A Tweet And A Test For Lance

Lance Armstrong returns; cycling comeback starts in Australia January 19, 2009 - Members of the media surround Lance Armstrong and other riders on Sunday in Adelaide, Australia, before the start of the Cancer Council Classic, a prelude to the Tour Down Under. Image Credit: Jamie McDonald / AFP / Getty Images

A Tweet And A Test For Lance

After spending the weekend in Los Angeles participating in a fundraising event in conjunction with NIKE and many trendy young artists at the Motalban Theater called "Stages", Lance Armstrong flew to Nice France to train and catch up with his team. He was there about 36 hours when he launched this Tweet!

A Twitter logged 3-11-2009 12:pm PT:

Sitting down and eating dinner and guess what? Knock knock. Anti-doping control. This is the 23rd one since the comeback.

This is important to note because Lance officially began his comeback about the time Barack Obama took the oath of office to become the President of the United States.

Using January 19, 2009 as the time that the Lance Rides Again Comeback actually started, and today being March 11, 2009 ... that makes it that Lance Armstrong can expect an avarage of one test request per 2.26 days.

Contador Retains Yellow Jersey in Nice - Posted by Astana Cycling | Mar 9, 2009 12: 0 AM PDT - Image Credit: LAF

The next time anyone says that Lance rides dirty remember the above statistic ... Lance Armstrong has the strongest case I've ever heard of to lay claim as the most drug tested athlete on Earth ... and of all time.

In the run up to the 2009 Tour de France, the testing will only become more frequent giving a reason why Mr. Armstrong probably has the best first name ever for this type of intensive scrutinity.

That's right ... LANCE!

Blood test, please, Mr. Armstrong.

Lance Armstrong Says "Thank You LA" From Stages Event

Lance Armstrong leads approximately 700 cycling enthusiasts through the streets of the East side of Hollywood 2.2 miles to the Montalban Theater and the Stages event. Stages, a global art exhibition and sale event, sponsored by NIKE, provides a new way to support the Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF) and its LIVESTRONG Global Cancer Campaign. Image Credit: Lance Armstrong via Twitter (2009)

Lance Armstrong Says "Thank You LA" From Stages Event

After Hope Rides Again 2-mile cycling tour in Los Angeles Saturday afternoon, the 7-time Tour de France champion and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong declared a new global initiative to combat cancer. Along side Mark Parker, CEO & President of Nike, activist/artist Shepard Fairey, Barry McGee and others, the announcement was made among 700 people in attendance at the Montálban Theatre. To kick-off the event, an official unveiling took place for Shepard Fairey’s latest work, inspired by Lance Armstrong.

Nike Sportswear + Lance Armstrong - "Stages" Touring Art Exhibition Supporting Livestrong from Stephen Wong on Vimeo

"This year, it's about more than winning the race. It's about people coming together to use our talents and abilities for a cause bigger than ourselves and doing everything within our power to help those in their fight to overcome cancer," said Lance Armstrong. "This endeavor will help raise awareness and much needed funds for the foundation and those who need it most, researchers, patients, and their families."

TREK cycle stylized by street/pop artist, KAWS. Lance Tweeted - "OMG. My new Trek Madone that KAWS designed. Wow. Speechless." - Image Credit: Lance Armstrong via Twitter (2009)

The new initiative, titled Stages, is a global art exhibition, of which more than 20 of the world’s most influential contemporary artists will showcase artworks specifically created for the exhibition tour. Some of artists to participate include Shepard Fairey, Damien Hirst, Tom Sachs, Barry McGee, Marc Newson, and more, with the first leg of the tour at Emmanuel Perrotin Gallery in Paris on July 16th, 2009. All works will go on sale with proceeds toward Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF) in the fight against caner. Other legs on the Stages: Global Art Exhibition include New York, Portland, Oregon, and Los Angeles.

To further contribute in the fight against cancer, Nike also announced 2 new athletic wear collections: Hope Rides Again - apparel and footwear collection and Greatest Hits footwear pack, with all proceeds going to LAF.

The extraordinary list of participating artists will also include:
Geoff McFetridge | Raymond Pettibon | José Parlá | Ed Ruscha | KAWS | Christopher Wool | Dzine | Eric White | Barry McGee | Kenny Scharf | Os Gêmeos | Marc Newson | Rosson Crow | Taryn Simon | JR | Yoshitomo Nara | Suejin Chung | Lari Pittman | Aaron Young | Jules de Balincourt | Takashi Murakami

Additional Tweet by Lance Armstrong - "At the end of the event here at the Montalban [Theater, Stages Event]. My boy Ben Harper and Relentless 7 performing. Love him like a brother." Image Credit: Lance Armstrong viw Twitter (2009)

A great time was had by all, starting with Ben Stiller to open and Relentless 7 toward the end!

Next up, it was announced at last night's NIKE event at the Montalban Theater, news of the upcoming “Stages” art show that will debut at GALLERIE EMMANUEL PERROTIN in Paris on July 16th, 2009 during the 2009 Tour de France.

Lance leaves LA, for now ... final Tweet, 6:45 pm PT:

At LAX flying to Europe. Had one of those video/papparazzi dudes here asking dumb questions. Felt bad for the guy, he needs better material.

Additional Photos Of The Nike Sportswear Livestrong Collection>>