Podcast: JOE meets cycling legend Greg LeMond

Greg LeMond is one of the all-time greats of cycling and he spoke to JOE on having attention deficit disorder (ADD), facing challenges, Lance Armstrong doping and the UCI.

JOE had the opportunity to speak to Greg LeMond in a special podcast as he visited Ireland ahead of ADD Awareness week from the 7^th to 13^th October.

LeMond is one of the true all time greats of sport, winning three Tour De France’s and two World Championships.

You can listen or download our full podcast with him in conversation with JOE’s Mark O’Toole here:

In the podcast he discusses:

• Coping with Attention Deficit Disorder and how it affected his career.
• The challenges he faced in his life.
• Lance Armstrong, the UCI and what should be done now and is the sport redeemable?
• The Paul Kimmage case.

Background on Greg LeMond

LeMond faced many harrowing challenges in his life.

His teammate Bernard Hinault betrayed him in 1986 and went back on his promise to return the favour from the year previous and help him win the Tour De France. Nevertheless LeMond won that year in a fascinating duel with "the Badger" and became the first American to win the Tour De France.

In 1987 he was shot accidentally by his brother-in-law in a hunting accident and still has fragments of the shotgun pellets embedded in his body, two of which were close to his heart. By rights he should have never cycled again, yet he went on to win the Tour De France in 1989 and 1990. His win against two-time winner Laurent Fignon came to the last time trial as LeMond closed a 58 second gap to win the tour by 8 seconds. That dramatic moment can be relived here.

LeMond has been outspoken against doping in sport and provoked the ire of Lance Armstrong who put pressure on LeMond’s business dealings with Trek. USADA released their findings on Armstrong this week which showed Armstrong to be a lifetime cheat, doper and bully who enforced a regime of dangerous doping on other team-mates. The report was also critical of cycling’s governing body the UCI and its President Irishman Pat McQuaid.

Greg LeMond was in Ireland to support ADHD Awareness week which runs from the 7^th October to the 13^th and this year the theme is “Let ADHD Affect Us Positively.”  A full list of programmes and