Lance Armstrong has announced that he will participate in The Des Moines Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, his first return to cycling since admitting using performance enhancing drugs.
According to Us Weekly, Armstrong is welcome to join fellow riders in the Ride Across Iowa despite his January admission of drug use. Race director T.J. Juskiewicz tells the newspaper, "We are open to anyone that wants to come ride RAGBRAI.”
Armstrong admits that he is aware of the public’s perception of him. “I'm well aware my presence is not an easy topic, and so I encourage people if they want to give a high-five, great," he explains. "If you want to shoot me the bird, that's OK too … I’m a big boy, and so I made the bed, I get to sleep in it."
The former award-winning cyclist also explained that he isn’t doing this as a way to win people over or to make a statement after being banned from competitive cycling for life. "To be honest it's not a statement, it's not an experiment," he added. It's just me wanting to go ride my bike with what in the past has been a friendly group of people that share the same interests."