Former Tour de France champion Greg LeMond reveals leukemia diagnosis
Three-time Tour de France champion Greg LeMond has announced he has been diagnosed with a treatable form of cancer, Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia.
In a statement posted to his personal website last Thursday, LeMond said the illness is not life-threatening, but has resulted in bouts of fatigue and will prevent him from attending this year's Tour de France in person.
"No one ever wants to hear the word cancer but, admittedly, there is great relief, now, to know why I was feeling poorly," wrote LeMond, 60. "My doctors and I have decided on a treatment which will begin this week. I should be feeling better in a few weeks and for the near future, my daily schedule will be altered only a little and I have been told that in a few months, I should be in remission.”
STAY UP TO DATE: Sign up for our Sports newsletter to get daily headlines in your inbox
The most decorated American male cyclist in history, LeMond won his first Tour de France in 1986, then posted back-to-back titles in 1989 and 1990.
Since retiring from competition in 1994, LeMond has been a staunch anti-doping advocate and is recognized as the only American Tour de France champion -- after Lance Armstrong and Floyd Landis were stripped of their titles for doping offenses.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Greg LeMond, three-time Tour de France champ, reveals cancer diagnosis
