Tour-Armstrong loses on the road but wins media battle

PARIS, July 26 (Reuters) - Lance Armstrong’s gamble to return to the Tour de France after a four-year break may not have been a complete success sports-wise but the American easily won the media battle.

To finish on the Tour podium at nearly 38 years old is a formidable achievement, especially after such a long time off the bike, yet Armstrong had looked so untouchable during his seven-year reign on the race the result was relatively disappointing.

Armstrong, third overall, acknowledged winner Alberto Contador was the best rider in this Tour, even though life in the Astana team may not have been easy for two exceptional athletes with strong characters and conflicting ambitions.

“I am happy and overall damned pleased how it turned out. Alberto was far superior than any riders and Andy (Schleck) rode a very consistent and smart race,” Armstrong told reporters after the penultimate stage on the Mont Ventoux.

“For an old fart coming in here and getting on the podium with these young guys, was not so bad,” he joked.

Luxembourg’s Andy Schleck, 24, was second overall thanks to his consistency in the climbs.

But Armstrong was far from ready to bow to the up and coming generation of riders.

“I’ll be better prepared in 2010,” he warned in a news conference in the last week of the race.

OVERDUE POPULARITY

While the Texan probably hoped for a better final result on a sporting level, Armstrong also returned to cycling to promote his foundation against cancer, Livestrong, and his Tour was a total success in that respect.

Livestrong bracelets and t-shirts were all over the place on the race and the most successful Tour rider even succeeded in gaining a long overdue popularity with the French public, who have considered him arrogant in the past.

“People say I’m not the same rider I was four years ago,” said Armstrong. “They probably like that and it pleases me too. It’s the best way to sum up the situation,” he said.

Armstrong’s return to the sport, announced last September, was probably a little rushed and a crash in the Tour of Castille and Leon in March hampered his build-up to the Tour.

As a result, he lost ground on Contador and Schleck in the mountains, but was also humbled by the Spaniard in the individual time trials, which were for a long time Armstrong’s specialty.

“I have work to do and that starts in August. I will review my season from calendar to training to equipment and see what I will change,” he said.

The American will have a new tool to achieve his goal of winning an eighth Tour. He announced after Thursday’s time trial in Annecy he was leaving Astana to launch his own team sponsored by electronics firm RadioShack.

The move could help him have a whole team at his service, although the list of riders has yet to be confirmed.

The question is whether he can win the 2010 Tour without turning back into the Armstrong of old in the eyes of his new French fans.

(Editing by Julien Pretot and Alison Wildey; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)