Bradley Wiggins brands Lance Armstrong a ‘great inspiration’ in drug addiction battle
The 2012 Tour de France winner paid tribute to Armstrong, who was stripped of his cycling titles for using performance-enhancing drugs
Sir Bradley Wiggins has called disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong an "inspiration" and thanked him for his support while the five-time Olympic champion battled drug addiction.
Wiggins revealed last month that he became addicted to cocaine following his retirement from cycling in 2016.
The 2012 Tour de France winner, who is now 12 months sober and attends regular therapy sessions, paid tribute to Armstrong, who was stripped of his cycling titles for using performance-enhancing drugs.
When asked about his relationship with Armstrong, Wiggins told BBC Five Live: “He’s been a great strength to me and a great inspiration to me, and it’s on a human level.
“Lance has been very, very good to me. That’s not something everyone wants to hear because people only like to hear the bad stuff.
“You can only take someone how they treat you and Lance has been a source of inspiration to me and a constant source of help towards me.
“And is one of the main factors why I’m in this position I am today mentally and physically, so, I’m indebted to him for that.”
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Wiggins admitted he does not speak with Armstrong every day, but will work for him this summer on his podcast The Move at the Tour de France.
The 45-year-old father-of-two has been candid since retirement about the sexual abuse he experienced as a teenager and his drug addiction.
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“We are all humans at the end of the day and it is a human story and I’ve had lots of events in my life that informed the problems I had in my life post-cycling,” Wiggins explained.
“I’d never had therapy or counselling during my time as a cyclist because you’re perceived as a cyclist – or certainly when you’re an Olympic champion or the Tour de France winner – to be incredibly mentally strong.
“It took me a long time to adapt to normal life, as it were, and all the things that contribute to keeping me in a steady place.”