If something ever came between your life and a passion you love, what would you choose? Most people wouldn’t have to answer that question, but Lance Armstrong did. Cancer flirted with destroying Lance’s life. The six time Tour De France winner was the best his sport and wouldn’t settle for second place. Picture your passion was out of your reach, an inch from your face but you couldn’t grasp it; that’s what lance had to go threw. Prior to Lance’s cancer, biking was a way to prove Lance was the best; now it’s a way to prove that he is a survivor.
Before Cancer Lance did the things to become a winner. Everything changed however when he almost lost his life. The training after chemo showed the drive that Lance had to become the athlete he once was. It showed the passion he had to prove to everyone that he could become a great biker but most of all prove that he could be a survivor. “I paid for it that day. But I didn’t stop riding (p.143).” That short quote showed what he was willing to go through; you didn’t even have to know what happened before that, you just knew he had a true passion for becoming a great rider again. Then that day came when Lance tried to go up a petite incline he lost his breath. “I couldn’t do it. I got halfway up the incline, and I lost my breath (p.145).” That just showed how badly Lance wanted to bike again. Lance’s training after chemo showed how badly Lance wanted to bike again. It showed the passion that Lance had to get back on his bike. It showed how badly he wanted to pursue him passion.
The tour was another example of how Lance Armstrong proved he had overcome cancer. During the tour you could perceive a difference about him. He was thinking more about his team more than himself. He let teammate pass and wasn’t troubled to be in “second place.” “But for reasons of my own, I think it may be the most gallant athletic endeavor in the world. To me, of course, it’s all about living (p.215).” That quote was Lance talking about the tour. If you were to think back to before cancer; Lance would most likely say it’s all about winning. But now he’s saying “it’s all about living”, that shows his mentality has changed and now he is more proud of being a survivor then a great biker. Then once Lance won the first stage of the Tour De France he was blissfully walking through the finish area. “Assorted members of the organization stood around, the men who I felt had left me for dead in a hospital room. “That was for you,” I said, as I moved past them (p.227).” That’s what Lance said to the people who didn’t care about Lance and what he was going through. That just shows he proved that he could do it, when no one thought he could. He proved that he could do only what one in a million people could do (win a stage from just recovering from cancer.) Overall the tour was a immense time when Lance Armstrong proved to himself that he could do what no one thought he could do. It was a time when he realized that he had triumphed over cancer.
The cancer fund raiser that Lance and Kik did was another moment that you could tell Lance had altered. Before cancer, Lance was very conceited and cocky. Now Kik and Lance want to give to the community and help other people with their problems. “I was a cancer survivor first and an athlete second, I decided. Too many athletes live as though the problems of the world don’t concern them (p.158).” That was a great thing that Lance said; it proved that he had “taken a step back” and realized who he really was. When he said that he was now a cancer survivor instead of an athlete, it showed he was proud of something besides cancer. Then he said, “There is so much more we don’t know about our human capacity, and I felt it was important to spread that massage” (p.158). That shows that he has really changed, and now he wants to go out and tell everyone what he did and how he had overcome a huge factor of his life and not to give up. That one particular piece of the book showed Lance Armstrong’s character and what he really believes in now that he is a true survivor.
Prior to cancer, biking is a way to prove Lance was the best; after, it was to show that Lance was a survivor. But Lance Armstrong went further then just being a survivor, he proved to everyone that he could do what most bikers are still dreaming of, which was winning six Tour De Frances from just recovering from cancer. Lance Armstrong changed for the better; he got stronger mentally and was blessed with an immense deal of passion.
