now he's eyeing a bigger prize". Sports Illustrated. July 4, 1994. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1005369/2/index.htm.
- ^ Samuel Abt (October 9, 1996). "Armstrong Acknowledges Cancer Battle". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1996/10/09/sports/armstrong-acknowledges-cancer-battle.html. Retrieved January 27, 2012.
- ^ a b c d e Lance Armstrong, Sally Jenkins: It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life (ISBN 0-425-17961-3), Putnam 2000.
- ^ "Scott A. Shapiro, MD Society of Neurosurgery Bio">http://www.societyns.org/society/bio.aspx?MemberID=12648
- ^ In his book "Every Second Counts" Armstrong casts doubt that Ullrich did, in fact, wait for him. He states that Ullrich only slowed when told to do so by other riders."Jan Ullrich wird zum "Ritter des Fair Play" (German for: Ullrich becomes "Knight of fairplay)". Fair play in Sports. http://www.sportunterricht.de/fairplay/janullrich03.html. Retrieved March 5, 2007.
- ^ http://www.dartford.gov.uk/tourdefrance/glossary.htm
- ^ http://velonews.competitor.com/2011/07/news/186088_186088
- ^ "Armstrong retires... – Event news". RoadCyclingUK. http://www.roadcyclinguk.com/event-news/armstrong-retires/576.html. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Associated Press via The Arizona Republic, "Lance Armstrong to return for 2009 Tour de France".
- ^ USATODAY, "Armstrong coming out of retirement for another Tour".
- ^ "Armstrong coming out of retirement for Tour". San Francisco Chronicle. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/09/08/sports/s124636D30.DTL. Retrieved July 17, 2010. [dead link]
- ^ "Lance Armstrong given the all clear from UCI for Tour Down Under comeback". London: The Telegraph. October 8, 2008. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/cycling/lancearmstrong/3160482/UCI-grant-Lance-Armstrong-the-all-clear-for-Tour-Down-Under-comeback-Cycling.html.
- ^ Migliaccio, Val; Kelton, Greg (September 25, 2008). "The 'king' rides Down Under". The Advertiser: p. 3. Archived from the original on November 14, 2009. http://www.webcitation.org/5lHTYvHjB. Retrieved November 15, 2009.
- ^ "Rome News – Tribune". News.mywebpal.com. http://news.mywebpal.com/partners/680/public/news930123.html. Retrieved July 17, 2010. [dead link]
- ^ "An audience with Lance Armstrong, one of the greats » The Roar – Your Sports Opinion". The Roar. January 18, 2009. http://www.theroar.com.au/2009/01/18/an-audience-with-lance-armstrong-one-of-the-greats/. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Sharwood, Anthony (February 2009). "Mad about Lance Armstrong". Alpha (43): pp. 38–41. http://www.alphamagazine.com.au/features/article/lance-armstrong/. Retrieved September 17, 2009. [dead link]
- ^ a b Walker, Jamie (January 17, 2009). "Conscience clear, cycling's god Lance Armstrong is ready for his second coming". The Weekend Australian. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/cyclings-god-ready-for-second-coming/story-e6frg7mo-1111118584865. Retrieved May 23, 2011.
- ^ "www.cyclingnews.com presents the 11th Tour Down Under". Autobus.cyclingnews.com. http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/road/2009/jan09/TDU09/?id=results/TDU096. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Kogoy, Peter (January 26, 2009). "What's in a name? For Lance, a lot". The Australian: p. 32. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/whats-in-a-name-for-lance-a-lot/story-e6frg6nf-1111118664694. Retrieved November 15, 2009.
- ^ "Police Recover Lance Armstrong's Stolen Bike – Local News | News Articles | National News | US News". Fox News. February 19, 2009. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,496264,00.html. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ "Armstrong's visit prompts mixed feelings – The Irish Times – Tue, Feb 24, 2009". The Irish Times. February 2, 2009. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2009/0224/1224241710775.html. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ "Lance Armstrong Skipping Critérium International And Flanders". BikeRadar. http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/lance-armstrong-skipping-critrium-international-and-flanders-20649. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ "Armstrong breaks his collarbone". BBC Sport. March 23, 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/7959765.stm. Retrieved March 23, 2009.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ [2][dead link]
- ^ "Armstrong to return from injury". BBC Sport. April 28, 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/8023662.stm. Retrieved April 28, 2009.
- ^ "Armstrong just misses Tour lead". BBC Sport. July 7, 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/8138996.stm. Retrieved July 7, 2009.
- ^ Macur, Juliet (July 21, 2009). "Armstrong Says He Will Return for 2010". NY Times Sport. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/22/sports/cycling/22tour.html?em. Retrieved July 22, 2009.
- ^ Ford, Bonnie (July 23, 2009). "Source: Lance's team lands sponsor". ESPN. http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/tdf2009/news/story?id=4349772. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
- ^ "Team RadioShack 2010". July 23, 2009. http://teamradioshack.com/getready/. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
- ^ Hood, Andrew (January 29, 2010). "VeloNews.com – Bruyneel confirms Armstrong will race classics". Velonews.competitor.com. http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/01/news/bruyneel-confirms-armstrong-will-race-classics_103190. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ "Lance Armstrong heading to local hospital after crash outside of Visalia". May 20, 2010. http://www.visaliatimesdelta.com/article/20100520/NEWS01/100520013/Lance-Armstrong-heading-to-local-hospital-after-crash-outside-of-Visalia. Retrieved May 20, 2010. [dead link]
- ^ "VeloNews.com – Lance Armstrong: "This will be my final Tour de France"". Velonews.competitor.com. June 28, 2010. http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/06/news/armstrong-this-will-be-my-final-tour_123714. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ "Contador wins Tour; Lance walks away". ESPN. July 25, 2010. http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/tdf2010/news/story?id=5408382. Retrieved July 25, 2010.
- ^ "Lance Armstrong au Tour Down Under" – cyclismactu du October 24, 2010. Retrieved October 24, 2010
- ^ Macur, Juliet (February 16, 2011). "Armstrong Retires From Cycling". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/17/sports/17armstrong.html. Retrieved February 16, 2011.
- ^ "How Fast Could Lance Armstrong Run a Marathon?". Runner's World. September 29, 2006. http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-243-297--10401-0,00.html. Retrieved February 23, 2009.
- ^ "FAQ: VO2 Max". Running for Fitness. http://www.runningforfitness.org/faq/vo2.php. Retrieved February 23, 2009.
- ^ "VO2 Max — a Measure of Athletic Fitness". BBC. January 22, 2002. http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A660223. Retrieved August 13, 2006.
- ^ The Lance Armstrong Performance Program ISBN 1-57954-270-0
- ^ Markoff, John (April 19, 2004). "New York Times: CYCLING; Overhauling Lance Armstrong". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F06E3DA113BF93AA25757C0A9629C8B63. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
- ^ "Cyclingnews.com: Armstrong's 'F-One' group plots the hour". Autobus.cyclingnews.com. http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2005/jan05/jan27news. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Ancestry of Lance Armstrong
- ^ Balf, Todd (July 1994). "I'm Not the Next Greg LeMond. I'm the First Lance Armstrong.". Outside Magazine. http://outsideonline.com/magazine/0794/947flanc_2.html. Retrieved January 9, 2008.
- ^ Ruibal, Sal (May 22, 2002). "Cancer survivor Armstrong accepts new role". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/sports/cycling/2002-05-22-cover-armstrong.htm. Retrieved January 9, 2008.
- ^ Lance Armstrong, Girlfriend, Expecting Baby in June CNN.com, December 23, 2008
- ^ Armstrong, Lance (June 4, 2009). "Wassup, world? My name is...". Twitter. http://twitter.com/lancearmstrong/status/2038590710. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
- ^ "Lance Armstrong Twitter Home Page". Twitter. June 11, 2010. http://twitter.com/lancearmstrong. Retrieved July 13, 2009.
- ^ http://twitter.com/#!/lancearmstrong/status/27710013616
- ^ "Armstrong attempts to quell dispute over Hill Country swimming hole". Associated Press. October 25, 2006. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20070930211635/http://www.dailytexanonline.com/media/storage/paper410/news/2006/10/25/StateLocal/Armstrong.Attempts.To.Quell.Dispute.Over.Hill.Country.Swimming.Hole-2400001.shtml?norewrite200610251211&sourcedomain=www.dailytexanonline.com. Retrieved October 25, 2006.
- ^ Lance Armstrong's book: It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life, published by G.P Putnam's Sons 2000. pp. 116–118
- ^ Roberts, Selena, and David Epstein, "The Case Against Lance Armstrong", Sports Illustrated, January 24, 2011, pp. 56–66.
- ^ Kimmage, Paul (June 29, 2008). "Countdown to the Tour de France Jonathan Vaughters and his drugsfree team". The Times (London). http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/more_sport/cycling/article4232249.ece. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
- ^ Kimmage, Paul (July 29, 2007). "They bust the addicts but the dealers ride on". The Times (London). http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/columnists/paul_kimmage/article2159415.ece. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
- ^ Whittle, Jeremy (July 1, 2004). "Armstrong rounds on critics over drugs storm". The Times (London). http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/article451832.ece. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
- ^ a b c Slot, Owen (February 17, 2009). "World in motion cycling divided by Paul Kimmage and Lance Armstrongs cancer row". The Times (London). http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/more_sport/article5750574.ece. Retrieved May 7, 2010.
- ^ "Le coup de blues de Christophe Bassons – l'Humanite". Humanite.fr. July 17, 1999. http://www.humanite.fr/1999-07-17_Sports_Le-coup-de-blues-de-Christophe-Bassons. Retrieved July 17, 2010. [dead link]
- ^ Cited, L'Équipe, July 17, 1999.
- ^ Kimmage, Paul. "Tour gears up for return of Lance Armstrong", The Sunday Times, July 5, 2009.
- ^ BBC News (March 5, 2004). "Pound Stunned By Attack". http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/cycling/3535573.stm. Retrieved August 12, 2006.
- ^ VeloNews Interactive, with wire services (2005). "L'Equipe alleges Armstrong samples show EPO use in 99 Tour". News & Features. Inside Communications. http://velonews.competitor.com/2005/08/tour-de-france/lequipe-alleges-armstrong-samples-show-epo-use-in-99-tour_8740. Retrieved July 26, 2006. - "Throughout his career only one test showed indications of the presence of doping products. In the 1999 Tour, a urine sample showed small traces of cortico-steroids. Armstrong was cleared, however, when his U.S. Postal team, produced a medical certificate showing that he used a cream to ease the pain of a saddle sore. Even that sample, however, was below the levels that would have triggered a positive result at the time."
- ^ Albergotti, Reed (April 8, 2009). "Lance to Drug Tester: Your Papers, Please". Wall Street Journal. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123915747307299985.html
- ^ "Armstrong outraged by French misbehaviour claims". Agence French Presse. April 7, 2009. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gpWQTJmkqpByIaAMzL_-ZAO8qiKg. Retrieved September 28, 2009
- ^ "Prosecutors close Armstrong inquiry, no charges". http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CYC_DOPING_ARMSTRONG. Retrieved February 3, 2012.
- ^ "Drugs issue refuses to go away due to winner's Ferrari links" The Guardian
- ^ "Disappointed Armstrong cuts ties with Ferrari after conviction" The Times
- ^ "www.cyclingnews.com – The World Centre of Cycling". Autobus.cyclingnews.com. http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2006/may06/may27news. Retrieved October 20, 2010.
- ^ Associated Press, "Lance has suspicious ties: source", Japan Times, April 17, 2011, p. 17.
- ^ BBC News (March 5, 2004). "Pound Stunned By Attack". http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/cycling/3535573.stm. Retrieved October 20, 2010.
- ^ Stop strong-arm tactics[dead link], The Scotsman, June 20, 2004
- ^ Juliet Macur (September 12, 2006). "2 Ex-Teammates of Cycling Star Admit Drug Use". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/12/sports/othersports/12cycling.html. Retrieved October 20, 2010.
- ^ "''The Guardian''". London: Sport.guardian.co.uk. July 1, 2006. http://sport.guardian.co.uk/tourdefrance2006/story/0,,1810152,00.html. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ William Fotheringham (July 26, 2005). "Armstrong faces legal marathon". London: Sport.guardian.co.uk. http://sport.guardian.co.uk/tourdefrance2005/story/0,,1536208,00.html. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Court brief, by Mike Anderson, March 31, 2005 – (warning: PDF-file, 2.8 MB)
- ^ Papers: Lance had steroid in home[dead link], The Austin American-Statesman, April 1, 2005
- ^ Armstrong asks Austin court to sanction his former assistant[dead link], The Austin American-Statesman, April 2, 2005
- ^ Lance Armstrong settles lawsuit with former assistant[dead link], The Austin American-Statesman, November 5, 2005
- ^ "L'EQUIPE.FR Cyclisme – CYCLISME – Affaire Armstrong". L'Équipe. France. http://www.lequipe.fr/Cyclisme/DOPAGE_ARMSTRONG.html. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Aug 23, 2005 (August 23, 2005). "AFP: No comment on Armstrong from US cycling, anti-doping groups". MyWire. http://www.mywire.com/pubs/AFP/2005/08/23/977278?&pbl=27. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ "Litke: Suspicion Remains Lance's Opponent"[dead link]
- ^ "Agency challenges Armstrong to have urine samples retested". ESPN. October 2, 2008. http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/cycling/news/story?id=3620228. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Slater, Matt (October 2, 2008). "Doping boss rues Armstrong stance". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/7648910.stm. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ a b "California Western Alumni Professional News". California Western School of Law. http://www.cwsl.edu/main/default.asp?nav=alumni.asp&body=alumni/AlumProfessionalNews.asp. Retrieved January 9, 2008.
- ^ a b c d "Independent Investigation — Analysis Samples from the 1999 Tour de France" (PDF). VeloNews. Scholten c.s. Advocaten. Archived from the original on December 1, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20071201220747/http://www.velonews.com/media/report1999.pdf. Retrieved January 9, 2008.
- ^ a b "Armstrong cleared in drug inquiry". BBC. May 31, 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/cycling/5033672.stm. Retrieved January 9, 2008.
- ^ a b "UCI report clears Armstrong". VeloNews. Associated Press. May 31, 2006. Archived from the original on December 30, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20071230103550/http://www.velonews.com/news/fea/9932.0.html. Retrieved January 9, 2008.
- ^ a b Max, Arthur (May 31, 2006). "Report Exonorates Armstrong of Doping". San Francisco Chronicle. Associated Press. Archived from the original on December 28, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20071228170310/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/05/31/sports/s045357D78.DTL&type=health. Retrieved January 9, 2008.
- ^ a b BBC "Wada boss slams Armstrong 'farce'". BBC. June 2, 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/cycling/5043260.stm BBC. Retrieved January 5, 2010. [dead link]
- ^ a b "Ex-Friends Say Armstrong Admitted Drug Use". Npr.org. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5508863. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Armstrong issues statement[dead link]
- ^ Papers charge Armstrong admitted doping[dead link]
- ^ recorded conversation, mp3 file
- ^ Abrahamson, Abrahamson (July 9, 2006). "Allegations Trail Armstrong Into Another Stage". Los Angeles Times. http://www.latimes.com/sports/cycling/la-sp-armstrong9jul09,0,5275381.story. Retrieved July 10, 2009. [dead link]
- ^ Evidence of a banned substance?[dead link]
- ^ Abrahamson, Alan (July 9, 2006). "Allegations Trail Armstrong Into Another Stage". Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/2006/jul/09/sports/sp-armstrong9?pg=4. Retrieved July 10, 2009.
- ^ Andy Shen (February 4, 2009). "Interviews – Michael Ashenden". Velocity Nation. http://velocitynation.com/content/interviews/2009/michael-ashenden. Retrieved June 24, 2009.
- ^ Hart, Simon (May 20, 2010). "Floyd Landis puts Lance Armstrong at the centre of new drug allegations". London: Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/cycling/lancearmstrong/7746819/Floyd-Landis-puts-Lance-Armstrong-at-the-centre-of-new-drug-allegations.html. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Peter Cossins (May 21, 2010). "Kimmage: Landis allegations will decide the sport’s future". Cyclingnews.com. http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/kimmage-landis-allegations-will-decide-the-sports-future.
- ^ Bonnie D. Ford (May 20, 2010). "Landis admits doping, accuses Lance". ESPN. http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/cycling/news/story?id=5203604. Retrieved May 21, 2010.
- ^ Stephen Farrand (July 10, 2010). "McQuaid reveals Armstrong made two donations to the UCI". Cyclingnews. http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/mcquaid-reveals-armstrong-made-two-donations-to-the-uci. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
- ^ "Floyd Landis Nightline Interview – ABC News". USA: ABC. http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/floyd-landis-nightline-interview/story?id=11226456&page=2. Retrieved October 3, 2010.
- ^ "International Cycling Union refutes Floyd Landis' claims about 2001 Tour de Suisse – ESPN". ESPN. May 25, 2010. http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/cycling/news/story?id=5218887. Retrieved October 3, 2010.
- ^ Associated Press, "Ex-teammate says Lance Armstrong injected EPO", Yahoo! News, May 20, 2011.
- ^ CBS Evening News, May 20, 2011.
- ^ Associated Press, "Report says Hincapie told feds Armstrong used PEDs", Japan Times, May 22, 2011, p. 16.
- ^ Ex-teammate: I saw Lance Armstrong inject EPO – Page 6, CBS News, May 20, 2011
- ^ Risling, Greg, "Armstrong's lawyers want apology from '60 Minutes'", Yahoo! News, June 1, 2011.
- ^ Tim Maloy, "[3]", The Wrap, June 1, 2011.
- ^ Frieden, Terry, "Prosecutors drop Lance Armstrong doping investigation", CNN, February 3, 2012.
- ^ "The possibility of tampering". Velocitynation.com. http://velocitynation.com/content/interviews/2009/michael-ashenden. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Frederix, Emily and Liedtke, Michael (Aug. 8, 2010) "Scandal could impact Lance Armstrong's foundation". stltoday.com http://www.stltoday.com/sports/other/article_a1309459-b5e2-5bf4-b307-977e9da3506f.html
- ^ "Athletes for Hope". Athletes for Hope. http://www.athletesforhope.org/. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Binkley, Collin. "Cyclists hit the streets for second Pelotonia Tour". The Columbus Dispatch. http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2010/08/21/pelotonia-2010.html. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
- ^ "Lance Armstrong: A Classic Case of Too Much, Too Soon?". TheFinalSprint.com. January 7, 2007. http://www.thefinalsprint.com/2007/01/a-classic-case-of-too-much-too-soon/. Retrieved September 28, 2009.
- ^ "Watch the NYC Marathon ONLINE — Live or OnDemand!". TheFinalSprint.com. November 2, 2006. http://www.thefinalsprint.com/2006/11/watch-the-nyc-marathon-online-live-or-ondemand/. Retrieved September 28, 2009.
- ^ Jud Santos (October 10, 2007). "Results – The ING New York City Marathon". Web.archive.org. Archived from the original on October 10, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20071010035518/http://www.nycmarathon.org/results/index.php. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ Search – ContraCostaTimes.com[dead link]
- ^ "Docherty steals victory from Lance Armstrong". The New Zealand Herald. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=10785234. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
- ^ "Lance Armstrong". ironman.com. http://tracking.ironmanlive.com/newathlete.php?rid=1143239874&race=/events/ironman70.3/panama70.3/&bib=24&beta=. Retrieved February 12, 2010.
- ^ "Lance Armstrong surrenders lead, finishes seventh in Memorial Hermann Ironman 70.3 Texas triathlon". The Houston Chronicle. http://www.chron.com/sports/cycling/article/Lance-Armstrong-surrenders-lead-finishes-seventh-3451071.php. Retrieved April 3, 2012.
- ^ "Potts And Naeth Win Ironman 70.3 St. Croix, Armstrong Third". Triathlete.com. http://triathlon.competitor.com/2012/05/news/potts-wins-ironman-70-3-st-croix-armstrong-third_52960. Retrieved May 6, 2012.
- ^ "Lance Armstrong wins Ironman 70.3 in Florida". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/sports/cycling/story/2012-05-20/lance-armstrong-wins-triathlon/55094568/1. Retrieved May 20, 2012.
- ^ "Lance Armstrong to be an Ironman". The Sun. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/other_sports/triathlon/4122271/Lance-Armstrong-to-be-an-Ironman.html. Retrieved February 10, 2012.
- ^ "Breaking Away". Outside Magazine. July 2005. http://outsideonline.com/outside/features/200507/lance-armstrong-interview-3.html. Retrieved January 9, 2008.
- ^ Baldwin, Tom (August 18, 2005). "Can this bike ride be Bush's tour de force?". The Times (UK). http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,11069-1739689,00.html. Retrieved January 9, 2008.
- ^ Peter Beaumont and Paul Webster in Paris (July 6, 2003). "Serena got the message, now it's Lance's turn as French cheers become jeers for US stars". The Observer (London). http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,6903,992329,00.html. Retrieved July 17, 2010.
- ^ [4][dead link]
- ^ [5]
- ^ [6]
- ^ "President Announces Delegation to Winter Olympics" (Press release). The White House. February 8, 2002. http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2002/02/20020208.html. Retrieved September 22, 2007.
- ^ "Previous William Hill Sportsbook of the Year Winners". William Hill Press Office. http://www.williamhillmedia.com/sportsbook_history.asp#2000. Retrieved March 3, 2007. "2000 Winner: It's Not About The Bike — Lance Armstrong"
Further reading[link]
- Lance Armstrong, Sally Jenkins: It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life (ISBN 0-425-17961-3), Putnam 2000. Armstrong's own account of his battle with cancer and subsequent triumphant return to bike racing.
- Lance Armstrong, Sally Jenkins: Every Second Counts (ISBN 0-385-50871-9), Broadway Books 2003. Armstrong's account of his life after his first four Tour triumphs.
- Linda Armstrong Kelly, Joni Rodgers: No Mountain High Enough: Raising Lance, Raising Me (ISBN 0-7679-1855-X), Broadway Books 2002. Armstrong's mother's account of raising a world class athlete and overcoming adversity.
- Daniel Coyle: Lance Armstrong's War: One Man's Battle Against Fate, Fame, Love, Death, Scandal, and a Few Other Rivals on the Road to the Tour De France (ISBN 0-06-073497-3), Harper Collins 2005. Former writer for Outside magazine documents Armstrong's road to the Tour in 2004, teaching us about both Armstrong and the Tour.
- Pierre Ballester, David Walsh: L. A. Confidentiel: Les secrets de Lance Armstrong (ISBN 2-84675-130-7), La Martinière (French). Various circumstantial evidence pointing to Armstrong doping.
- Pierre Ballester, David Walsh: L.A. Officiel (ISBN 2-84675-204-4), La Martinière (French). Why Armstrong gave up trial against the authors after publication of L.A. Confidentiel.
- Sharon Cook, Graciela Sholander: Dream It Do It: Inspiring Stories of Dreams Come True (ISBN 1-884587-30-5), Planning/Communications 2004. Chapter 4 details Armstrong's efforts to return to championship form following his cancer treatment.
- John Wilcockson: 23 Days in July (ISBN 0-7195-6717-3), John Murray 2004. An account of how Armstrong won his 6th Tour title in 2004.
- John Wilcockson: The 2005 Tour De France: The Last Chapter of the Armstrong Era (ISBN 1-931382-68-9), Velo Press 2005. The story behind Armstrong's final Tour de France before his first retirement and his 7th consecutive victory.
- John Wilcokson: LANCE: The Making of the World's Greatest Champion (ISBN 9780306815874), Da Capo Press 2009. The story of what drives the 7-time Tour de France champion through the words of Armstrong's family, friends, rivals, and Armstrong himself. [7]
External links[link]
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Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Lance Armstrong |
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Lance Armstrong |
- Official website
- The Lance Armstrong Foundation
- Lance Armstrong profile at Cycling Archives
- Lance Armstrong at the Internet Movie Database
- Lance Armstrong on Twitter
- Team RadioShack
- Lance Armstrong Profile on Versus
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
Preceded by Marco Pantani |
Vélo d'Or 1999–2001 |
Succeeded by Mario Cipollini |
Preceded by Derek Birley |
William Hill Sports Book of the Year winner 2000 |
Succeeded by Laura Hillenbrand |
| Preceded by Mario Cipollini |
Vélo d'Or 2003, 2004 |
Succeeded by Tom Boonen |
| Preceded by Jonny Mosely Rulon Gardner |
USOC Sportsman of the Year 1999 2001–2003 |
Succeeded by Rulon Gardner Michael Phelps |
Preceded by Steffi Graf |
Prince of Asturias Award for Sports 2000 |
Succeeded by Manuel Estiarte |
UCI Road World Champions –
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| Persondata | |
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| Name | Armstrong, Lance Edward |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | American professional road racing cyclist |
| Date of birth | September 18, 1971 |
| Place of birth | Dallas, Texas |
| Date of death | |
| Place of death | |
http://wn.com/Lance_Armstrong
Related pages:
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http://cs.wn.com/Lance Armstrong
http://es.wn.com/Lance Armstrong
http://ru.wn.com/Армстронг, Лэнс
http://id.wn.com/Lance Armstrong
http://pl.wn.com/Lance Armstrong
http://fr.wn.com/Lance Armstrong
http://de.wn.com/Lance Armstrong
http://pt.wn.com/Lance Armstrong
http://nl.wn.com/Lance Armstrong
This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lance_Armstrong
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This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.
 Bradley Wiggins in 2011 |
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| Full name | Bradley Marc Wiggins | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname | Wiggo | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1980-04-28) 28 April 1980 (age 32) Ghent, Belgium |
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| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 69 kg (150 lb; 10.9 st) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Current team | Team Sky | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Discipline | Road & Track | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Rider | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rider type | GC Contender (Road) and Pursuitist (Track) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 2001 2002–2003 2004–2005 2006–2007 2008 2009 2010– |
Linda McCartney Racing Team Française des Jeux Crédit Agricole Cofidis Team High Road Garmin-Slipstream Team Sky |
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Bradley Marc Wiggins, CBE (born 28 April 1980) is a British professional track and road bicycle racer, currently riding for Team Sky. Wiggins' career began on the track, where he specialised in the pursuit and madison disciplines.
He won a bronze medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics, three further medals at the Athens 2004 Summer Olympics, and two golds at the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics. In road cycling he turned professional in 2002, but his involvement was limited by his track cycling until 2007.
After the 2008 Olympics Wiggins took a break from the track to focus on the road. Initially viewed as a time-trial specialist and a rouleur, Wiggins showed his ability in stage races when he came in fourth at the 2009 Tour de France, the joint highest placed finish by a British rider in Tour history. In 2010 he was hired as the leader for the new Team Sky, and later that year was inducted in to the London Youth Games Hall of Fame. To date his biggest wins have been the 2011 Critérium du Dauphiné – the first British rider to win the race since 1990 – and the 2012 Paris–Nice, the first British winner of the race in 45 years. Wiggins finished 3rd in the 2011 Vuelta a España, becoming one of three British riders to make the podium in a Grand Tour. Ten days later, Wiggins won the silver medal in the Time Trial at the World Road Cycling Championships in Copenhagen, Denmark. Wiggins was part of the Great Britain team that helped Mark Cavendish win the 2011 UCI World Road Race Championship.
Contents |
Early years and family life[link]
The son of a professional cyclist, Gary Wiggins, Bradley Wiggins was born in Ghent, Belgium and spent his childhood in London with his mother Linda, stepfather Brendon and younger brother, Ryan. He started racing at south London's Herne Hill Velodrome aged 12, and represented Camden in the London Youth Games as a youngster. In 2010 he was inducted in to the London Youth Games Hall of Fame.[2] [3] He lives in Eccleston, Lancashire. He married his wife Catherine in Manchester in November 2004 and has two children, Ben and Isabella.[4] Wiggins is a well-known mod,[5][6] and owns a collection of classic scooters and guitars from the 1960s and 1970s.[7] In April 2012 it was announced Wiggins would collaborate with Fred Perry "to develop an authentic, non technical range of off cycle wear".[8]
Career[link]
At 20, Wiggins won a bronze medal for Britain in the team pursuit at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.
In 2001 he signed for the British professional road Linda McCartney Racing Team before it disbanded in early 2001.[9] He joined Française des Jeux in 2002, before moving to Crédit Agricole in 2004.
At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Wiggins became the first British athlete in 40 years to win three medals at one Games, the last being Mary Rand at the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo. He won the gold in the pursuit, silver in the team pursuit, and bronze in the madison with his race partner Rob Hayles. Wiggins was appointed OBE in the 2005 New Year Honours for services to sport.[9]
In 2005, Wiggins rode Giro d'Italia for Crédit Agricole. He moved to Cofidis in 2006, and rode that year's Tour de France. He returned to the track for the Manchester round of the UCI World Cup and the world championships in 2007, winning the individual and team pursuit. He followed on the road by winning the prologue of the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré.
He raced for Cofidis in the 2007 Tour de France and finished fourth in the prologue in London. He won the combativity award on stage six for a long solo breakaway. Cofidis withdrew after Cristian Moreni failed a doping test.[10]
2008[link]
In 2008 he signed with Team High Road, a team later known as HTC-Highroad. At the 2008 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Manchester, he won three gold medals: pursuit, team pursuit and madison.
At the 2008 Beijing Olympics he again won the pursuit, the first rider to successfully defend a pursuit title at the Olympics. On 17 August, he was a member of the Olympic pursuit team which broke the world record in the heats with 3:55:202, beating Russia to the ride-off for silver and gold.[11] The following day, the team won the gold with a world record of 3:53:314, beating Denmark by 6.7s.[12] Wiggins paired up with Mark Cavendish in the madison and finished ninth.[13]
In October 2008 he published his autobiography, In Pursuit of Glory[14] and joined the Garmin-Slipstream team for the 2009 season.[15]
On 14 December 2008 Wiggins came ninth in the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award with 5,633 votes.[16] On 31 December Wiggins was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2009 New Year Honours.[17]
2009[link]
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After finishing the 2009 Giro d'Italia 71st, which included second place in the final stage, Wiggins arrived at the 2009 Tour de France having lost six kilos.[18][19] He came third in the opening time-trial in Monaco and helped Garmin to second place in the team time-trial despite losing four riders. In the first mountain finish, Wiggins finished 12th, and at 5th place overall entering the second week, had the highest second-week place by a British rider since Robert Millar. On the second mountain finish, in Verbier, Wiggins finished fifth to climb to third overall. He was attacked by the Schleck brothers on stage 17 and dropped to sixth, but moved to fourth in the stage 18 time-trial. On stage 20 to Mont Ventoux, Wiggins finished tenth and held fourth by three seconds ahead of Frank Schleck. He held that position in the final stage, equalling Robert Millar's highest ever finish by a British rider in the Tour.[20]
Wiggins won the British National Time Trial Championships in September 2009.[21]
In October 2009, he won the Herald Sun Tour after helping team-mates most of the race. He led after winning the stage five time-trial in Geelong by 14 seconds over team-mate Svein Tuft.
Wiggins had been contracted to ride for Garmin Slipstream in 2010, but following much speculation it was announced in December 2009 that he was to leave to join Team Sky, having signed a four year contract with the new British based team.[22]
2010[link]
Wiggins began 2010 as a team leader for the first time. He was part of the team who won the team time trial on stage one of the 2010 Tour of Qatar. On May 10, he took his first major win of the year, in the opening time trial[23] of the Giro d'Italia and took the maglia rosa leader's jersey. It was his first win at a Grand Tour. He lost the jersey on stage 2 to Cadel Evans following a crash-marred stage.[24] He lost further time early on in the Giro, but recovered much of it on stage 11, in which he finished fourth. He faded quickly towards the end of the race, however, losing a lot of time over the final stages to finish 40th.
Wiggins entered the 2010 Tour de France with high expectations following his 4th place the year before. His Tour got off to a disappointing start however, when he could only manage 77th place in the opening prologue, after an early starting position left him exposed to poor conditions.[25] Wiggins finished 8th on Stage 3, as cobblestones caught out a number of favourites.[26] However, in Stage 8 (the first mountain summit finish of the Tour), Wiggins could only manage 19th place, losing 1 minute 45 seconds to stage winner Andy Schleck.[27] Wiggins lost even more time the next day, on Stage 9, where he came 30th (losing 4 minutes 55 to the main contenders),[28] which effectively ended hopes of a top 10 finish. He finished the Tour in 24th place, 39 minutes 24 seconds behind winner Alberto Contador, and 7 places behind team-mate Thomas Löfkvist. Contador was later found guilty of doping and the title of 2010 Tour De France winner was passed to second placed Andy Schleck. [29]
Wiggins retained the British national time trial title at the National Championships.[30]
2011[link]
Wiggins was again team leader of Sky entering 2011. He opted against entering the 2011 Giro d'Italia, concentrating instead on shorter events and the classics, before undertaking altitude training to improve his climbing for the Tour de France.[31] Wiggins finished 3rd overall in Paris-Nice after finishing 2nd in Stage 6.[32] In March, he finished 2nd on the TT Stage 3 of the Critérium International. Wiggins won the ITT Stage 4 of Bayern-Rundfahrt, and finished the event in 14th place overall (and helping team-mate Geraint Thomas to win the event),[33] before heading off for altitude training in preparation for the Tour de France. He took the overall lead of the Critérium du Dauphiné after finishing 2nd on the ITT Stage 3.[34] On the final three mountain stages Wiggins was able to maintain his lead over second placed Cadel Evans (who would go on to win the Tour de France) to win Dauphiné, his biggest victory in road racing.[35] On 26 June, Wiggins won the British National Road Race Championships,[36] his final race before the Tour de France. On 8 July, he crashed out of the 2011 Tour de France on stage 7 with a broken collarbone.[37]
Following recovery from his injuries, it was confirmed by Team Sky that Wiggins would ride Vuelta a España for the first time,[38] as well as the World Time Trial Championships. Wiggins also confirmed he would ride the 2012 Tour de France, despite the London Olympics coming soon after, and the Vuelta/ Time Trial Championships was seen as a dress-rehearsal for 2012.[39]
Wiggins had a difficult start to the Vuelta as Sky finished 42 seconds back on the opening Team Time Trial in Benidorm.[40] However, a strong first week brought Wiggins back into contention, leaving him 19th overall after Stage 8.[41] On Stage 9, Wiggins and teammate Chris Froome attacked on the final climb to finish 4th and 5th respectively, and taking time out of Joaquim Rodríguez, Michele Scarponi and other contenders.[42] The stage moved both riders up in the standings, and Wiggins was expected to take the overall lead on the time trial the following day. However, Froome sprung a major surprise, finishing second on the stage, taking the red jersey for himself, whilst Wiggins rose to third overall.[43] Wiggins took the leaders jersey, after the rest day. After losing a few seconds to Vincenzo Nibali on the following days, Stage 14 saw Wiggins and Froome taking time out of most of their rivals, with Nibali losing over a minute.[44] Wiggins lost the lead of the Vuelta to Juan José Cobo on Stage 15, where he finished 5th on the climb up the Angliru.[45] The Stage saw Wiggins drop to 3rd in the standings, with Froome ahead in second. Wiggins finished the Vuelta in 3rd overall, his first grand tour podium.[46]
In September, Wiggins finished second behind Tony Martin in the UCI Road World Championship Time Trial to take the silver medal.[47] Four days later, Wiggins was part of the Great Britain team that set up Mark Cavendish's victory in the Road Race.[48]
2012[link]
Although 2012 is an Olympic year, Wiggins' focus remains on road racing. The individual pursuit is no longer an Olympic event, and in December 2011 coach Rod Ellingworth told The Guardian, "The chances of him doing the team pursuit are really slim now". [49] Wiggins is more likely to compete in the Olympic Road Race and Time Trial. Wiggins began his 2012 season with third place in the Volta ao Algarve, including victory in the race-concluding individual time trial, edging out world champion Tony Martin by less than a second.[50] Wiggins also helped with team-mate Richie Porte's successful bid to win the race overall. In March, Wiggins finished second to Vacansoleil-DCM's Gustav Larsson in the opening time trial of Paris–Nice, despite setting his time in wet conditions. The following day he took the lead of the race after being part of a 30-man breakaway as the peloton split into echelons. He held the lead for the rest of the race, winning the final stage, a time-trial on the Col d'Èze,[51] despite a strong challenge from Dutch rider Lieuwe Westra, of the Vacansoleil-DCM team. Starting the final 9.6 km (6.0 mi) stage with a 6-second lead, Wiggins beat Westra's time by two seconds, to win the race by eight seconds overall, becoming the first British rider to win the race since Tom Simpson in 1967.[52] His final stage victory was also good enough to give him the points classification ahead of Alejandro Valverde.[53]
On Stage 1 of the Tour de Romandie in April, Wiggins took a rare sprint victory from a group of 59 riders to take the race lead.[54] He lost the jersey to Luis León Sánchez after the Spaniard won two consecutive stages.[55] However, Wiggins won the final time trial, despite suffering a dropped chain, to take overall victory.[56] He is the first British rider to win the event.
Palmarès[link]
Olympic Games[link]
- 2000 Summer Olympics
Bronze, team pursuit- 2004 Summer Olympics
Gold, 4km individual pursuit
Silver, team pursuit- Bronze, madison
- 2008 Summer Olympics
- Gold, 4km individual pursuit
- Gold, team pursuit
World Championships[link]
- 1997 UCI Junior Track Cycling World Championships
Gold, 2km individual pursuit- 2000 UCI Track Cycling World Championships
Silver, team pursuit- 2001 UCI Track Cycling World Championships
- Silver, team pursuit
- 2002 UCI Track Cycling World Championships
Bronze, team pursuit- 2003 UCI Track Cycling World Championships
- Gold, 4km individual pursuit
- Silver, team pursuit
- 2007 UCI Track Cycling World Championships
- Gold, 4km individual pursuit
- Gold, team pursuit
- 2008 UCI Track Cycling World Championships
- Gold, 4km individual pursuit
- Gold, Team pursuit (world record time)
- Gold, madison
- 2011 UCI Road World Championships
- Silver, individual time trial
Commonwealth Games[link]
- 2002 Commonwealth Games
- Silver, 4km individual pursuit
- Silver, team pursuit
- 1998 Commonwealth Games
- Silver, team pursuit
Professional cycling – major achievements[link]
- 2003
- 1st Stage 1 ITT, Tour de l'Avenir
- 1st Six Days of Ghent
- 2005
- 1st Stage 2 ITT, Circuit de Lorraine
- 1st Stage 8 Tour de l'Avenir
- 2007
- 1st Prologue Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré
- 1st Stage 1 ITT Four Days of Dunkirk
- 1st Stage 4 ITT Tour du Poitou-Charentes et de la Vienne
- 1st Duo Normand
- Combativity award
Stage 6, Tour de France - 2009
- 1st
British National Time Trial Championships - 1st Overall Herald Sun Tour
- 1st Stage 5 ITT
- 1st Stage 1 TTT, Tour of Qatar
- 1st Stage 3b ITT, Driedaagse De Panne-Koksijde
- 1st Beaumont Trophy
- 4th Overall 2009 Tour de France
- 2010
- 1st British National Time Trial Championships
- 1st Stage 1 TTT Tour of Qatar
- 1st Stage 1 ITT Giro d'Italia
- Held Maglia Rosa
for Stage 1
- Held Maglia Rosa
- 2011
- 1st British National Road Race Championships
- 1st Overall
Critérium du Dauphiné - 1st Stage 4 Bayern-Rundfahrt
- 2nd UCI Road World Championship Time Trial
- 3rd Overall Paris–Nice
- 3rd Overall Vuelta a España
- Held Red Jersey
from Stage 11–15
- Held Red Jersey
- 2012
- 1st Overall
Paris-Nice
- 1st
Points classification - 1st Stage 8 ITT
- 1st
- 1st Overall Tour de Romandie
- 1st Stage 1
- 1st Stage 5 ITT
- 3rd Overall Volta ao Algarve
- 1st Stage 5 ITT
Grand Tour General Classification results timeline[link]
| Grand Tour | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Giro |
123 | - | - | 134 | 71 | 40 | - |
| Tour |
- | 124 | WD | - | 4 | 24 | WD |
| Vuelta |
- | - | - | - | - | - | 3 |
WD = withdrew
World records[link]
- 4000m Team Pursuit, 3:55:202, (as part of Great British team), Beijing China, 2008
- 4000m Team Pursuit, 3:53:314, (as part of Great British team), Beijing China, 2008
Other achievements[link]
-
- Hall of Fame member (Class of 2010)[57]
Quotes[link]
- "Most people were too drunk to notice me." On his experiences of late-night practice runs for the London leg of the Tour de France.[58]
- "It is nice to be recognised for actually achieving something in life as opposed to spending seven weeks in a house on TV with a load of other muppets." A reference to the television programme, Big Brother, after finishing fourth in the Tour de France prologue.[59]
- "I think that when you sit back and look at the season and see what has happened, I think you reflect on it with a bit of happiness, but when you finish third, you haven't won and we live for winning unfortunately." On finishing third in the 2011 Vuelta a España.[60]
References[link]
- ^ "Athlete Biography – WIGGINS Bradley". Beijing Olympics official website. http://results.beijing2008.cn/WRM/ENG/BIO/Athlete/8/225168.shtml.
- ^ Wiggins, Bradley (8 April 2007). "Sport blog: Looking down from Herne Hill, I can see the future is bright". London: Guardian Unlimited. http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2007/04/08/looking_down_from_herne_hill_i.html. Retrieved 26 April 2010.
- ^ "Sports stars celebrate London Youth Games". London: Department for Culture, Media and Sport. http://www.culture.gov.uk/news/news_stories/7414.aspx. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
- ^ Mike Pattenden (2008-08-24). "On the move: Bradley Wiggins". London: The Sunday Times. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/men/article4588225.ece. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
- ^ http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blog/blazin-saddles/article/2742/wiggins-on-the-rise/
- ^ Speck, Ivan (18 August 2008). "Stylish modfather Wiggins is on the trail of Olympic legend Steve Redgrave". Daily Mail (London). http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/olympics/article-1046602/Stylish-modfather-Wiggins-trail-Olympic-legend-Steve-Redgrave.html.
- ^ Lewis, Tim (26 October 2008). "My obsessions: Bradley Wiggins". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2008/oct/26/cycling-bradley-wiggins.
- ^ http://www.fredperry.com/blog/post/2012/04/11/bradley-wiggins-for-fred-perry
- ^ a b "Wiggins wheels his way to history". BBC SPORT. 31 December 2004. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/front_page/4135289.stm.
- ^ "Wiggins' Cofidis team out of Tour". BBC SPORT. 25 July 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/cycling/6916422.stm.
- ^ "GB pursuit team set world record". BBC Sport. 17 August 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/olympics/cycling/7566164.stm.
- ^ "GB storm to gold in team pursuit". BBC Sport. 18 August 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/olympics/cycling/7567845.stm.
- ^ "Official Results". Beijing 2008. 20 July 2009. http://results.beijing2008.cn/WRM/ENG/INF/CT/C73H/CTM409100.shtml#CTM409101.
- ^ "In Pursuit of Glory". Orion Books. http://www.orionbooks.co.uk/HB-43193/In-Pursuit-of-Glory.htm.
- ^ "BRADLEY WIGGINS SET TO JOIN GARMIN-CHIPOTLE". Cycling Weekly. http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/Bradley_Wiggins_set_to_join_GarminChipotle_article_266739.html.
- ^ "Sports Personality – The Full Results". Cycling Weekly. 2008-12-15. http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/Sports_personality_the_full_results_article_273946.html.
- ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 58929. p. 8. 31 December 2008.
- ^ "Wiggins stays with leaders in Tour de France". Cycling Weekly. 12 July 2009. http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/382663/wiggins-stays-with-leaders-in-tour-de-france.html.
- ^ Macur, Juliet (15 July 2009). "Wiggins Erases the Bitterness of 2007 Tour". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/16/sports/cycling/16tour.html. Retrieved 26 April 2010.
- ^ Robert Millar came fourth in 1984
- ^ "Wiggins and Pooley take British TT Champs titles". Cycling Weekly. 2009-09-06. http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/395970/wiggins-and-pooley-take-british-tt-champs-titles.html.
- ^ William Fotheringham (2009-12-10). "Bradley Wiggins joins Team Sky on four-year-deal". London: The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2009/dec/10/bradley-wiggins-team-sky-transfer.
- ^ http://velonews.competitor.com/?p=114776
- ^ http://velonews.competitor.com/?p=114784
- ^ http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/475500/team-sky-s-decision-to-put-wiggins-off-early-back-fires.html 15-07-2011 10:29 UTC
- ^ http://www.bikeworldnews.com/2010/07/06/2010-tour-de-france-stage-3-results/ 15-07-2011 10:31 UTC
- ^ http://www.bikeworldnews.com/2010/07/11/2010-tour-de-france-stage-8-results/ 15-07-2011 10:33 UTC
- ^ http://www.roadcycling.com/articles/2010-Tour-de-France-Results---Stage-9_003716.shtml 15-07-2011 10:52 UTC
- ^ http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/07/news/2010-tour-de-france-stage-20-results_123035#gc 15-07-2011 10:53 UTC
- ^ http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/wiggins-and-pooley-win-british-time-trial-championships-27634/ 15-07-2011 10:34 UTC
- ^ http://www.velonation.com/News/ID/6262/Bradley-Wiggins-plans-new-structure-to-2011-season-in-preparing-for-Tour-de-France.aspx
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/cycling/9423659.stm 15-07-2011 10:38 UTC
- ^ http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/527271/thomas-wins-bayern-rundfahrt-overall.html 15-07-2011 10:41 UTC
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cycling/13702632.stm 15-07-2011 10:42 UTC
- ^ Fotheringham, Alasdair (13 June 2011). The Independent (London). http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/others/cycling-wiggins-seals-dauphin233-triumph-2296798.html.
- ^ http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,15264_7006262,00.html 27-6-2011 09:00 BST
- ^ "Tour de France: Wiggins crashes out, Cavendish wins stage". BBC Sport. 8 July 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cycling/14086677.stm. Retrieved 9 July 2011.
- ^ http://www.teamsky.com/article/0,27290,17546_7063928,00.html
- ^ Fotheringham, Alasdair (27 July 2011). The Independent (London). http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/general/others/cycling-wiggins-set-to-put-tour-before-olympic-hopes-2326362.html.
- ^ "Sky struggle in first Spain stage". BBC News. 20 August 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cycling/14604867.stm.
- ^ http://www.roadcycling.com/articles/2011-Vuelta-a-Espana-Results---Stage-8_004566.shtml
- ^ http://www.dailypeloton.com/displayarticle.asp?pk=19257
- ^ http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/29082011/58/vuelta-espa-froome-red-martin-takes-itt.html
- ^ Vuelta-a-Espana-stage-14-Bradley-Wiggins-tightens-grip-on-overall-lead-after-Rein-Taaramae-wins-on-mountain-top
- ^ Fotheringham, William (4 September 2011). "Bradley Wiggins of Team Sky loses lead on stage 15 of Vuelta a España". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/sep/04/team-sky-bradley-wiggins-vuelta-a-espana.
- ^ http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/530034/froome-and-wiggins-finish-on-vuelta-podium.html
- ^ http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/21092011/58/martin-beats-wiggins-itt-gold.html 21 September 2011 16:06 BST
- ^ Williams, Ollie (25 September 2011). "World Road Cycling: Mark Cavendish and Britain win road race title". BBC Sport. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cycling/15052681.stm. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
- ^ "Bradley Wiggins unlikely to defend team pursuit gold at London 2012". \The Guardian. 02 December 2011. http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/dec/02/bradley-wiggins-pursuit-london-2012?newsfeed=true.
- ^ "Wiggins wins TT, Porte wins GC". Yahoo! Eurosport (TF1 Group). 19 February 2012. http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/19022012/58/wiggins-wins-tt-porte-wins-gc.html. Retrieved 19 February 2012.
- ^ "Bradley Wiggins wins Paris-Nice". The Guardian. Reuters (Guardian Media Group). 11 March 2012. http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/mar/11/bradley-wiggins-wins-paris-nice. Retrieved 11 March 2012.
- ^ "Wiggins first British Paris-Nice victor in 45 years". Google News. Agence France-Presse (Google Inc.). 11 March 2012. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5g2d5cWgh13mqXsrTriLzfcEYosxw?docId=CNG.084ad1a5035dbc689c847bd432bb002a.6e1. Retrieved 11 March 2012.
- ^ "Wiggins not so easy on Eze". Paris–Nice (Amaury Sport Organisation). 11 March 2012. http://www.letour.fr/2012/PNC/LIVE/us/800/journal_etape.html. Retrieved 11 March 2012.
- ^ "Bradley Wiggins wins stage and takes Tour de Romandie lead". BBC Sport. BBC. 25 April 2012. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/17847697. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
- ^ Bull, Nick (28 April 2012). "Sanchez wins again to snatch Romandie yellow". Cycling Weekly. http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/532616/sanchez-wins-again-to-snatch-romandie-yellow.html. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
- ^ "Bradley Wiggins wins Tour de Romandie for Team Sky". BBC Sport. BBC. 29 April 2012. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/17886856. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
- ^ "Sports stars celebrate London Youth Games". London: Department for Culture, Media and Sport. http://www.culture.gov.uk/news/news_stories/7414.aspx. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
- ^ "Quotes of the Week". BBC News. 2007-07-17. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/funny_old_game/6900962.stm.
- ^ "Fun and Games:Quotes of the Week". BBC News. 17 July 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/funny_old_game/6900962.stm.
- ^ "Chris Froome of Britain takes second as Juan Jose Cobo wins Vuelta". BBC News. 11 September 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cycling/14871144.stm.
External links[link]
|
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bradley Wiggins |
|
|||||
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| Name | Wiggins, Bradley |
| Alternative names | Wiggins OBE, Bradley |
| Short description | Racing cyclist |
| Date of birth | 1980-04-28 |
| Place of birth | Ghent, Belgium |
| Date of death | |
| Place of death | |
http://wn.com/Bradley_Wiggins
Related pages:
http://it.wn.com/Bradley Wiggins
http://cs.wn.com/Bradley Wiggins
http://es.wn.com/Bradley Wiggins
http://ru.wn.com/Уиггинс, Брэдли
http://nl.wn.com/Bradley Wiggins
http://pl.wn.com/Bradley Wiggins
http://fr.wn.com/Bradley Wiggins
http://de.wn.com/Bradley Wiggins
http://pt.wn.com/Bradley Wiggins
This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bradley_Wiggins
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.
| Phil Liggett MBE |
|
|---|---|
 Commentating at the 2010 Bay Cycling Classic |
|
| Born | (1943-08-11) 11 August 1943 (age 68) Bebington, Merseyside, England |
| Residence | Bayford, Hertfordshire, and South Africa |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Cycling commentator and journalist; also commentates on events such as snow-sports and triathlon[1] |
| Years active | 1967–present |
| Employer | ITV (Britain) NBC Sports(US) SBS (Australia) |
| Style | Play-by-play |
| Television | Tour de France Summer Olympics Winter Olympics World Championships |
Phil Liggett, MBE (born 11 August 1943) is a British commentator and journalist who covers professional cycling. He currently commentates on the Tour de France and bike races for NBC Sports, ITV and SBS. He is a former amateur cyclist and received a professional contract in 1967; instead of turning professional, he saw a future in sports journalism after writing articles in cycling magazines about races in which he participated.[2]
Contents |
Journalism work[link]
Liggett initially wrote for Cycling magazine, and moved on to do freelance work for The Guardian,The Daily Telegraph and The Observer. In 1997, he was appointed Cycle Sport magazine's international editor. He has also written books on cycle racing.[3]
Liggett has reported on 13 Olympics and 38 Tours de France, generally alongside former cyclist Paul Sherwen. Liggett has covered other sports including triathlons and ski jumping. Because of his varied assignments, Liggett has worked for all of the American Big Three networks: ABC, CBS, and NBC.[4]
Outside of American broadcasting, Liggett has been associated with Australian network SBS covering Australian events such as the Tour Down Under. In 2010, he covered Johannesburg's 94.7 Cycle Challenge for South Africa's SuperSport.[5]
Liggett is known for colorful expressions about riders or racing conditions with often literary overtones. A collection of these "Liggettisms" was published in 2005.[6]
Involvement in the cycling world[link]
Between 1972 and 1993, Liggett was technical director of the Milk Race. His involvement with organizing cycle racing events led to his becoming vice-president of the Association Internationale Organisateurs des Courses Cycliste. In 1973, age 30, Liggett became the youngest ever UCI international commissaire.[citation needed]
Liggett has been president of the Cyclists' Touring Club (CTC), Britain's national cyclists' organization.[7]
In 2009, he was inducted into the British Cycling Hall of Fame.[8]
Personal life[link]
Liggett's home town is Bebington, Wirral, though he now lives in Bayford, Hertfordshire. He spends most of his leisure time in South Africa where he has a house in the Southern Cape and a game farm near the Kruger National Park. In 2009 he joined the Tour de Munster 4-day charity cycle for the final 2 stages around Kerry and Cork.[9]
In 2005, Liggett was awarded an MBE for his voluntary and professional service to cycling.[10]
References[link]
- ^ "Experts and Opinions: Phil Liggett". ninemsn Pty Ltd. 2010. http://wwos.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=1007431. Retrieved 12 June 2010.
- ^ http://www.wiredtowinthemovie.com/profile_philliggett.html
- ^ http://www.amazon.com/Phil-Liggett/e/B001IR1JS6
- ^ http://www.outdoorsinc.com/pages/joe-royer-sits-down-with-phil-liggett
- ^ http://www.outdoorsinc.com/pages/joe-royer-sits-down-with-phil-liggett
- ^ "Dancing on the Pedals: The Found Poetry of Phil Liggett, the Voice of Cycling". Breakaway Books. 1 July 2005. http://www.amazon.com/dp/1891369555.
- ^ Pestes, Richard. "Phil Liggett: The Pez-Clusive Interview". PezCyclingNews.com. http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/?pg=fullstory&id=943. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
- ^ "Report: 50th Anniversary Gala Dinner & Annual Awards". British Cycling. 21 Reb 2010. http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/50th-anni/article/bc20100219-Report--British-Cycling-s-50th-Anniversary-Gala-Dinner---Annual-Awards-0. Retrieved 5 March 2012.
- ^ Pestes, Richard. "Phil Liggett: The Pez-Clusive Interview". PezCyclingNews.com. http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/?pg=fullstory&id=943. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
- ^ http://www.ctc.org.uk/resources/Press_Archive/Phil_Liggett_MBE.doc MBE announcement from CTC website (Word doc)
External links[link]
|
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Phil Liggett |
- Cycle Show – day 1, Witcomb Cycles' blog (includes pictures of Liggett) – 11 October 2007
- Phil Liggett on Twitter
- Phil gets a birthday cake while on a cycle August 2009
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| Name | Liggett, Phil |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | sports journalist, commentator |
| Date of birth | 11 August 1943 |
| Place of birth | Bebington, Merseyside, England |
| Date of death | |
| Place of death | |
http://wn.com/Phil_Liggett
This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phil_Liggett
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.
This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.
For the Canadian Idol contestant, see Tyler Hamilton (singer). For Toronto Star columnist, see Tyler Hamilton (reporter)
 Hamilton at the 2008 Tour of California |
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Tyler Hamilton | ||||||||||||
| Born | (1971-03-01) March 1, 1971 (age 41) Marblehead, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||||||||||||
| Weight | 65 kg (140 lb; 10.2 st) | ||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||
| Discipline | Road | ||||||||||||
| Role | Rider | ||||||||||||
| Rider type | All-rounder | ||||||||||||
| Amateur team(s) | |||||||||||||
| 1994 | Coors Light (stagiare) | ||||||||||||
| Professional team(s) | |||||||||||||
| 1995–2001 2002–2003 2004 2007 2008 |
US Postal Service cycling team Team CSC Phonak Tinkoff Credit Systems Rock Racing |
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| Major wins | |||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| Infobox last updated on December 31, 2007 |
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Tyler Hamilton (born March 1, 1971, Marblehead, Massachusetts) is a former American professional road bicycle racer and former Olympic gold medalist. He became a professional cyclist in 1995 with the US Postal Service cycling team. Hamilton was a teammate of Lance Armstrong during the 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France where the latter won the Yellow jersey.
Hamilton appeared at the 2000 Summer Olympics, and again at the 2004 Summer Olympics.[1] In 2004, he won a gold medal at the time trial. The first doping test gave a positive result, but because the backup sample was frozen, no doping offence could be proven. After he failed further doping tests at the 2004 Vuelta a España, Hamilton was suspended for two years.
After his suspension, Hamilton came back and became national road race champion in 2008. In 2009, Hamilton failed a doping test again, and this time he was banned for eight years, which effectively caused him to retire. In July 2010, he was subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury revolving around the use of performance enhancing drugs in cycling. In May 2011, Hamilton admitted that he had used banned substances in competition, and returned his gold medal. As of May 2011, the IOC has not removed him from the result, but is studying his confession.[2]
Contents |
Biography[link]
Hamilton attended Holderness School in Holderness, New Hampshire, where he started cycling. After graduating in 1990, he attended the University of Colorado at Boulder as a ski racer and received a BA in economics in 1994 (although it has been alleged that he did not graduate[3]). A back injury (two broken vertebrae while mountain bike training on ski jump) at the University of Colorado developmental ski team in September 1991 ended his skiing and he switched to cycling.
He turned pro in 1995 for the Montgomery Bell Cycling team which later became the U.S. Postal Service cycling team and raced for them in the 1998, 1999, 2000 and 2001 Tour de France. Hamilton protected Lance Armstrong in the mountains. He was on Armstrong's first three Tour de France winning Postal squads and quickly grew to stardom. Hamilton also acted as a scout in individual time trials, riding as hard as possible to provide time-split comparisons for Armstrong.
In 2001 Hamilton left U.S. Postal for Team CSC. He was made a leader under manager Bjarne Riis. Hamilton fractured a shoulder in a crash in the 2002 Giro D'Italia yet managed to finish second. Hamilton became the first American to win the Liège–Bastogne–Liège race. He won the Tour de Romandie in 2003. In the 2003 Tour de France he cracked a collarbone in the first stage, and stayed to finish the tour. That year, he rode one of the Tour's most memorable feats. He won Stage 16 with a 142 km solo breakaway, and placed fourth overall. For his stage win, Hamilton was awarded the Coeur de Lion prize (French for Heart of the Lion, the name of the cheese maker that sponsored the award), as the most daring racer of the stage.
In the 2004 Tour de France Hamilton raced for Phonak Hearing Systems. He dropped out on stage 13, after back pain mostly due to a crash on stage 6.
He had a knack for bad luck, crashing during important races, but also for being a courteous, affable cyclist and spokesperson for the sport, especially in the United States.
His former wife, Haven Hamilton and golden retriever Tugboat became recognizable at the races, appearing in photos and interviews.
The bicycle racing publication VeloNews reported that Hamilton and his wife Haven amicably separated in spring 2008 after nine years' marriage, and the couple subsequently divorced.[4] Hamilton disclosed in an interview in April 2009 that he had been treated for depression for six years.[4] Hamilton revealed, via twitter, on December 31st 2011 that he married long time friend Lindsay Hamilton (Dyan), who goes by Lindsay Filomena.
Olympic gold, a doping suspension, then a doping confession[link]
Hamilton's career was marred by blood doping scandals. The first case came in the 2004 Olympics, when he was accused of blood doping by Olympic officials. Hamilton was allowed to keep his medal. Later that year, he was accused again of doping, in the Vuelta a España, and subsequently served a two-year suspension from racing. He returned to the sport for the 2007 season only to be suspended by his team after being implicated in the Operation Puerto drug scandal. He returned a second time to the sport and retired in April 2009 when he failed an out-of-competition check for taking DHEA, as an anti-depressant, which is a banned substance.
At the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Hamilton won the gold medal in the men's individual time trial. That medal was placed in doubt on September 20, 2004, after he failed a test for blood doping (receiving blood transfusions to boost performance) at the Olympics. Two days after the announcement of his positive test at Athens, the IOC announced Hamilton would keep his medal because results could not be obtained from the second sample. The Athens lab had frozen the backup, which made it impossible to repeat the test.[5] The Russian Olympic Committee appealed to the International Court of Arbitration for Sport to give Hamilton's medal to Russian silver medalist Viatcheslav Ekimov. However, on June 27, 2006, the court rejected the request.[6]
Hamilton had just withdrawn from the Vuelta a España. He won the stage 8 time trial on September 11, 2004, but left the race six days later, citing stomach problems. As winner of the stage, he had a doping test. He was told by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) on September 13, 2004 that his two samples from two days earlier showed a "foreign blood population."[7] After supporting Hamilton, Phonak team managers withdrew their support after a second member of the team, Santiago Pérez, was found positive for the same offense at the 2004 Vuelta a España.[8]
The positive sample at the Olympics, and the positive test at the Vuelta were not the only indications that Hamilton was manipulating his hematocrit level. In April 2004 his blood was found to have a high ratio of hemoglobin to reticulocytes (young red blood cells), indicative of EPO or blood doping. His score was 132.9; a clean athlete would score 90.[citation needed] The UCI suspends a rider if the score exceeds 133. This sample also showed someone else's blood was in his bloodstream. However, neither piece of evidence in isolation constituted a positive drug test (and the test for a mixed cell population had not yet been adopted), so no action was taken.[3]
On April 18, 2005 Hamilton was sentenced by the United States Anti-Doping Agency to a two-year suspension,[9] the maximum sentence for a first offense.
On May 18, 2005, he appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport but, after allowing Hamilton to gather evidence, the court dismissed his appeal.[10] Hamilton claimed the UCI-sanctioned test was insufficiently validated (and may have returned a false positive result) and that some of the agencies involved had concealed documents that would support his case. He also maintained that, even if foreign cells were present, they were natural and not the result of a transfusion. Hamilton's lawyers said he might be a Chimera, something Hamilton later disavowed.[11]
Hamilton was banned until September 22, 2006, two years from the date his "B" sample in the Vuelta a España was found positive. Although current UCI ProTour rules would have doubled his suspension (until September 22, 2008), his positive test occurred before those rules were in effect.
On May 20, 2011, after confessing to doping during his career, Hamilton returned the gold medal he won at the 2004 Olympics.[12]
Operación Puerto[link]
On June 26, 2006, the Madrid daily El País alleged that the Spanish civil guard investigation of doping in Spanish professional sport, "Operación Puerto", had found that Hamilton paid more than 50,000 USD to Dr. Eufemiano Fuentes between 2002 and 2004 to plan and administer his use of performance-enhancing erythropoietin (EPO), growth hormone treatment, blood doping, and masking agents.[13] El País charged that Hamilton's 2003 win of Liège–Bastogne–Liège followed by days a "double" blood transfusion planned by Fuentes. The evidence presented by El País also implicated Hamilton's wife in facilitating Hamilton's doping. Fuentes was arrested with team director Manolo Saiz in May 2006 as part of the Operación Puerto investigation.
On June 26, 2006, Hamilton stated on his website: "I was very upset to read the accusations against me and to see my name associated with the Operación Puerto investigation in Spain. I have not been treated by Dr. Fuentes. I have not done what the article alleges. In addition, I have never been contacted by authorities in Spain regarding these allegations. Therefore, it is impossible to comment on a situation I have no knowledge of."
The Copenhagen daily, Politiken, published further charges stemming from Operación Puerto on August 19, 2006.[14] The article summarizes Hamilton's alleged doping program during 2003. It quotes Danish doping researcher Rasmus Damsgaard on the organization Hamilton's program would have required. It cites Bjarne Riis, Hamilton's directeur sportif in 2003, denying knowledge of Hamilton's doping. And the article states that the reporters attempted to contact Hamilton on numerous occasions but were unable to reach him. The article's allegations are based on the rider's doping and racing calendar obtained by the paper. The calendar was seized in Operación Puerto. The doping calendar indicates use of EPO, growth hormone, testosterone, blood doping, and insulin on 114 days over seven months during the 2003 season. The racing program correlates with Hamilton's races in 2003, according to Politiken. The calendar includes two blood transfusions during the Tour de France. “The first time before the three stages in the Alps and the second before the 12th stage – a 47 km individual time trial,” write the reporters. The article stated that such an ambitious program would have required assistance – “at least four or five people,” according to Damsgaard.
The next day, August 20, 2006, the Belgian Dutch language Het Laatste Nieuws newspaper published more details of Hamilton's doping diary. Among many allegations, the article claims he took EPO 30 times between December 2002 and February 2003 while riding for Team CSC. In 2003, claimed Het Laatste Nieuws, Hamilton used doping on 114 of his 200 racing days.[15]
On September 14, 2006, USA Cycling announced information from the (UCI) "regarding Tyler Hamilton and his alleged involvement in 'Operación Puerto' along with a request to move forward with disciplinary action." USA Cycling referred the case to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.[16]
On April 30, 2007, La Gazzetta dello Sport published allegations that Spanish authorities had completed a second dossier on Operation Puerto, 6000 pages long and naming 49 cyclists. Hamilton was again named, with the detail that he was #11 on Dr. Fuentes's coded list of clients.[17]
Hamilton did not admit any wrongdoing at the time, and his defense was based on personal integrity. As US cyclist Bobby Julich who finished third in the Athens time trial that Hamilton won noted:
- "It goes against everything I've ever seen or known from the guy. But the rest of us at the Olympics passed the test. Why didn't he? I'm sick of people who cheat, sick of cleaning up their mess and trying to explain it. There is heavy evidence against him. With that much evidence, I don't know how he's going to get out of it."[3]
After the ban[link]
Beginning in spring 2007, Hamilton began cycling again, having completed his two-year ban. He rode briefly for Tinkoff Credit Systems. It supported Hamilton in the face of Operation Puerto rumors. However, on May 9, with rumors circulating about Hamilton's role in the April 30 dossier, the team dropped him for the 2007 Giro d'Italia.[18]
On his website, Hamilton claimed that on May 3, Tinkhoff asked him to sign a new contract "with very different financial terms than [his] existing contract," and refused to let him ride until he signed. He says he brought suit in an Italian court and won, that the team appealed and lost.[19] The dispute is now in civil litigation.
In September 2007, Tyler competed at the US national championship in South Carolina, coming sixth in the time trial and 12th in the road race.[20] In December, Rock Racing said Hamilton would ride for them in 2008. Rock Racing is a professional team on the US circuit. Hamilton did not ride in the team's season-opening Tour of California because of that race's rules against riders caught doping.
Wearing his Rock Racing gear, Tyler Hamilton finished second of approximately 60 category one and two riders March 9, 2008 at a collegiate criterium in Denver's City Park.[21]
In July 2008 he won the Tour of Qinghai Lake in China which is a top ranked race (UCI 2.HC). In August 2008 he won the US National Road Race Championship.
Second positive test[link]
On April 17, 2009 it was revealed that Tyler had failed an out of competition drug test; this time for a banned steroid (DHEA), which he claimed to be taking for anti-depression purposes despite knowing that it is on the World Anti-Doping Agency banned list. He announced his decision to retire.[22] In June 2009, Hamilton was given an eight-year ban after testing positive for a banned anti-depressant.[23]
Tyler Hamilton Training[link]
As of September 2009,[24] Hamilton has been providing private training services to other cyclists.[25]
Confession to Doping[link]
Hamilton confessed to doping during his racing career during testimony to a federal grand jury investigating doping in cycling (in particular Lance Armstrong). Hamilton made this confession public on May 20, 2011 in an email to friends and family,[26] after a taping of the TV news show 60 Minutes, during which he also implicated Lance Armstrong in the doping scandal.[27]
Major achievements[link]
- 1993
- Captained University of Colorado at Boulder road cycling team to NCCA championship; named collegiate cyclist of the year.
- 1996
- Stage 3 and overall, Teleflex Tour
- Overall, Fitchburg Longsjo Classic
- 1997
- Mount Washington Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb
- 1999
- Stage 4b and overall, Danmark Rundt
- Mount Washington Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb
- 2000
- Stage 4, 5 and overall, Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré
- Stage 4, Ronde van Nederland
- 2002
- Stage 14 win and 2nd overall, Giro d'Italia
- 2003
- Liège–Bastogne–Liège
- Stage 5 and overall, Tour de Romandie
- Stage 16, 2003 Tour de France
- 2004
- 1st Time Trial, 2004 Summer Olympics
- Stage 5 and overall, Tour de Romandie
- Stage 8, Vuelta a España (subsequently stripped for doping violation)
- 2005
- Mount Washington Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb
- 2006
- Mount Washington Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb
- 2008
- Stage 8 and overall, Tour of Qinghai Lake
- United States National Road Race, Cycling Champion
See also[link]
References[link]
- ^ "Tyler Hamilton". Sports-reference. http://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/athletes/ha/tyler-hamilton-1.html.
- ^ Macur, Juliet (20 May 2011). "Hamilton Surrenders Cycling Gold Medal". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/21/sports/hamilton-surrendering-his-gold-medal.html?_r=3&ref=sports. Retrieved 21 May 2011.
- ^ a b c David Walsh (2007). From Lance to Landis. Ballantine Books. pp. 192–209.
- ^ a b Bonnie D. Ford: Whether or not you believe Tyler Hamilton, it's a dispiriting day for cycling – ESPN. Sports.espn.go.com (2009-04-18). Retrieved on 2012-02-20.
- ^ Hamilton faces Greek drug probe, BBC on Monday, 20 December 2004.
- ^ CAS rejects Russian appeal to strip Tyler Hamilton of Olympic gold, USAToday.com on Tuesday, 27 June 2006.
- ^ Hamilton fails dope tests, BBC on September 21, 2004.
- ^ Hamilton third Phonak member dismissed for doping, ESPN on Tuesday, November 30, 2004.
- ^ Hamilton given two-year doping ban, CNN on Tuesday, April 19, 2005.
- ^ International Court for Arbitration in Sport, February 11, 2006 (See: Case Law).
- ^ the world centre of cycling. www.cyclingnews.com. Retrieved on 2012-02-20.
- ^ Hamilton gives back Olympic time trial gold medal. Cyclingnews.com (2011-05-20). Retrieved on 2012-02-20.
- ^ (Spanish) Las transfusiones y los dólares de Tyler Hamilton, El País, Monday, June 26, 2006.
- ^ (Danish) CSC-stjerne på omfattende dopingprogram i 2003, Politiken, August 19, 2006.
- ^ Extensive doping alleged for Hamilton. Cyclingnews.com. Retrieved on 2012-02-20.
- ^ "As ban ends, US cyclist Hamilton facing another probe," AFP, September 14, 2006
- ^ "Nuovo dossier di 6000 pagine. E nuovi nomi," La Gazzetta dello Sport, April 30, 2007
- ^ Tinkoff suspends Hamilton, Jaksche and Hondo. VeloNews.com, May 9, 2007
- ^ Tinkoff Credit Systems page of Tyler Hamilton Foundation website
- ^ USA Cycling Championships website
- ^ VELOBIOS.com Tyler Hamilton
- ^ Hamilton tests positive, retires. Cyclingnews.com. Retrieved on 2012-02-20.
- ^ "Eight-year ban for rider Hamilton". BBC Sport. 2009-06-17. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/8104422.stm. Retrieved 2009-06-17.
- ^ Bike Blips, 7/21/2009. Bikeblips.dailyradar.com. Retrieved on 2012-02-20.
- ^ Tyler Hamilton Training. Tyler Hamilton Training. Retrieved on 2012-02-20.
- ^ Tyler Hamilton's letter of confession. Cyclingnews.com. May 20, 2011. Retrieved on 2012-02-20.
- ^ Former teammate: I saw Lance Armstrong doping. Cbsnews.com (2011-05-20). Retrieved on 2012-02-20.
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Levi Leipheimer |
USA National Road Race Champion 2008 |
Succeeded by George Hincapie |
|
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| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| Name | Hamilton, Tyler |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | Road bicycle racer |
| Date of birth | 1971-03-01 |
| Place of birth | Marblehead, Massachusetts, United States |
| Date of death | |
| Place of death | |
http://wn.com/Tyler_Hamilton
Related pages:
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http://nl.wn.com/Tyler Hamilton
http://de.wn.com/Tyler Hamilton
http://it.wn.com/Tyler Hamilton
http://pl.wn.com/Tyler Hamilton
http://es.wn.com/Tyler Hamilton
This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tyler_Hamilton
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This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.
