Joey
Armstrong hopes for a good contest
Lance Armstrong, while not exactly playing down his chances of
winning, is not convinced that he's the number one favourite. "I
disagree...I think there are a lot of guys that are just as strong as
me," he said in Dunkirk.
His most often spoken about rival is Jan Ullrich (Telekom), whose
battles with his weight have been on and off for the past three years.
While no-one could actually call Ullrich fat, he goes into the Tour a
whole 8 kilos heavier than Armstrong (74 compared with 66 kg). The bar
has been lowered on both sides, so to speak.
"Jan Ullrich is a fantastic rider," added Armstrong. "He's strong,
he's talented. I think he's in shape. He's a favorite."
Ullrich commented about Armstrong that "I assume he will be even
better this year than last year...If it doesn't work out this time,
then it probably won't ever.