In Paris, It's Vive le Lance

Texan Claims 5th Tour de France Title

PARIS, July 27 -- Lance Armstrong, the Texan known as much for surviving cancer as for being a superstar athlete, overcame two crashes, a dangerous near-miss, and an array of determined opponents to become only the second man, and the first American, to claim five successive Tour de France victories in the event's 100-year history.

Armstrong's victory today, by a margin of only 61 seconds after more than 83 hours of racing across 2,128 miles, was his toughest of the five and capped what emerged as the most dramatic and unpredictable Tour in recent memory, with the champion not determined until the penultimate stage Saturday.

Before the race began July 5 in Paris, there were fears of terrorism and concern about possible hostile reaction in France to a defending American champion during a time of transatlantic tension because of the war in Iraq. But in the end, the only drama came from the race itself.

"It's incredible to win again," Armstrong said.

Speaking in French to local television, he said shortly after his victory, "I'm very happy because I'm finished and I'm very tired."

Only Miguel Indurain, a Spanish Basque rider, has also won five straight Tours, dominating the race from 1991 to '95. Armstrong became only the fifth rider to win the Tour five times; Frenchmen Bernard Hinault and Jacques Anquetil, and Belgian Eddy Merckx each claimed five titles in non-consecutive years.

Armstrong, competing in his ninth Tour at age 31, rode safely with the peloton today onto the sun-splashed and flag-bedecked Champs-Elysees, Paris's grandest and best-known boulevard, and took his place among the pantheon of cycling greats, winning with a combination of tenacity, talent and, this year, luck and the ability to outlast his opponents.

He was never able to dominate this year's race as he did in the past, benefiting when three of his toughest rivals took bad falls. One, American Tyler Hamilton, continued to ride despite a broken collarbone and even won a stage, but was never a threat. Another, Spaniard Joseba Beloki, who was attacking in the mountains, crashed and was forced from the race. And German rider Jan Ullrich, who won the 1997 Tour and was Armstrong's most formidable opponent, skidded and fell on a turn during Saturday's time trial in the rain in Nantes, leaving Armstrong unstoppable.

It was the Armstrong-Ullrich duel that had spectators transfixed to the end.

"I feel like I dodged a lot of bullets," said Armstrong, who intends to race for a sixth straight title next year. "This Tour took a lot out of me. I was not on top of my game. Sometimes you have to survive in order to win, and I was able to do that."

But at the moment that counted, on Monday at a mountain ski station in the Pyrenees, Armstrong showed a champion's drive. He was knocked to the ground when his handlebar caught on a spectator's bag, and for a few brief seconds it appeared his Tour hopes had crashed as well. But he quickly remounted his bike and, pushed on by an adrenaline rush, won the stage -- his only stage victory -- and took control of the Tour.

Ullrich, 29, finished second today with Kazakhstan's Alexandre Vinokourov third.

Ullrich's surprisingly strong showing, coming back to cycling after a doping ban and a knee injury, sets the stage for another potentially tough showdown next year, when Armstrong, who will turn 32 in September, will attempt an unprecedented sixth consecutive victory against rivals who this year saw an Armstrong who looked surprisingly vulnerable.

Armstrong has already promised to be back.