When the chips were down, Armstrong held his own. Now, roll on 2010

When it counted, Armstrong came through

AVIGNON, France — Relaxing in the cool of his hotel room, the hard work done on this Tour de France, a barefooted Lance Armstrong is looking pretty pleased with himself.

So he should. On this day, the old guy passed the test — holding off most of cycling’s current and next generation on the climactic climb of this Tour.

“I felt good today, yeah, yeah, really good,” he says, comfortable-looking in jeans and T-shirt and understandably a little smug.

“Never in trouble,” he adds. “Today was the best I felt.”

The Mont Ventoux — bare, windy, hot, steep and foreboding — could have been Armstrong’s undoing. After all, these three weeks have proved that his 37-year-old legs no longer have the bite they once had.

By his own admittance, this Tour has taught him that he’s not as explosive, not as menacing, as he was at his peak, when he swept all before him on his record streak of seven Tour victories from 1999-2005.

“Those quick accelerations, and the climbs with the high, high tempo, I probably won’t ever get that back,” he says.

But, as he proved on Saturday, he’s not passed his sell-by date, either. Far from it.

Armstrong turned the hostile slopes of the Ventoux into the stage for his most convincing ride so far of his comeback to cycling.

After 3½ years away from the sport, there were many who doubted that he could truly be competitive again. Was he making the same mistake as Michael Jordan, failing to see that he was past his prime?

As this Tour progressed, the questions continued. Armstrong’s time trials were, he says, “terrible” — with his worst results since he came back from cancer to win his first Tour.

He was found lacking in the mountains, too, unable to stay with the fastest.

So Saturday was Armstrong’s make-or-break moment. But on the Ventoux, it turned out that he had saved his best for last.

Riding solidly, Armstrong all but guaranteed that he will finish on the podium when the race ends on Sunday in Paris. He did so by keeping Bradley Wiggins and Frank Schleck, both 29-year-olds, at bay. Armstrong wasn’t spectacular but he was methodical, gritty, determined. He kept Wiggins and Schleck at bay and that was enough to finish ahead of them.

This time, Armstrong won’t be on the top spot in Paris. That honor is likely claimed, convincingly, by Alberto Contador of Spain, the 2007 champion who soared above all others this year. Instead, for the first time in his career, Armstrong is destined for third place, behind the younger of the Schleck brothers, 24-year-old Andy.

But, given the circumstances, that’s just fine. The Armstrong of old would have raged but this version is far more philosophical.

“In my previous career, if you would have said ‘You’re going to get third,’ I would have been on fire. So to now be third and to be proud of that, and my kids to be proud of that, and the fans, and the people of France. Everybody loves that. It’s a good thing,” he said in the 20-minute interview with The Associated Press.

“I’m realistic, I did everything I could,” he said. “For me, and even more for my kids, it’s probably a healthy thing for them to see, because they saw their dad that never lost, and the kids in their class (say) ‘your dad never loses,’ so it’s good for them to see dad get third and still be cool with that and still be happy.”

Now, roll on 2010.

Armstrong and Contador are parting ways after an uneasy, even, conflictual relationship on the same team. It should be fascinating to see them fight on opposing squads next year. Their in-house rivalry this year — two strong-headed athletes shoehorned into the same outfit — spiced up the Tour that at times verged on the dull, with too many stages that weren’t tough enough for real drama and with several pre-race favorites falling far short of expectations.

Contador, 26, has many of the strengths that Armstrong once had. He won the time trial this week and has been simply unstoppable on climbs. Armstrong has had to get used to seeing Contador speed away — as he did on the Ventoux, in the company of the younger Schleck. Theirs could become the next great rivalry in cycling, as absorbing as Armstrong’s was with German Jan Ullrich.

Is Contador a more formidable rival than Ullrich?

“Yes,” Armstrong said without a moment’s hesitation. “Absolutely.”

“Far better,” he added.

But not, he thinks, unbeatable.

Clearly, Contador has gotten under Armstrong’s skin. And, from that, the motivation to try to beat him next year is already starting to flow.

“I’m going left, he’s going right.” Armstrong said. “See you on the start line next year.”

John Leicester is an international sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jleicester(at)ap.org.