Lance Armstrong Not Competing in Tour of Missouri

“We’re amazed at how quickly the stature of the race has gone through the roof,” said Chris Aronhalt of Medalist Sports, which manages the race. “On the other hand, we’re not surprised because of the hunger for cycling in the U.S.”

The hunger has been satisfied by two stage races that have become magnets for the world’s best riders, with more Americans and more U.S.-based teams racing at the top level, and more races on the horizon.

No one feeds the beast quite like Lance Armstrong, who returned to cycling after more than three years, finished third in the Tour de France, and boosted TV ratings and attendance at smaller races he has entered.

“Thankfully, he’s drawn more attention to our sport in the last year,” said Sean Petty, chief operator of USA Cycling. “We’ve felt his presence in so many ways. He’s kept cycling on the front page.”

Armstrong won’t compete in Missouri because of a commitment to a charity ride in Montreal on Friday. Still, the Tour of Missouri, which starts in St. Louis on Monday, has attracted other top Americans.

USA Cycling also reported record membership increases at the grass-roots level. Licensed riders increased 5 percent this year to an all-time high of nearly 65,000. In the years of Armstrong’s retirement, membership increased no more than 3 percent a year.

“Lance just gets people excited about riding,” Petty said.

More quality riders have led to more teams. For the first time, two U.S.-based teams, Columbia-HTC and Garmin-Slipstream, compete this year on the Pro Tour, receiving automatic bids to the biggest races. Armstrong hopes to join the Pro Tour next year with his new Team RadioShack.

“Without Lance, Radio Shack wouldn’t be in the sport,” Petty said. “He’ll attract riders for a top-quality team. Who could have imagined that we’d even be talking about three Pro Tour teams in the U.S.? It’s a sign of strength.”

Excerpts of an article by Kathleen Nelson at stltoday.com

Lance Armstrong Not Competing in Tour of Missouri