Lance Gunderson Research Paper

The setting, September 18th 1971 Plano, Texas, Linda Gayle and then husband Eddie Charles Gunderson gave birth to Lance Edward Gunderson. Linda Gayle divorced Eddie Gunderson when Lance was two years old and she later remarried to a man by the name of Keith Armstrong who decided to adopt Lance and take him on as one of his own. Due to this life event Lance changed his name from Gunderson to Armstrong and thus a star was born.
Lance took up competitive cycling at the age of thirteen but by the time he hit the age of sixteen he became a triathlete. In 1989 and 1990 Lance was the national sprint-course triathlon champion. During his senior year of high school Lance was invited to Colorado Springs to train with the U.S Olympic development team …show more content…
In 1993 Lance won three races, Thrift Drug Classic, the Kmart West Virginia Classic and the CoreStates Race, also known as “the triple crown”. 1993 was also a big year for Armstrong as he competed in his first Tour de France where he won the eight stage before eventually pulling out of the competition. In August of 93’ Lance became the youngest person ever to win the World Road Race Championship which was held in Oslo, Norway. In 1995 Lance finally won the Tour DuPont. At the Tour DuPont in 1996 Armstrong set several records, including largest margin of victory and fastest average speed in a time trial. Armstrong competed at the 1996 Olympic Games held in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. The highest he placed in any event was sixth place. In the fall of 96’, Lance signed a new contract deal with Team Cofidis who were based out of France.
In October of 1996, Lance Armstrong revealed to the public that he had been diagnosed with testicular cancer. Armstrong had a testicle removed and started chemotherapy but when doctors found out that the cancer had spread to the brain, abdomen, lungs and lymph nodes they gave him less than forty percent chance to live. With the removal of his brain tumors and chemotherapy treatments, Lance became cancer free in early 1997. Due to his illness Team Cofidis terminated his contract and thus Lance signed a new contract with the United …show more content…
In 1999 Lance Armstrong became the second American ever to win the Tour de France. In 2000 he successfully defended his title of Tour de France champion and he also won a bronze medal at the Olympic Games held in Sydney, Australia. Lance cemented his legacy as one of the best road cyclist in the history of the sport as he continued to win the Tour de France every year from 1999 to 2005. Unlike is pervious victories, Armstrong won his final Tour de France in 2005 racing for the Discovery Channel team. After the victory in 2005 Lance decided to go out on top and he retired from professional