“Most of the Kids in Texas…”: Future Olympian Lance Armstrong Was Failing Constantly at Ball Games Before Finding His Sport

Lance Armstrong has had an illustrious career. His seven consecutive Tour De France title wins made him the face of the sport. However, Lance never even thought of becoming a cyclist in his childhood. Lance recently appeared for an interview with Joe Pompliano’s YouTube channel.

In the interview, Armstrong talks about many things, including the different career paths he could have taken.

Lance Armstrong was pushed to play ball games

Joe asked questions about Lance’s reason for joining the cycling sports. Lance Armstrong revealed that there was never a plan to be a cyclist. People from his state pushed him to play other mainstream football and baseball. “Most of the kids in Texas are encouraged to play mainstream Sports, especially football and baseball,” he said. 

Just like other kids of his age, Lance followed the crowd. But he didn’t possess the required skills to excel in those sports. Armstrong admitted, “I couldn’t develop side-to-side coordination I don’t have a great hand and eye coordination”

Read More: Lance Armstrong’s Infamous ‘Character’ Draws Comparison to New Cycling World Champion at 22

Armstrong grew tired of trying and failing repeatedly. His inclination toward sports started to vanish. Finally, he confessed this problem to his mother, who advised him to switch to another game. It further increased Armstrong’s dilemma, as he didn’t know much about any other sport. 

Lance Armstrong’s journey from ball game to endurance games

Lance Armstrong was always appalled by swimming. However, he was reluctant to get in the pool with kids younger than him. “I was 11 or 12 and most of the kids start swimming at the age of 6 or 7”, he told Joe. But Lance Armstrong managed to put his ego aside and went to learn to swim. He excelled in the sport and soon became “one of the best swimmers in the state”. It was Lance’s entry into endurance sports. 

Lance Armstrong soon started running in a track marathon across the country during High School. Once he accidentally came across an advertisement for a triathlon. Lance took a shot and bought a bike to participate in the event. He was victorious in his first-ever triathlon, and the rest is history.

WATCH THIS STORY: Simone Biles Posts Amazing Pictures with Fiance Jonathan Owens

Lance Armstrong is one of the most contentious athletes in history. After battling stage three testicular cancer that had spread to his lymph nodes, lungs, brain, and abdomen, he set a record by winning the Tour de France seven times in a row. It seems like quitting ball games was the best decision of Armstrong’s life.