Armstrong Feted on His Tour de L.A.

He’ll never forget his first, of course, but Lance Armstrong says his second Tour de France victory was even more satisfying.

“This year’s was sweeter,” the champion cyclist said Thursday at a news conference in Beverly Hills, where about 1,000 fans lined up along Wilshire Boulevard and around the corner down Camden Drive in hopes of getting the sporting world’s most celebrated cancer survivor to sign copies of his autobiography, “It’s Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life.”

Armstrong’s brief stop in the Southland was part of a whirlwind tour that started almost as soon as the Texas native crossed the finish line Sunday in Paris to win cycling’s most prestigious event for the second consecutive year.

After arriving in New York on Tuesday for an all-day series of promotional appearances Wednesday, Armstrong hit the ground running in Los Angeles Thursday, where he started the day as a studio guest on “The Mark & Brian Radio Show.”

After the midday news conference and book signing in Beverly Hills, where fans began lining up at 7 a.m. for a noon event, Armstrong was whisked to Burbank for a spot on “The Tonight Show.”

Provided he wasn’t exhausted, the 28-year-old cyclist was scheduled to be the guest of honor Thursday night at a party in Hollywood, where actors Jennifer Love Hewitt and Tobey Maguire were also expected.

Today, he’ll return to France to begin training for the Olympics.

“I’m still kind of spinning from the travel, as well as spinning from three weeks of the Tour de France,” said Armstrong, catching his breath for a few minutes after the news conference. “So I’m on overload a little.”

The lingering celebration, however, seems to agree with him.

That’s partly because he views his triumph in this year’s 21-stage, 2,255-mile race as vindication.

Armstrong’s victory last year, accomplished only three years after he had been diagnosed with testicular cancer that had spread to his lungs and brain, was greeted with suspicion and rumor by some, his miraculous recovery marred by a black cloud that hung over the sport amid charges of rampant use of performance-enhancing drugs among its competitors.

No charges were leveled against Armstrong, but suspicion remained--and it stung.

“To a lot of other people, there may have been an asterisk next to last year’s victory,” he said. “So, to come back this year and confirm the victory of ‘99--it was sweeter. It meant a lot.”

Those who doubted him, he said, only served to motivate.

“Absolutely,” he said. “When you win something and then you hear criticism from previous winners . . . you file that away.

“And I did. I didn’t forget it. I was paying attention, and it was very motivating for me--not just in the race but in the wintertime because that’s when I heard it. . . .

“I don’t think it’s a big enough issue to be on your mind every day, but at the crucial moments, it was helpful that I remembered.”

After this year’s victory--he won by 6 minutes 2 seconds over runner-up Jan Ullrich of Germany--Armstrong is being mentioned as a threat to the record of five Tour victories, shared by four cyclists and last accomplished in 1995 when Miguel Indurain of Spain won the last of his five consecutive Tour titles.

“I’ve heard a lot about that,” Armstrong said, “but I don’t think that’s going to happen. I’m not interested in chasing any records, I’m not interested in racing for a long time.”

For Armstrong, who will turn 29 on Sept. 18, the more immediate goal is the Olympics, in which he will concentrate on the individual time trial. He finished sixth when the event was contested in the Games for the first time four years ago in Atlanta, and was 12th in the road race. At Barcelona in 1992, he finished 14th in the road race.

“It’s hard to peak two times--to peak at a very high level,” he said. “To try to win a gold medal, you have to be the best, but I ended the Tour more motivated to race than I did last year. . . .

“I knew the Olympics were coming and I was prepared that once the Tour is over, the celebrations are over and this stuff is over, it’s time to get back to training and racing. I’d like to win a gold medal. I’ve been there twice before and been disappointed twice before, so this will be a nice opportunity.”