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Former seven time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong finally admitted that he doped during his championships years as a cyclist. During an interview Thursday night with Oprah Winfrey on Winfrey's OWN network, Armstrong acknowledged he had lied repeatedly for years.
''I'm a flawed character,'' Armstrong said.
Winfrey began the interview, asking for yes-or-no answers to five questions.
Did Armstrong take banned substances? ''Yes.''
Did that include the blood-booster EPO? ''Yes.''
Did he do blood doping and use transfusions? ''Yes.''
Did he use testosterone, cortisone and human growth hormone? ''Yes.''
Did he take banned substances or blood dope in all his Tour wins? ''Yes.''
Winfrey then asked Armstrong if what he did felt wrong?
''No,'' Armstrong replied. ''Scary.''
''Did you feel bad about it?'' Winfrey pressed him.
''No,'' he said. ''Even scarier.''
''Did you feel in any way that you were cheating?''
''No,'' Armstrong paused. ''Scariest.''
Armstrong said he looked up the definition of cheating. 'I went and looked up the definition of cheat, and the definition is to gain an advantage on a rival or foe. I didn't view it that way. I viewed it as a level playing field.''
Asked if he believed it was possible to have won the seven Tour de France races without doping, Armstrong answered, “Not in my view.”
In his climb to the top, Armstrong cast aside teammates who questioned his tactics, yet swore he raced clean and tried to silence anyone who said otherwise. That relentless pursuit was one of the things that Armstrong said he regretted most.
''I deserve this,'' he said twice.
''It's a major flaw, and it's a guy who expected to get whatever he wanted and to control every outcome. And it's inexcusable. And when I say there are people who will hear this and never forgive me, I understand that. I do. ...
''That defiance, that attitude, that arrogance, you cannot deny it.''