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| Armstrong vows no 'goofing off' after Tour |
ADELAIDE, Australia, Jan 23, 2010 (AFP) - |
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| Lance Armstrong (C) of the US riding for RadioShack smiles before the start of stage five of the Tour Down Under. AFP |
Lance Armstrong on Saturday vowed not to repeat last season's mistakes when he "goofed off" after the Tour Down Under, affecting his comeback year.
The seven-time Tour de France winner said he paid the price in last February's Tour of California, where he had a tough time and placed seventh.
The American fell and broke his collarbone in March before recovering to finish third in July's Tour de France behind Spanish rival Alberto Contador.
"I messed up in the weeks after this last year. I went back and thought I was on schedule or slightly ahead of schedule and I goofed off a bit much and suffered bad in California," Armstrong told reporters.
"I have to not make those mistakes again and just keep on the gas right through February."
Armstrong said it was too early to tell whether he was on track for this year's Tour de France, where he is bidding to become the race's oldest winner at 38.
"It's still so early. Not much can be taken from here in terms of what happens in the summer, in fact nothing," he said.
"The main thing is we got good racing in, which equals good preparation mixed with no bad luck: illness, injuries, crashes. Smooth trip, good weather."
He added that he was "50-50" on returning to Australia for Melbourne's road world championships in October, adding that he was not sure whether he still had the power needed to win.
"Back in my explosive days it would have been good," he said. "It's just a question of your condition. At 260 kilometres it's the guys that have the best preparation that do well. You can't hide after six hours."
Armstrong retired in 2005 after winning a record seventh Tour de France but returned to the sport at last year's Tour Down Under, a six-stage race over 800 kilometres (500 miles) of roads around Adelaide. |
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