By Gillian Tan
When the world tunes into Oprah Winfrey’s pre-recorded interview with Lance Armstrong on Thursday, it’ll already be Friday in Australia.
If all goes to plan, second-seed Roger Federer will be preparing for his third-round match at the Australian Open, the hunting ground for four of his 17 Grand Slam titles.
- Associated Press
- Roger Federer
Speaking after a swift 6-2, 6-4, 6-1 opening-round win over Frances’ Benoit Paire on Tuesday, the world No. 2 said that though he hasn’t followed competitive cycling closely, he’d be interested in hearing what Armstrong has to say.
“I’d be intrigued just to hear the interview. There has been a lot of talk about it, and obviously, you know, a lot of focus on Lance and the cycling part,” said Federer. “It’s obviously been a difficult situation for the whole of the sport and for him and all the people involved.”
The 31 year-old Swiss, who is also president of the ATP Tour Player Council, voiced his thoughts on drug-testing in tennis during the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London two months ago.
“I feel I am being tested less now than six or seven years ago and I do not know the exact reasons why we are being tested less,” he told the press at the time, adding the frequency of such tests was insufficient.
- Getty Images
- Click here to see more photos from the Australian Open.
Both Federer and third-ranked Andy Murray have come out in favor of more frequent blood-based drug tests, rather than just the urine-based variety.
“You just want to make sure you can completely rule anything like that out in your own sport…I love tennis, you would hate for anything like that to happen to your own sport,” the Scot said in November, referring to the damaged perception of professional cycling.
Murray also cruised through his first round on Tuesday, taking 14 minutes longer than Federer to dispatch his Dutch opponent, Robin Haase, 6-3, 6-1, 6-3.
Nowhere else to go, banned form sport, Lance Armstrong is a sleazy liar with mental health issues. Up until recently his army of Texan lawyers insisted he was innocent depsite a mountain of evidence showing he had been a drug cheat for years……
What a disgrace.
NFL is also riddled with dope cheats.
Lance Armstrong disgusts me.
Why is the disgraced, banned, drug cheat Lance Armstrong being interviewed by Oprah Winfrey?
Stripped of all his titles its time he paid back all those millions of dollar$ and was put behind bars.
Lance Armstrong is a criminal and a disgrace to the United States of America.
The Godfather of dope cheats, Armstrong bullied other cyclists into taking illegal drugs.
You either took the drugs to keep up or you quit the sport. A generation of fine athletes gave up on cycling because they where unable to compete and not prepared to take the dishonest path of cheating their body and the sport of cycling by doping.
Armstrong is a steaming pile of excrement. Lance…. Pay back all the money you stole.
Lance Armstrong is a nasty evil drug cheat who should be in Jail.
Filthy scum.