Let’s take a glance at cycling. The Tour de France developed more popularity in America than ever with Lance Armstrong. It gave the US someone to pull for: an American overcoming the odds of cancer who still managed to dominate a grueling competition over and over again. Without Lance, most people couldn’t name five riders in the tour. The only time the tour ever gets any serious coverage is when, like a few stages ago, a car slams into several bikers. And even then, it’s not to cover the race, but instead to laugh hysterically at bikers flying into a barbed wire fence. (That may sound awful, but it truly was hilarious to watch. If you haven’t seen the video, watch it now.)
Last year Lance rode again. It was a stunt for his foundation against cancer. He didn’t have much chance to win, but people tuned in just to see him one last time. It was a lot like watching Michael on the Wizards. He wasn’t going to dominate everyone like in his prime, but at the end of the day people still loved to see MJ out on the court.
Now that Lance is gone, one of the premier sporting events of the summer is suddenly uneventful. Fans don’t have anyone to watch, and for the most part, don’t know what’s going on. Cycling without Lance is bland. It’s a lot like golf without Tiger, which brings me to my next point.
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