Armstrong on the Alpe

VeloNews | Meet the Press: Armstrong speaks to reporters in Gap

Lance Armstrong spent Monday back-pedaling on l'Alpe d'Huez, explaining that his line about the French World Cup soccer team testing positive “for being assholes” was a joke in a monologue, however weak.

Armstrong said this morning he could see the race “turned on its ears” by Thursday.

Q: If you were a betting man, who would you put money onto win this Tour then?

LA: You know I'm not going to ... I don't know. I would love to see the jersey stay in America. I think Floyd is clearly the favourite here. He doesn't have the jersey now (at stage 15 start) but obviously we know that that was a bit of a tactical decision. I think he is still the favourite. I would be happy with that victory.

Asked to demonstrate his affection for the country by speaking directly to its people, Armstrong refused to speak French, claiming he'd “lost” the language.

Rupert Guinness, who interviewed Armstrong, also briefly spoke to Armstrong buddy Jake Gyllenhall, who rode l'Alpe d'Huez with Armstrong yesterday.