ESPN's 30 for 30 "LANCE," directed by Marina Zenovich
Part 1: ESPN+
Part 2: 9 p.m. ET Sunday, May 31 on ESPN
Livestreaming: ESPN+ and ESPN Player (where available)
Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France seven consecutive years after being treated for metastatic testicular cancer. He had a army of followers: Americans soaked with jingoistic pride, cycling enthusiasts who marveled over his ferocity taking on a mountain, and then those around the world who found him to be a symbol of hope.
It is said, each betrayal begins with trust.
In 2013, the pyramid scheme Lance Armstrong built was higher than any Parisian mountain he conquered on his bike -- and the fall was one for the ages which was on full display for a national audience on the Oprah Winfrey Show. At the time, ESPN senior writer Bonnie D. Ford wrote:
It was about what it is always about with Lance Armstrong: hubris and control, the same tightly intertwined strands of his DNA that convinced him he would never be exposed, that the dozens and dozens of people privy to his pyramid scheme would remain muzzled forever.
It was desperate. And huge chunks of it ranged from disingenuous to unbelievable. There was far too much defiance, contradiction of evidence and abdication of responsibility to respond to in one column ...
Nor a one-part documentary. Part 2, and the final part, of ESPN's 30 for 30 documentary "LANCE" premieres May 31.
Situation was one big lie
Lance Armstrong admitted to doping throughout his cycling career during an interview with Oprah Winfrey. In what was billed as a no-holds-barred question-and-answer session, Armstrong admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs, which led to him being stripped of his seven Tour de France titles and banned for life from the sport. The Oprah Winfrey interview
Cast of characters
Which characters in "LANCE" should you know in order to fully understand the complicated story? Floyd Landis, Tyler Hamilton, Emma O'Reilly -- they're all here. Armstrong, his family and his former teammates talk candidly about his Tour de France victories, before and after. Casting call
Rise and fall
After he got past metastatic testicular cancer that had spread to other parts of his body in 1996, all eyes were on Lance Armstrong when he returned to cycling the following year. But it was in 1999, when he won his first Tour de France -- the most prestigious and difficult race in cycling -- that his status was really elevated, and he became one of the most revered athletes at the time. The athlete, the man
Through the years
Armstrong helped elevate cycling to global popularity. His seven consecutive Tour de France victories, from 1999 to 2005, and his status as a cancer survivor made him one of the most iconic and revered athletes in the world. Armstrong: Through the years
Reading material
Inspired by survivors, Armstrong refuses to give in to cancer. Tim Keown
Why Lance's legacy won't be failing to win eighth Tour. The career
It's no surprise Armstrong needed doping to be superhuman. Tim Keown
By force of habit, Armstrong still trying to shape narrative. Bonnie D. Ford