Sports
The Battalion Page 3 • Monday, July 26, 2004
Golden Boy
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Lance Armstrong wins unprecedented sixth straight Tour de France
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By John Leicester
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Lance Armstrong raced onto the crowd-lined
]hamps-Elys v ees as a yellow blur, bathed in the
himmering light of a 24-carat, gold-leaf bike, a
olden helmet and the race leader’s yellow jersey.
Earlier, he let up on the pedals long enough to
ip some celebratory champagne. Nothing but the
)est for cycling’s best.
Armstrong rode into history Sunday, winning
record sixth Tour de France and cementing his
jlace as one of the greatest athletes of all time.
Never in its 101-year history has the Tour had a
vinner like Armstrong, who just eight years ago was
;iven less than a 50 percent chance of overcoming
esticular cancer that spread to his lungs and brain.
His streak of six straight crowns has helped
einvigorate the greatest race in cycling, steering it
nto the 21st century. And the Tour, as much a part
)f French summers as languid meals over chilled
ose, molded Armstrong into a superstar.
Taking advantage of the leisurely pace of the
inal stage, Armstrong sat up in the saddle and
teld up all five fingers on his black-gloved right
rhe: land and the index finger on his left.
“It might take years. I don’t know. It hasn’t
eyiftunk in yet. But six, standing on the top step on
lowin! he podium on the Champs-Elys'ees, is really
tic hi ipecial,” he said.
The ride into Paris and its famous tree-lined
ivelyi 3oulevard was a lap of honor Armstrong savored
with the champagne. Even Jan Ullrich, his main
dversary in previous years, gulped down a glass
- Aggie graduate
By John Lowery
THE BATTALION
About 15 miles southwest of College Station, a
little past Snook, down long winding rust-colored
roads hedged with corroded water tanks, Connie
Smotek stood posing with her shotgun under the
simmering afternoon sun.
As a photographer snapped photos of the
A&M graduate who is heading to the Olympics
this August to compete in women’s skeet shoot
ing, a curious jackrabbit approached Smotek
Hfrom behind. Not intimidated by Smotek’s 5-
W. foot-6-inch frame that stands only a foot or
two taller than her shotgun, the animal didn’t
realize the precarious situation he put himself in
by approaching a nine-time national champion
who, in her free time, practices blasting skeet
>M { with pin-point accuracy. But who’s to blame the
.ininformed bunny; would any of us recognize a
skeet shooting Olympian?
“Not so much in the general public,” said Smotek
on the frequency of shotgun sport athletes being
ecognized. “We go to Europe in the areas where we
rompete and people know who we are — especially
n Italy because shotgun sports are more an everyday
tctivity and they’re so widely televised. No, we’ll
is t lever get the recognition Lance Armstrong gets, but
f* 1011 ' )eople in he communities where we frequent tend
:o recognize us.”
Being involved in a sport where the majority of
ainstream exposure is from the 1987 duck hunting
video game for Nintendo is not a major concern
^^br the two-time Olympian. It’s abundantly clear
Hn spending only a small amount of time with the
TWlown-to-earth Texas woman that fame or national
IjjBttention is not on the forefront of her mind. Smotek
simply passionate about shotgun sports and teach-
ng others about them.
Smotek was the first female member of the 4-
!. He
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Franck Prevel • ASSOCIATED PRESS
Lance Armstrong rides past U.S. flags on Champs-Elys’ ees avenue during the final stage of the Tour de France.
offered by Armstrong’s team manager through
his car window.
“The last laps there, I thought, ‘Ah, I want to
get this over with,”’ Armstrong said. “But then I
thought to myself, ‘You know, you might want to
do a few more laps, because you may not ever do
it again.’ And you can’t take it for granted.”
With the Arc de Triomphe in the background,
Armstrong put his yellow bicycle cap over his
heart during the raising of the American flag
and playing of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” It
might be his last time on the podium, at least for
a while. Armstrong has said he might skip the
sport’s showcase event next year.
Belgian rider Tom Boonen won the final sprint,
with Armstrong cruising safely behind with the
trailing pack to claim his title. Armstrong’s winning
margin over second-placed Andreas Kloden was 6
minutes, 19 seconds, with Italian Ivan Basso in third
(6:40). Ulrich was fourth (8:50), his worst time.
Armstrong opened a new page for the Tour in
1999, just one year after the race faced its worst
doping scandal, ejecting the Festina team after
police caught one of its employees with a stash
of drugs.
Armstrong’s victories and his inspiring come
back from cancer have drawn new fans to a race
that has been won five times by four other riders.
His professionalism, attention to detail, gruel
ing training regimens and tactics have raised the
bar for other riders hoping to win the three-week
cycling marathon.
“He’s changed the Tour forever,” fellow
American rider Bobby Julich said. “He has set the
blueprint for success, and he deserves all the suc
cess that he is getting.”
Armstrong joked and chatted with team
mates who wore special blue jerseys with yellow
stripes. They stretched in a line across the road
with their leader for motorcycle-riding photog
raphers to record the moment. The team was the
muscle behind Armstrong’s win, leading him in
grueling mountain climbs, shielding him from
crashes and wind, and keeping him stoked with
drinks and food.
takes aim for gold at Olympics
Brian Wills • THE BATTALION
Connie Smotek takes a break from practicing for the Olympics.
Smotek will be participating in her second Olympic games.
H Sportsmen Club, the largest club
of its kind in the nation. She is
still actively involved in the club,
helping children develop the skills
necessary to compete in her sport.
Her credentials are long and impres
sive, including a bronze medal from
the 1989 World Championships, five
national skeet championships and
being a member of the 1982 World
Championship team. She was also
named USA Shooting’s female shot
gun athlete of the year prior to her
skeet championship victories in 1991
and 1992, when she set a women’s
skeet world record of 196/200 at the
1992 World Cup in Mexico.
This summer, Smotek said she
would like to add an Olympic gold
medal to her list of achievements.
“In ’92, I was one of six women
to compete with and against men in
the skeet even,” said Smotek of her
prior Olympic experience in which
she finished 25th. “In 2000 women
have their own skeet and trap events,
so this will be the first time to com
pete with my peers.”
In preparation for this Smotek said
she maintains focus through practice.
“Lots of shooting, lots of men
tal training, lots of visualization,”
Smotek said. “Trying to be as pre
pared as possible for any and every
thing that could happen, learning to deal with
the hype of the games, handling the ups and
down and learning to be flexible because you
don’t know what’s going to become an issue at
the Olympic Games. Typically that’s where ath
letes get in trouble: with the hype of the games.
Otherwise it’s just another day of practice,
another day at the range.”
Smotek believes these mental preparation and
strategy will give her the edge on getting gold,
which is a step in the right direction for the growth
of her sport.
“Success at the international level and media cov
erage of the game at an international level is a huge
thing,” Smotek said.
SPORTS IN BRIEF
Aggies earn Big 12 honors
Texas A&M senior wide receiver Terrence
Murphy and junior defensive back Jaxson
Appel were selected by the media to the Big
12 Preseason All-Conference team.
Murphy, who established a school record
last season with 1,538 all-purpose yards,
was named to the offensive squad as a
kick returner. Murphy earned the team’s
offensive MVP distinction in 2003 along with
first-team all-Big 12 honors. Murphy’s kickoff
return average of 27.2 yards per return led
the Big 12 last year.
Appel established a school record for
defensive backs last year with 135 tackles
and was named to the all-Big 12 second
team. He started all 12 games at free safety
while just a sophomore and was selected
A&M’s defensive MVP.
Golfers named as scholars
Three members of the Texas A&M wom
en’s golf team were recently named to the
2003-04 National Golf Coaches Association
All-American Scholar Team.
Senior Nicole Melton, junior Brenda Norris
and sophomore Christa Spedding earned the
award, which requires recipients to maintain a
minimum GPR of 3.5 while competing in at least
66 percent of their team's competitive rounds.
Melton earned second team all-Big 12 hon
ors to lead the Aggies to a second-place fin
ish at the Big 12 championships and a 23rd
place finish at the NCAA Championships.
Norris earned her second consecutive
Academic All-American title, while Spedding
became only the third freshman to receive
the award. It is the first time in A&M history
that three athletes have been named to the
Golf All-American Scholar Team.
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