On Monday, Jan. 14, Lance Armstrong did what many had expected: The Associated Press has reported that while taping his interview with Oprah Winfrey, Armstrong admitted to her that he had used performance-enhancing-drugs in his quest to win the Tour de France and other titles.
The interview concluded just a short time ago, as this article is written. Immediately after the interview, Oprah tweeted:
Just wrapped with @lancearmstrong More than 2 1/2 hours . He came READY!
Now that the question of whether or not Armstrong doped appears to have been answered, the big question is: When will the Lance Armstrong - Oprah Winfrey interview air? It will be broadcast on Thursday, Jan. 17 on the OWN network, on the show "Oprah's Next Chapter," from 9 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. ET/PT. The interview will be simultaneously streamed worldwide on Oprah.com and Facebook.com/owntv.
While it had been announced that Oprah Winfrey and her crew would film the interview at Armstrong's home, the location somehow was changed to a hotel. It could have been a good move: News crews, U.S., local and international, staked out positions in front of the his Spanish-style villa before dawn, hoping glimpse either Winfrey or Armstrong.
In addition to meeting with Winfrey, Armstrong met with staffers from the Livestrong Foundation he founded after his recovery from cancer. During the meeting, Armstrong reportedly and tearfully said "I'm sorry" for letting everyone down.
What he did not do, however, was explicitly admit to using any PEDs. All he did was apologize, vaguely. He then went to a hotel to meet with Oprah.
In October of 2012, Armstrong was stripped of his Tour de France titles by the International Cycling Union (UCI) and banned for life. The UCI's announcement came just days after the USADA banned Armstrong from the sport for life over alleged use of PEDs. The USADA issued a 200-page report on Oct. 10 after what was said to be an extensive, wide-ranging investigation into the issue.
It's been speculated that he is choosing to admit to doping now to a) protect the Livestrong Foundation, or b) because he wants to compete in non-cycling events, such as triathlons.
It's likely that post-interview moves will reveal his true intent.
Winfrey will appear live Tuesday on "CBS This Morning," and is expected to tease the Armstrong interview.
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