Product Description

Lance Armstrong won the 1999 Tour de France in spectacular style, taking four stages and both a mountain and a time trial. His story is even more remarkable because he was diagnosed with stage 4 testicular cancer in October 1996.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1852 in Books
• Published on: 2001-05-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
People around the world have found inspiration in the story of Lance Armstrong--a world-class athlete nearly struck down by cancer, only to recover and win the Tour de France, the multiday bicycle race famous for its gruelling intensity. Armstrong is a thoroughgoing Texan jock, and the changes brought to his life by his illness are startling and powerful, but he's just not interested in wearing a hero suit. While his vocabulary is a bit on the he-man side (highest compliment to his wife: "she's a stud"), his actions will melt the most hard-bitten souls: a cancer foundation and benefit bike ride, his astonishing commitment to training that got him past countless hurdles, loyalty to the people and corporations that never gave up on him. There's serious medical detail here, which may not be for the faint of heart; from chemo to surgical procedures to his wife's in vitro fertilization, you won't be spared a single x-ray, IV drip, or unfortunate side effect. Athletes and coaches everywhere will benefit from the same extraordinary detail provided about training sessions--every aching tendon, every rainy afternoon, and every small triumph during his long recovery is here in living colour. It's Not About the Bike is the perfect title for this book about life, death, illness, family, setbacks, and triumphs, but not especially about the bike. --Jill Lightner, Amazon.com

Express on Sunday
‘If you read just one sports book this year, this is the one’

Time Out
‘So darn riveting that it simply cannot be put down…warmly recommended’

Customer Reviews

Great Reading for Cancer Patients, as Well as Athletes!
This book clearly deserves more than five stars! This is one of the most inspirational biographies I have ever read, and comes from the truly remarkable life experiences of a determined young man. I loved every word!

Early in the book, Lance Armstrong says ". . . that cancer was the best thing that happened to me." He goes on to say, "When I was sick I saw more beauty and triumph and truth in a single day than I ever saw in a bike race."

Overcoming cancer and becoming an athletic champion in the grueling sport of bicycle racing require a toughness of spirit, mind, and body that is hard for most of us to imagine. This inspirational book portrays beautifully how one can start with the right spirit and overcome enormous obstacles.

Although his doctors told him he had a 40 percent chance of surviving stage three testical cancer, this was mostly to keep his morale up. After he had recovered, his doctor admitted that is chances were around 3 percent, instead.

While he was being treated for the cancer, no one thought that he might ever race again. He did decide to go through treatments that would leave open the possibility that his lungs (affected by the cancer) would still be functional and his coordination (through delicate brain surgery) would be unaffected. Within two years, he had won the Tour de France, a grueling race he had never done well in before he had cancer.

Growing up, Lance Armstrong had little reason to suspect that he would become one of the world's greatest athletes. He was well into high school, still trying pretty unsuccessfully to make the football and swimming teams, before it became clear that he could become a significant cyclist. Pleased with the money that success brought, he had a tough time building the attitude of a champion to go with his remarkable endurance skills. Overcoming cancer helped him with that, as well as seeing the beauty around him.

He met his wife at the press conference to announce the beginning of his foundation to fight cancer. They were married during his recovery, and recently became parents through the miracles of modern medicine.

Of such wonderful stuff are role models made, something we have too few of these days.

The story is told in a very open and matter-of-fact way. He is not trying to make himself into something that he isn't. Clearly, his purpose in writing this book is to help all of us fulfill our potential rather than to glorify himself.

Please share this book with people who need this inspiration and encouragement to take on the pain of giving life all you've got.

An engrossing, emotional, uplifting story of human triumph
As the title suggests, this book is not just about cycling, and it would be a terrible shame if only cycling fans, or for that matter sports fans were to read it. This is truly an inspirational read, not in a sacharine, all American hero way, but as the story of a man who went all the way to death's door with cancer and fought his way back not merely to life but to the summit of one of the world's toughest sports. Armstrong's story is told in a frank, engaging and totally engrossing way that at times makes painful reading but is equally hard to put down. The ultimately triumphant conclusion is not a fairytale cop-out, but shows how life can be transformed both despite, and because of, personal suffering. Armstrong tells of the struggle undergone by both him and his mother to reach the pinacle of sporting success, world champion at only 21, only for testicular cancer to threaten to end his life. Since he wrote the book you know he survived, but the miracle of how he went on to even greater professional heights is breathtaking - even more so in the context of his second Tour de France victory. No strong-arm tale of sporting toughness, the honest recollection of personal struggle, even once cancer was beaten brings tears to the eyes. This is simply a great read, anyone who follows sport, who has been touched by cancer should take a look. The positive message of determination and hope make it a captivating book.

An extraordinary story, well told.
Lance Armstrong's life is a fascinating tale and Sally Jenkins tells it very well. The basic outline is well known. From a tough background in Texas, Armstrong entered the world of professional cycling and won the world road racing championship. It appeared that he had a great career ahead of him but in 1996 he was struck by testicular cancer. By the time that he visited a doctor, the cancer was advanced and had spread to his lungs and brain. Despite the poor prognosis, he recovered from the disease and went on to return to the highest levels of professional cycling and win the Tour de France, the sport's blue ribbon event.

Sally Jenkins is an accomplished sports writer and she has done a fine job to render Armstrong's story into a gripping and fluid read. I finished this book in one sitting and I think that many readers will do the same. In terms of gritty detail, there is more about cancer treatment than about the Tour de France and the detail is explicit. Reading this book will give you a vivid picture of what it is like to face a course of chemotherapy.

I do not want to make a judgment on the man himself. Some readers will be in awe of his achievements while others will be exasperated by his faults. I cannot recommend this book as an inspirational read either. Anyone who can complete the Tour de France let alone win it posesses levels of physical and mental toughness that are so far beyond normal experience as to seem superhuman. Rather than being inspired, a cancer sufferer given this book to read could just as easily see the message that if you are superman, you can fight cancer. Seen instead as a fascinating tale the book is a compelling read.

Even if you have no interest in cycling, this book is still worth reading. I am very glad that I read it and I think that most people who pick it up will feel the same way.

You will probably want to buy one of the later editions as they contain additional material relating to Armstrong's second tour win in 2000.