Lance Armstrong back at the Tour de France

Three years after officials stripped him of his record seven Tour de France victories, Lance Armstrong is making his presence felt at cycling’s premier race this week.

The disgraced rider spent Thursday pedaling along the route — a day ahead of the peloton — as part of a charity event.

Surrounded by the media in a supermarket parking lot, Armstrong said it felt good to be back but acknowledged that not everyone welcomed his return. At least one cycling official had called his visit “disrespectful.”

“I can understand that there’s still some hurt feelings,” Armstrong said. “That’s a process that I’ll walk through for a long, long time.”

His string of titles ran from 1999 to 2005 and, at the time, established him as the greatest racer in history. He later admitted to doping.

Britain’s Chris Froome leads this year’s race, with American Tejay van Garderen in second.

Asked whether he thought the Tour was now clean, Armstrong told reporters: “How can I answer that question? I am not a specialist.”

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