Cycling legend Lance Armstrong was attracted to make his competitive comeback in Australia because of its government’s position on cancer research.
The seven-time Tour de France champion confirmed on Wednesday he will launch his comeback to road racing in South Australia's UCI ProTour Tour Down Under next January.
Armstrong, 37, who successfully battled testicular cancer in 1996, retired from riding in 2005, but has dedicated his comeback to his ‘Livestrong’ cancer prevention campaign.
The cycling great has become a passionate and high-profile campaigner for greater attention to cancer, which he said would kill eight million people this year, but could be dramatically curbed.
Reports said the South Australian state government's position on cancer treatment was crucial to getting the Texan to commit to the Australian race.
South Australian Premier Mike Rann said he spoke to Armstrong’s management regarding the state's cancer research and treatment credentials and promised to support Armstrong in his mission.
Rann told reporters: ‘We are happy to join with him in supporting those causes.
The Sydney Morning Herald said while Armstrong will visit Australia as part of Kazakhstan's Astana team, sanctioned by the Union Cycliste International and not as an individual, he has been offered a package that includes a number of initiatives aimed at supporting his global cancer campaign.
The newspaper said: ‘His management was impressed by the government's position on cancer research, especially the construction of the Marjorie Jackson Nelson Hospital and the link with the (Australian) Olympic athlete's husband Peter Nelson, a former Olympic cyclist who she met at the 1952 Games and died from leukaemia in 1977.
Rann predicted Armstrong's high profile would attract as many international visitors to Adelaide as the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games, for which organisers estimated 45,000 visitors came from overseas.
The premier declined to reveal how much the Tour Down Under was paying the American superstar to race, but said he expected Armstrong's presence would double the 17 million dollars (14 million US dollars) reaped by the event this year.
Armstrong told a New York conference of celebrity activists on Wednesday that cancer was ‘a global health concern.’
He said: ‘By racing the bicycle all over the world, beginning in Australia, ending in France, it's the best way, the best way to get the word out.
‘This is the campaign to spread the word, spread awareness and hopefully save lives.’
The Tour Down Under, raced around Adelaide's environs, runs from January 18 to 25 next year.
