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Armstrong may announce retirement Monday
**** By CHARLES ODUM
Lance Armstrong, second left, six-time winner of the Tour de France, autographs a baseball for George Louis Diaz, right, New York Stock Exchange supervisor of floor operations, after Armstrong rang the NYSE opening bell, April 7. (AP/Richard Drew)
ATLANTA (AP) - Lance Armstrong is set to make an announcement Monday that is expected to settle questions on whether he will retire from cycling after this summer’s Tour de France, where he will try for a seventh straight title.
Earlier this month, Armstrong called retirement “a possibility” and said “I am still thinking about that.” His representatives would not discuss his plans Sunday.
“Lance is going to make an announcement tomorrow,” said Mark Higgins, a spokesman for Capital Sports Entertainment, which represents Armstrong. “Everybody is anxious to hear it. He’s kind of keeping it under wraps.”
Dan Osipow, a spokesman for Armstrong’s Tailwind Sports racing team, said: “We’ll let the man speak for himself.”
Armstrong’s announcement will come as a prelude to the Tour de Georgia, a race he won last year. The six-day, 1,042-kilometre event begins Tuesday in Augusta, and this could be the 33-year-old Texan’s last race in the U.S.
The Tour de Georgia said Armstrong will make a “don’t miss statement” Monday. Armstrong recently told Italian media he missed his children and the pressure was taking a toll on him.
“Four more months and it’s over,” he told Gazzetta dello Sport.
His new two-year contract to race for the Discovery Channel team requires he race just one more Tour de France.
Armstrong was attracted to the Tour de Georgia’s support for the Georgia Cancer Coalition, the official beneficiary of the race. While in New York this month, he said he would amplify his role as a cancer survivor if he had the time.
“I’d have a lot to do with the fight against cancer,” said Armstrong, who overcame testicular cancer to become one of cycling’s greats. “That is enough to keep me busy for the next 50 years. I have three young kids that I want to be a full-time father to.”
Tour de Georgia officials have used the speculation about Armstrong’s possible retirement as a selling point for the race.
“This just might be the last time fans can see Lance race here in the U.S.,” said Stan Holm, the executive director of the race.