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Armstrong confirms cycling retirement

Lance Armstrong has retired from cycling to focus on his family and charity commitments © Getty Images

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Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong has confirmed his retirement from professional cycling.

The 39-year-old, who last won Le Tour six years ago, was widely expected to retire after the recently completed Tour Down Under. And he has now confirmed that is the case - as he intends to focus all his attentions on his family and philanthropic involvements, most notably his cancer charity Livestrong.

"Today, I am announcing my retirement from professional cycling in order to devote myself full-time to my family, to the fight against cancer and to leading the foundation I established before I won my first Tour de France," Armstrong said in a statement.

Armstrong originally retired from the sport in 2006, returning to have two more cracks at the Tour de France in 2009 and 2010. Despite failing to win on either occasion, the American insists the comeback was a rewarding and worthwhile experience.

"I can't say I have any regrets. It's been an excellent ride. I really thought I was going to win another tour," he said. "Then I lined up like everybody else and wound up third [in 2009]. I have no regrets about last year, either. The crashes, the problems with the bike - those were things that were beyond my control."

Having highlighted and promoted the battle against cancer - from which he suffered from in 1998 - for much of his career, in recent years Armstrong has been blighted by increasingly strong accusations involving performance-enhancing drugs. But the cyclist, who has previously suggested he is the most drug-tested athlete on the planet, maintains he has nothing to hide.

"I can't control what goes on in regards to the investigation," he added. "That's why I hire people to help me with that. I try not to let it bother me and just keep rolling right along.

"I know what I know. I know what I do and I know what I did. That's not going to change."

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