Lance Armstrong's confession was too little and far too late

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jan/20/observer-editorial-lance-armstrong-confession-flawed

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What was the old, cancer-surviving, rival-bashing Lance Armstrong like? He was, he revealed to Oprah Winfrey last week, "a guy who expected to get whatever he wanted and control every outcome". But here was the problem: that old Lance Armstrong bore more than a passing resemblance to the new, flawed, semi-contrite one. By choosing the medium of the TV confessional, Armstrong believed he could manipulate the discussion once again. His failure to recognise quite how deep a hole he's in is hubris on an epic scale.

It is hard to think of anyone in public life who has lied as Armstrong has. Everything about his cycling career has been built on a persistently restated deception: I did not take performance-enhancing drugs. He became a really world-class liar and there is evidence that even now he is finding the habit a hard one to give up. His claim that he never doped after 2005 is strongly contested by the United States Anti-Doping Agency. There are numerous other unanswered questions from the Oprah interview that need to be addressed now by legal and anti-doping authorities.

Armstrong was right on one point: he may have been a kingpin, but he is only one guy. It's worth remembering just how ingrained drug use is in professional cycling. In the very first races, in the late 19th century, riders took morphine, cocaine, even bull's blood and the crushed testicles of wild animals. There has never been an era that has not been tainted by doping.

All of which should give us hope – and caution – for the future of the sport. Armstrong hogged the headlines last week, but on Thursday there was a cheerier announcement when the routes for three British stages of the 2014 Tour de France were revealed. Millions of Britons will turn out to watch. Will they be able to believe what they are watching? A full, explicit confession from Armstrong is essential for everyone to move on. Cycling may be the boom sport of the new century, but the people who love it don't have infinite patience.