Knight Ridder Newspapers

AUGUSTA, Ga. – He’s made a career of doing the impossible.

Lance Armstrong beat life-threatening testicular cancer and then won the 1999 Tour de Georgia. He bested history by capturing the 2004 Tour de France, his record sixth straight.

Now, Armstrong is racing time – and the odds – in trying to capture cycling’s grandest prize one more time as he rides into the sunset. Armstrong, 33, announced Monday that he would retire after this year’s Tour de France.

“Whenever I watch sports, no matter what sport it may be, I love to see the guy go out on top. I’d love to try and do that,” Armstrong said on the eve the Tour de Georgia, an event he won last year.

“The passion is there and the will to win another one is there. Above all, this will to win one final one and then stop is pretty important to me.”

It’d be a Hollywood ending for Armstrong’s fairytale career. It’s also a lot easier than it sounds. If Armstrong wins, he’d be the oldest cyclist in modern history to capture the sport’s premier event against a deep, young crop of competitors just itching to knock off the champ.

While a loss certainly wouldn’t diminish Armstrong’s legacy in cycling or American culture, the fear of losing drives him.

“All champions are concerned about losing. That’s the fear that drives them. That’s the fear that gets them up early. I don’t want to lose number seven,” Armstrong said.

“It’s great to win, but it’s tough. It’s even tougher to lose. To look at your teammates and staff and sponsors and try to justify why you didn’t win, especially in a year like this when you had won six times prior. I don’t want to face those types of questions from people very close to me. It’s incredibly motivating.”

Not that he needs any more. Though Armstrong set the Tour de France record with last year’s sixth victory, he clearly knows the drama and historical context of leaving on top of his sport.

“He’s as motivated as ever, so I assume, like he said, that if he’s at the Tour, he’ll be there to win. He won’t go to be humiliated,” said Floyd Landis, a former Armstrong teammate who now heads Phonak.

There are reasons to question the quest for No. 7. He’ll face constant scrutiny from the European press, seemingly eager to confirm suspicions of performance-enchancing drug use. Last year, Armstrong received death threats during the race.

And, after all, Armstrong is retiring to spend more time with his three young children – son, Luke (5), and twin daughters, Grace and Isabelle (3). He admitted the longing to be with them while away in Europe racing, and training is “more difficult” now than ever before.

“The biggest inspiration in my life and the biggest inspiration in this decision has been my children,” he said. “They’re the ones who make it easier to struggle (during training) and they’re also the ones who taught me it’s time to come home.”

But those closest to Armstrong have little doubt that he’ll be more than ready – mentally and physically – to put the exclamation point on his spectacular career.

“He’s a person who when he gets focused and he has an objective in front of him, that’s all that’s in his mind,” said Johan Bruyneel, the executive director of Armstrong’s team for all six of his previous Tour de France victories.

“It’s going to be a motivating factor. The fact that he knows it’s going to be his last one and he wants to win his last one, I think it’s going to push him more.”