Cycling Betting - Famous Cyclists
Lance Armstrong (II part)
Armstrong also excelled in the individual time trial, and is as good as, if not better than, those physically more suited to the discipline, such as rival Jan Ullrich. In the mold of five-time Tour de France winner Miguel Indur�in, Armstrong is not consistently aggressive during a Tour, preferring to gain a lead in the time trials or with a few well-placed mountain attacks before sitting back and letting his team defend the lead. Despite this relatively defensive strategy, Armstrong's mountain attacks were often so dominant that he put minutes on his rivals over just a few kilometers.
All top cyclists have excellent key physical attributes and Armstrong is no exception, although he may be unusually good even for an elite athlete. He is near the top but not at the top aerobically, having a VO2 Max of 83.8 mL/kg/min � much higher than the average person (40-50) but not as high as that of some other elite cyclists, such as Miguel Indurain (88.0, although reports exist that Indur�in tested at 92-94) or Greg LeMond (92.5).
His heart is 30 percent larger than average, but an enlarged heart is common for athletes as well. He has a resting heart rate of 32-34 bpm with a max heart rate at 201 bpm. Armstrong's most unusual attribute may be his low lactate levels: even with intense training, while the levels of most other racers range from 12 L/Kg to as much as 20 L/Kg, Armstrong doesn't go above a 6 L/Kg.
The result is that less lactic acid accumulates in Armstrong's system, so he likely feels less physical pain from severe efforts and/or he is able to sustain the same effort as other elite racers with less pain and faster recovery times. Some theorize that his high pedaling cadence is designed to take advantage of this, while others � like Jan Ullrich � rely on their aerobic capacity more, pushing a larger gear at a lower rate.
- Top -