Armstrong confession falls flat with supporters

Invincibility, by his own admission, was something that Lance Armstrong had felt he embodied. He was a person that lived the perfect life, and was the underdog that came out on top, despite the grim circumstances of cancer. To me, he was one of those people who defied the odds and became an inspiration to millions of people.

The winner of seven consecutive Tours de France had all of his records after 1998 disqualified in late 2012, due to his use of performance-enhancing drugs and blood doping.

In a highly-publicized interview with Oprah Winfrey last week, Armstrong admitted to doping in order to win all of his Tour de France titles. But the most disturbing part was the fact that he admitted it would have been impossible to attain his track record without doping. He acknowledged that he used everything from Erythropoietin (EPO) to blood transfusions in order to do anything to win.

But to used doping to win the race and determination to beat cancer in the same sentence is shameful.

Furthermore, he still had the nerve to maintain he had stayed clean during his comeback in 2009 and 2010 a claim that runs directly against the USADA (United States Anti-Doping Agency) report.

After facing a verdict that banned him from professional cycling for life by the USADA, he joined the pantheon of lying sports personalities the newest addition after the similarly heralded Tiger Woods.

But for people like me who have grown up listening to Armstrongs heroic deeds, its almost as if we faced yet another band aid of trust ripped off. The worst part is hearing he feels like he doesnt deserve the death penalty. Armstrong thinks that people are going too far in his defamation. It is one thing to apologize, and another to actually mean it.

Akshita Sathe is a freshman majoring in psychology and behavioral health.