The Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games organizing committee is already working on the mountain bike course, and one of the names that has unexpectedly appeared in the project is that of American cyclist Lance Armstrong.
The Texan, one of the most controversial figures in cycling history after losing his seven Tour de France titles due to doping, is collaborating on the design and development of the Olympic XCO course.
The information came to light after Armstrong himself posted a photo on Instagram with the team in charge of building the Olympic course near Los Angeles, although it was the media outlet Mountain Bike Action that ultimately brought the matter to light after investigating the Texan’s actual involvement.
The Instagram photo shows him alongside representatives from Progressive Trail Design, a company specializing in trail and bike park design, and responsible for the course that will host the 2028 Olympic mountain bike event.
The news has been particularly surprising because we were unaware of Armstrong’s close connection to cross-country mountain biking (XCO). However, the British media outlet itself confirms that he did compete in some major MTB races in the United States in the late 1990s.
Mountain Bike Action contacted Progressive Trail Design directly to confirm Armstrong’s involvement in the Olympic project, and the answer was affirmative. Woody Keen, the company’s founder, explained that the former cyclist has been collaborating with them for years on various trail-related projects and trail riding experiences.
For now, Armstrong’s exact role in the final design of the Olympic course and the extent of his technical influence on the route have not been specified, but his presence has already generated debate within the cycling community due to his enduring legacy.
Armstrong remains one of the most controversial figures in the sport. After dominating the Tour de France between 1999 and 2005, USADA confirmed years later an organized doping system that resulted in the stripping of all his titles and his lifetime ban from professional cycling.
Even so, he continues to maintain a public presence in the cycling world through podcasts, events, and projects related to cycling and trail building.
The choice of such a divisive figure to collaborate, even informally, on an Olympic project has not gone unnoticed and puts Armstrong’s name back at the center of the cycling conversation just as Olympic mountain biking is working to define what will be one of the most important circuits of the next decade.
Source: www.brujulabike.com