Seven Deadly Sins: My Pursuit of Lance Armstrong

by David Walsh

The story of Lance Armstrong - the cyclist who recovered from testicular cancer and went on to win the Tour de France a record seven times, the man who wrote a bestselling and inspirational account of his life, the charitable benefactor - seemed almost too good to be true. And it was.

As early as Armstrong's first victory on the Tour in 1999, Sunday Times journalist David Walsh had reason to think that the incredible performances we were seeing from Armstrong were literally too good to be true. Based on insider information and dogged research, he began to unmask the truth. Cycling's biggest star used every weapon in his armoury to protect his name. But he could not keep everyone silent.

In the autumn of 2012, the USADA published a damning report on Armstrong that resulted in the American being stripped of his seven Tour victories and left his reputation in shreds. Walsh's long fight to reveal the truth had been vindicated. This book tells the compelling story of one man's struggle to bring that truth to light against all the odds.

Genres: Nonfiction, Cycling, Sports, Biography, Journalism, Crime, Autobiography

451 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2012

Reviews

[Catherine Howard · Rating 3 out of 5]

(3.5 stars, Kindle)

Having not known what a peloton was a few months ago (and having never watched a minute's worth of cycling before the Olympics), the Lance Armstrong doping scandal has had me on a bit of a Tour de France/professional cycling book binge of late, and SEVEN DEADLY SINS by David Walsh, one of two Irish journalists (the other being Paul Kimmage) who refused to buy the Armstrong fairytale, is my latest.

The problem with this book is that, while fascinating, its writing was obviously rushed. It must have been: Armstrong was stripped of his titles in October 2012; this book came out in December. Journalists are used to producing against crazy deadlines, so that in itself is not something that would've bothered me, but in reading the book I definitely noticed—and was distracted by—some "first draft" sentences and, at times, a haphazard approach to chronology and repetitiveness, both in events and words. (An example: "His greatest case, the BALCO case, had unfolded right on his doorstep. His work in the infamous BALCO case, involving...") As I also downloaded the Kindle Single LANCED, which is a compilation of all The Sunday Times articles about "the shaming of Lance Armstrong" which included many by David Walsh, I had a direct comparison and could see a marked difference in the polish of the writing.

We all know now the details of what we went on. What everyone doesn't know is why we didn't know until now, i.e. the story of the journalists who covered the Tour and how they were implicit in Armstrong's con. That's why SEVEN DEADLY SINS is an important book: because it reveals what lawsuit threats, bullying and Armstrong's money tried to keep quiet all these years. I really wish Walsh had just taken his time.

In SEVEN DEADLY SINS he talks about an article he wrote about Lance that was vital in terms of evidence but which for whatever reason he rushed the writing of. "When I look back at that article," Walsh writes, "it was one of the worst I've written: too much information too poorly organized. So much good was spoiled by the end product."

Now while I don't think this book is quite *that* bad—I'd still recommend it—there's certainly a case for good being spoiled by a rush to publication.

Next up: THE RISE AND FALL OF DAVID MILLAR. And Lance's upcoming "tell all" (yeah RIGHT) Oprah interview...

[Bob Mayer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally. The crazy man has been exposed. He's not just crazy, he destroyed people's lives. I did a blog post about six months ago suggesting Lance Armstrong wasn't exactly a saint and got savaged so badly in the comments section, I withdrew the blog.

It would be just bad if he only affected himself. But he hurt many people. He accused people of things that weren't true while lying through his teeth.

What is interesting is Walsh's motivation for getting started on Lance-- his own personal trauma and then hearing the real Lance lash out many years ago.

Armstrong perjured himself repeatedly and deserves to go to jail, not just lose his money and be disgraced-- yet it is telling of his character that all he cares about now is being able to compete again! He's only sorry he got caught. He can compete running around the prison yard.

[Meg ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

when you write a book about a sociopathic bully and come out of it looking the bigger asshole, you’ve done something very wrong

[Stephen Huntley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Infuriating book. I was keen on it, given the positive reviews, but the first time I tried to wade through it I managed to page 115 and gave up. I felt it had been mis-sold; rather than a revelatory investigative piece on Armstrong it was a yawn-fest of an autobiography on a weak and untalented writer who clearly saw himself as some campaigning vigilante super-hero who was far superior in ability, ethics, personality and clean-living than any other journalist alive. Having just read the superb The Secret Race I thought I would once again give Seven Deadly Sins a try. It is so poor in the opening few pages that once again I'm wondering if its worth soldiering on. The opening is so boring it defies belief. I've got to page 15. There has just been a terrible 3-page anecdote about how Walsh was possibly chatted up by a bored housewife in France. It is a crap, irrelevant story, the sort of one that a sad loser would tell and everyone listening would smile and quickly look away and shake their heads. What is it doing in this book? In the opening pages? There is another full-page dreadful anecdote trying to explain that, while living and working in France, Walsh refuses to try and speak French. The arrogance is breathtaking, but once again, why is such a rotten story taking up space in this book? On page 10? Other pages have been peppered with his chuminess with two Irish cycling greats. It makes Walsh sound like a groupie fan-boy of the saddest type. I'm going to plough on, but my original foreboding of wasting hours on this awful stuff has returned.

[Marykay Pogar · Rating 1 out of 5]

Really hard to follow and given to sudden,inappropriately inserted moments of snark. Not worth reading unless you'd rather know more about why David Walsh is the bravest, most fearless sportswriter ever than how Lance Armstrong's doping was finally exposed.

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Walsh at his angry best. He brings up to date his tale of the vendetta waged against himself and Paul Kimmage by Armstrong until their vindication in 2012. A very honest account of an extraordinary investigation, giving full recognition to all those who did not believe the Armstrong myth that suckered so many people.

This would be a five star review but for two things.

First, it lacks an index which is a major no-no for a non-fiction book.

Second, Walsh has a much better book on the same subject; From Lance to Landis: Inside the American Doping Controversy at the Tour de France. It is extremely well-written and delves in much greater depth into the murky world of the Italian and Spanish doping doctors, plus also explains how young riders like Armstrong get groomed to join cycling's doping culture whilst still amateurs.

[Gurpal Cheema · Rating 5 out of 5]

Moral of the story - do the right thing

[Nichiless Dey · Rating 5 out of 5]

David Walsh's Sisyphus has finally emerged victorious over his eternal struggle with the boulder - half man, half media - named Lance Armstrong. Beautifully written, shocking, occasionally heartbreaking, often resulting in the 'ah, of course, now that makes sense' sigh, and a vindication, indeed beacon of hope, to all real journalists eking a living out there in the nether world that professional sport has become. Ask the questions that demand asking, without fear. Cycling is a truly great sport, once a leveller, it will be all the better for the eradication of the blind romanticism, myth-making and marketing that the wearying followers of Mammon seem to pedal each and every year. Thank you David.

[John Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The media needs people like David Walsh to keep the bastards honest. Lance Armstrong did not just commit sports biggest fraud, he used spin, lies, charm and marshmallow-soft people in the media and officialdom to destroy people. The whole episode was sickening. Walsh was like a dog with a bone, frustrated by a legal system that worked against him, but refusing to be muzzled and refusing to give up his bone. He only had to think back to the words of his late young son for inspiration. His son dared to ask his nativity teacher what happened to the gold the wise men brought Jesus? Where indeed? We need to keep asking curly questions in sport, politics, the bureaucracy, everywhere and not just accept the BS.

[Niamh Frost · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really enjoyed Walsh’s account of Armstrong’s deceit and ‘fall from grace’. The commitment and integrity from Walsh to expose Armstrong and stand up for what is right is most admirable and was certainly interesting to read about.

[Alaina · Rating 4 out of 5]

The obvious first: this book needs more editing. It has extensive grammar problems, including missing commas and tense shifts, that make it somewhat hard to read. That, combined with the slow start, almost made me give up. I'm glad I stuck with it though. The story picks up after the first few chapters, and once I was involved in the story the grammar didn't bother me as much.

As someone who became interested in cycling primarily because of Lance, I was shocked reading this book to realize how much information was out there from the very beginning about Lance doping, and how so many of the press looked the other way. In particular, I feel bad not to have believed Greg LeMond and Betsy and Frankie Andreu. Something I hadn't really thought about before, but that is brought out quite well in Walsh's book, is what should have happened after the Festina affair in 1998. What should have happened is that the UCI should have realized how widespread doping was and done everything possible to stop it. They should have set up rules allowing for EPO tests after the fact, knowing that a useful test for EPO was being developed during the 1999 Tour. They should have cracked down, but they didn't. They swept it under the rug just like before, spent the next decade pretending everything was fine, and thus were a part of the problem, not the solution, right up through USADA's Reasoned Decision.

Bottom line: if you want the whole story from the very beginning, David Walsh was there.

[Rob · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit of a disappointment. David Walsh has a point when he claims sports journalists are often 'fans with a typewriter'. There definitely is a need for a more critical approach.

Walsh is a critical investigator, but unfortunately he retains the style of a sports writer. Rather unstructured, elaborate and heroic prose. In this case the hero is Walsh himself.

Walsh only sings one theme, and has filled at least three books with it.

Not the ultimate book on modern cycling, that would be Tyler Hamilton's The Secret Race.

[Vfields Don't touch my happy! · Rating 3 out of 5]

The subject got 4 stars.
The writing got 3 stars for clumsiness.
I always knew he had done a bad thing.
I always knew what the bad thing was.
I didn’t know what a bad man he was and how many people he coerced, threatened, and downright damaged along the way.
He truly was cruel.
What really bothered me most was the fact that he really never paid for his crimes when others did.

[Marguerite Kaye · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lance Armstrong's conviction for using performance-enhancing drugs and the subsequent stripping of his 7 Tour de France titles, changed cycling forever (I hope, maybe). David Walsh was one of the consistently dissenting and questioning voices from the moment Armstrong came back from cancer, and won his first of the seven in a row. It took 12 years for the authorities, in the form of the USADA to finally convict Armstrong and a few more months after that for him to admit his guilt on the Oprah Winfrey show, during which time Walsh and many of the insiders brave enough to stand up and be counted, were villified, threatened and deprived of their livelihoods in some cases.

This book is awesome in its recounting of the story, of Walsh and the other detractors' pursuit of the man who was destroying the sport they loved. And that comes over so strongly - it wasn't that Armstrong was a baddie, it was what he was doing to the sport, his use of a terrifying cocktail of drugs so entrenched, and entrenched in is US Postal team mates too, that others had to do the same to compete. That is not to say Armstrong was single-handedly responsible for drug taking in sport at the time, because it was rife in athletics and swimming too, and standard practice in the Eastern bloc, but Armstrong led the field, he bullied others, and he was, to many, many people, a hero - coming back from cancer to triumph, and doing so much for cancer charities in the process. It's tough, trying to fell a hero.

I was riveted by Walsh's account of the struggle, and by the psyche of Armstrong himself - how could he do that to his body! But what detracted from my enjoyment of the book was the way it jumped around. It was a very, very personal account and I know there's tons of other books out there on the subject - which I haven't read. So you're inside Walsh's mind for much of the time, but the trouble is, you often don't have any context. I had to read this with my phone beside me, endlessly looking up references to other riders, other journalists, other news stories. I had to look the chronology of Armstrong's conviction up on Wikipedia. I got a lot of Walsh's pain and angst in this story but not enough of the actual story he was trying to tell.

Nonetheless, it was a riveting read. And a sad one. Because at the end of the day, despite all the cleaning up and the new dawn post-Armstrong, it makes you wonder - what's going on now. Is Podager really the wunderkind? See that's the problem with heroes. I want to believe he is. I cannot stand hearing others question him. And yet...

[Luana · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Professional cycling has always exercised an "omerta" and it has played a significant role in the endurance of a drug culture. But more than a code of silence is at work here and it is not coincidental that the Sicilian word has become so associated with the peloton, because when a rider breaks the code, he can expect a mafia-like response."

Questo libro ruota attorno alla ricostruzione di una, se non della, frode sportiva più clamorosa della storia. David Walsh è un giornalista irlandese, grande appassionato di ciclismo, ma che vedrà svanire presto la visione romantica che si è costruito di questo sport (la fatica, la sportività, la sfida ai propri limiti e tutto il resto) di fronte all'avanzata prepotente del doping. Ovviamente, quando si associano ciclismo e doping, il primo nome che salta alla mente è quello di Lance Armstrong, l'uomo che per anni è stato dipinto come il grande eroe americano, sopravvissuto ad un cancro gravissimo per tornare a dettare legge nella più grande competizione ciclistica europea, il Tour de France. Chi riesce a vincere la Grande Boucle entra nella storia, figurarsi a vincerne sette tutte di fila...peccato che nessuno di quei successi abbia mai avuto valore.
Walsh assiste incredulo alla clamorosa vittoria di Armstrong al Tour del 1999, quello che sarebbe dovuto essere il Tour della riscossa dopo il terribile scandalo doping scoppiato l'anno precedente (quando il team Festina era stato beccato con una macchina dal bagagliaio pieno di ogni sostanza dopante possibile immaginabile): per alcuni la vittoria di Lance è un vero miracolo, ma altri l'accolgono con grande scetticismo. Walsh fa parte di questo secondo gruppo e non lo fa per cattiveria, ma perché sono i dati cronometrici e i fatti a parlare forte e chiaro: tanto per dirne una, Armstrong non era mai stato uno scalatore, eppure farà da lì in poi incetta di vittorie nelle grandi tappe di montagna. Il 1999 segna l'anno di inizio di un vero e proprio regno del terrore, un sistema mafioso, durante il quale chiunque si fosse permesso di parlar male del nuovo dio del ciclismo, si sarebbe trovato a pagarne le conseguenze. Questo libro è in larga parte anche dedicato a descrivere le difficoltà vissute da quanti hanno osato dire la verità: i ciclisti che si spingevano a denunciare la cultura del doping ampiamente diffusa tra i ciclisti, vedevano la loro carriera fatta a pezzi (ostracizzati persino dai compagni di squadra); anche quelli già ritirati ma desiderosi di continuare a lavorare nel mondo delle due ruote, vedevano chiudersi in faccia tutte le porte. Nemmeno i giornalisti erano immuni a questo genere di vessazioni: a quanto pare lo staff di Armstrong era molto attento a individuare le voci fuori dal coro ed erano pronti a fare pressioni presso i relativi giornali per far fuori i "troll" (come li chiamava lui). Umiliazioni, angherie e minacce hanno seguito per anni tutti quelli che hanno parlato con David Walsh nel corso delle sue indagini.

Nel libro fanno una comparsata anche certi personaggi di nostra conoscenza, come l'ambiguo "Dottor" Michele Ferrari, l'uomo che aveva messo a punto il programma per l'utilizzo sistematico delle sostanze dopanti tanto amato da Armstrong, oltre ai relativi metodi per evitare di risultare positivi ai test dopo le gare. Dall'altro lato della barricata, compare la nemesi di questo cretino, ovvero Sandro Donati, grande sostenitore delle politiche antidoping e spina nel fianco, con le sue denunce, di molte istituzioni sportive, compreso il CONI. Da quanto ricostruisce Walsh, Armstrong iniziò a doparsi già verso il 1995 con l'aiuto di Ferrari...a dirla tutta, vien da chiedersi se tutte quelle schifezze che aveva in corpo non abbiano contribuito alla formazione del cancro che lo colpirà l'anno dopo. Peraltro la sua malattia gli fornirà spesso la scusa giusta per rimandare al mittente i sospetti sulle sue vittorie: ma scusate, dopo aver avuto una malattia del genere, non penserete mica che mi rovini prendendo sostanze pericolose, giusto? Sbagliato! Quello che emergerà dopo anni di testimonianze e indagini è il ritratto di un uomo troppo smanioso di vincere, di essere l'indiscusso numero uno e che, non riuscendo a raggiungere questo risultato con le sue sole forze, decide di prendere la via più breve. La US Postal, la squadra con cui ha vinto i Tour de France, era né più né meno che un'associazione a delinquere: tutti erano a conoscenza del giro di sostanze dopanti e tutti dovevano accettarlo senza fiatare, persino i familiari non facevano una piega a vedere questi pazzi che si riempivano delle peggio schifezze. Alla fine tutto questo sistema è stato smantellato non tanto dal coraggio di quanti, negli anni d'oro del regno di Armstrong, si erano fatti avanti per dire la verità, ma dal desiderio di rivalsa di Floyd Landis, l'uomo che si presentò all'USADA (l'agenzia statunitense anti-doping) a vuotare il sacco. Amico ed ex-compagno di Lance, nel 2006 Landis vinse il primo tour dell'era post-Armstrong, peccato che non chiamandosi Armstrong di cognome, la sua positività è saltata fuori subito.

Alcuni alla fine riescono a provare persino pena per Lance Armstrong che, fino all'ultimo, ha cercato di screditare i suoi accusatori, ma che poi ha dovuto cedere: per lui squalifica a vita dalle competizioni e annullamento di tutte le sue vittorie. Francamente non mi è dispiaciuto nemmeno un attimo per questo borioso mammasantissima americano che pensava di essere un novello Al Capone e di tenere in mano tutti i fili della situazione. Ancora più squallido è il mondo in cui, come qualcuno fa notare nel libro, ha "tenuto in ostaggio il mondo dei malati di cancro": si è fatto scudo della sua malattia, presentandosi come il paladino di quanti, nonostante le condizioni avverse, sono capaci di sognare in grande e centrare la vittoria. Peccato che degli altri malati di cancro non gliene fregasse un tubo, però farsi vedere in compagnia di queste persone, organizzare iniziative in favore della ricerca, faceva bene alla sua immagine e attirava sponsor.
Un'ultima parola anche sull'infamia delle grandi istituzioni ciclistiche, l'UCI (International Cycling Union) in testa e anche la WADA (sì, l'agenzia antidoping mondiale che oggi si diverte tanto a bacchettare i russi). Al momento della squalifica di Armstrong, anche loro gli voltarono le spalle, cercando di coprire il fatto che avevano spesso chiuso un'occhio nei confronti del ciclista americano: provette risultate positive, ma a cui non aveva fatto seguito nessuna sanzione. Ad aiutare saranno stati anche i versamenti fatti da Armstrong allo scopo di acquistare macchinari più efficienti per pescare tutti i disonesti...strumenti "gentilmente offerti" dal peggior truffatore di tutti!
Insomma, il nocciolo della questione è semplice: ci si incazza da morire leggendo questo libro, ma ne vale la pena, se non altro perché non tutto è perduto e ci sono ancora persone pronte a rischiare pur di non dover rinunciare alla loro integrità e onestà.

[Rishi Prakash · Rating 4 out of 5]

It takes a LOT to stand against a very popular and successful sports star at the peak of stardom. The author and the journalist-David Walsh- did that against all odds and finally came on top when the scandal was discovered after almost 10 long years where Lance Armstrong went on to win 7 consecutive Tour-de-France and re-wrote all the records of professional cycling world.

David Walsh lived and breathed the Lance Armstrong story for years--years when he reported (into a headwind!) facts that few wanted to know. He was abandoned by his fellow writers, ignored by most cycling fans and vilified by Lance Armstrong and his entourage of fanboys and lawyers.

This is an absolutely fascinating story yet troubling on many levels. It is not that hard to understand the cheating itself: in a culture where cheating is rampant, the watchdogs are looking the other way (even helping out), and there's a culture of omerta, it's almost hard to see how anyone could resist the temptation. What makes this story so deeply distressing is the combination of arrogance and viciousness (Lance), conspiracy (Weisel et al, UCI), gullibility (fans) and sycophancy (media) that allowed it not only to happen but to go on for well over a decade before the bizarre web of lies and cruelty finally blew up. Ultimately this story isn't about a guy who cheated to win a few races, it's about some very dark aspects of human nature: the desire to "win" at all costs, the corrupting power of money and influence, the strange need to turn flawed humans into heroes, and the fear of telling the truth when the truth is unpopular.

It is amazing to think how it lasted for so long in a sporting world when entire world was watching it so closely year after year while Lance Armstrong was slowly becoming a demi-God....

Thanks to my dear friend for finding this book on "Book Chor" :-)

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this book I wondered aloud at quite how this story was kept secret for as long as it was. Growing up I was blissfully unaware of all that was going on to do with Lance Armstrong and reading it from this new perspective was both freeing and judging in equal measure. This book once again reminds me of the undoubted value and power in journalism and how some choose to use it to retain the orders while other like David Walsh use it to reveal that the Emperor is indeed wearing no clothes. Thank god that he does and I hope I can aspire to be wary of anything that seems just too good to be true.

[Alessandro Argenti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una storia lunga diversi anni, un'ossessione altrettanto estesa. E questa è la testimonianza di chi con insistenza e determinazione ha svelato lo scandalo più famoso dello sport mondiale. Non ci sono retroscena ne tantomeno spiegazioni dettagliate, mancano i segreti e le dichiarazioni dei protagonisti, ma c'è tutto il resto. C'è, insomma, il buono contro il cattivo. Ed il lieto fine.

[Kristiāna · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘The greatest heist sport has ever seen.’ 🎭

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know I'm late to the game reading this, but I found it much more engrossing than I thought I would. I remember watching Armstrong win his Tours, and then the subsequent fall out when the truth came out - it was fascinating to read about it from an insider's point of view. The timeline of the writing seemed a bit jumbled occasionally, but otherwise, this was a compelling read.

[Roger · Rating 3 out of 5]

David Walsh, or the "little Troll" as he was referred to by Lance Armstrong, has written quite a bit on both Armstrong and doping in sport - famously, he co-authored L.A. Confidentiel, which in 2004 laid out the doping case against Armstrong pretty much as has been admitted by him early this year (after both the authors and sources of that book suffered legal harassment from Armstrong for years).

Seven Deadly Sins is a more personal work by Walsh, and is the story of his journey to prove that Armstrong doped his way to his Tour De France victories. The book concludes before Armstrong's admission on the Oprah Winfrey show, but after USADA handed down it's reasoned decision - the final section of the book is a collection of quotes from many of the actors in the saga on their reactions to the "final nail in the coffin" of the doping allegations.

If you've not followed the tortured history of the Armstrong saga, this book is a good place to start, as you not only get a history of Walsh's almost obsessive interest in getting this story, but a good overview of how the evidence built up over time, owing partly to some good journalism, but mostly to the arrogance and bullying of Armstrong, which turned people who might have been willing to stay silent against him.

This is not a book for the complete novice to professional cycling, as Walsh assumes a certain amount of knowledge, and it is written in classic journalese, which means it's easy to read, well-paced, but with a certain amount of cliche, usually when Walsh is describing a new character in the story.

And the story really is a classic moral tale, of facing decisions of right and wrong, truth and lying, and in how hubris brings about a downfall. All the ingredients of a great potboiler, but with the added frisson of being true.

A good read.

Check out my other reviews at http://aviewoverthebell.blogspot.com.au/

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many of my friends would be surprised to see me reading this book - perhaps not knowing that my personal fascination with the Tour de France specifically, and cycling more generally is something that goes back nearly 30 years. I was certainly one of the 'dupes' who wanted to believe in the magic, to accept the fairy tale happy endings of the man who beat cancer and then beat the Tour, not once but seven times. I bought the lies and the claims that everybody was just out to get Armstrong, that the French just hated a bloody Yank coming over and taking their race by storm. I was disgusted when the truth eventually came out and keen to know the depths to which this lying, cheating bully and his friends in high (and low) places would go to maintain the cover up of wide-spread doping in cycling.

Knowing the outcome, the 'whodunnit' if you like, doesn't always spoil a good mystery story and it certainly doesn't lessen the power of David Walsh's very personal account of his crusade to expose the lies and cheating of Lance Armstrong. Walsh could so easily have produced a volume of self-praising 'I told you so' writing, but he doesn't. Instead he pays homage to the good guys and girls who got trampled underfoot, the peleton riders whose careers were destroyed by bully-boy Armstrong and his heavies, the team members Armstrong stomped across in pursuit of his own personal distorted ambition and the broken bodies and ruined health of those around him.

Perhaps it's hard to believe but this really is the kind of book you can't put down as the pace and the evidence starts to build. As Armstrong hides behind his charity work as a so-called 'Cancer Jesus', as if thinking a bit of fund raising will somehow exempt him from playing by the rest of societies 'rules', the reader can't help but think that in the case of Lance Armstrong, the truth really can be stranger than fiction.

[Ramon van Dam · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting take on the hunt for Lance Armstrong, but it could have been a lot better. On several occasions this feels more like an autobiography by Walsh about himself and that's just not as interesting as the subject that the title promises us to be the main focus.

It is worth it as an in-depth explanation of all the tricks that Lance and his close associates used to cheat his way to the top though. I am a very big fan of the sport of cycling and doping is unfortunately a very big part of it. That has always been the case and I'm afraid that it will never completely go away.

This book shows why I've had issues with Armstrong from the moment he won his first Tour de France: it's not just that he used illegal methods (almost everybody did), but also the way he treated everybody that stood in his way and was simply the biggest bully he could be.

This book gives us a good summary, but has too much details about Walsh himself for my taste. The last couple of chapters are also not as interesting as the preceding sections and information is often repeated.

Recommended for people who love the sport and want to know more about the tactics of Armstrong and his team, but don't expect too much.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was really interesting, and Walsh is an engaging writer. It's not just an account of a couple of journalists' determination to expose doping in sport, but a sobering illustration of the power of the popular image of some sporting heroes. I knew little about what led to Armstrong's eventual exposure other than what had been reported in the mainstream media here, nor did I have any appreciation of how much courage it took for those who did speak out in the face of serious obstacles. At times the book switches abruptly from one particular point in time to another and then back, which was a little confusing; occasionally it was difficult to keep track of who was who - a list of names of relevant people and where they fitted in to the narrative of events would have been helpful; there were also times when I felt some of the information I'd just read had gone right over my head. The Kindle formatting in the final section (setting out the various reactions to USADA's findings and Armstrong's fall from grace) is rather odd - we go from italics, to regular font, to small font, without much white space. Overall though, I'm very glad I read this.

[Gumble's Yard - Golden Reviewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly good and original read despite all the source material being covered so many times over.

Particularly insightful and honest about areas such as: the timing of Armstrong's first tour win coming after the death of Walsh's son and Walsh and Kimmage taking a principled but unpopular stand against Michelle Smith; Walsh's obsession with Armstrong which causes even Paul Kimmage to eventually challenge it and a which sometimes reveals itself in amusing incidents such as when they launch a diatribe against a child wearing a Livestrong bracelet; the "see no evil" collusion of English speaking journalists such as John Wilkinson and the deliberate collusion of some l'Equipe journalists who indulge in pot belge parties with riders.

The area that is less directly addressed is the piecemeal circumstantial nature of Walsh's evidence compared to the confessions from allies ultimately sourced by Tygart and which (unlike Walsh's efforts) finally cracked the edifice Armstrong had constructed around himself.

[Alan Hamilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book and a truly rivetting read, even if you know nothing about cycling.
It presents the author's lengthy pursuit of Armstrong in fine, very readable detail and confirms Armstrong as a cheat and a liar long before the US Doping Agency case. It describes the lengths that powerful people go to to suppress the truth and how easy it is for lawyers to silence the 'trolls'.....especially in the UK.
It normally takes me a few weeks to read a book, but I got through this one in a couple of days. It's not hard to see why the author has many sportswriter of the year awards.
I am a sucker for a conspiracy theory, but was completely taken in by Lance Armstrong's cancer recovery story. I don't know how I missed Walsh's work.
Question everything - "what did Mary and Joseph do with the gold?" - brilliant!

[Ankur Maniar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good book written in a witty style by a journalist who was good enough not to loose his senses for thirteen years while the Lance Armstrong saga unfolded. David Walsh comes across as a genuine sports lover and especially a die hard cycling fan.. The investigation and the perseverance shown by him is extremely commendable. He is quite candid about his personal life during this time and shows us how a journalist with integrity has to work against all odds. Your impressions about Lance Armstrong, both professionally and personally would surely come crashing down.

[Fran · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Walsh's fascinating account into one of the biggest sporting frauds ever is never anything less than fascinating. Lance Armstrong whose biography I devoured long ago will forever be a source of disappointment but after reading this, which details all the bullying, the lies and his horrible attitude towards fellow riders and the press, I realise that I got off very lightly. David Walsh who was always mocked for not believing deserves eternal credit for sticking to his guns and my thanks go to him for relaying everything that happened in this great book.

[Katherine Coble · Rating 1 out of 5]

I bought this ($17.99 on Kindle! Steep...too steep) because it's the source material for the Lance Armstrong biopic due later this year (2015).
I was expecting a tense nail-biter of a story, something along the lines of _All The President's Men_. Instead I got tedious autobiographical details about Walsh. I don't need to know about his dinner out with a cyclist. I don't care about how he wheedled expenses out of the publications he wrote for. I decided I was done when he brings his tragically-killed son into it.

[Steph · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining read, following Walsh's investigative journey into Lance Armstrong's Tour de France success. I felt I was in trusted hands with David Walsh's journalism background and found myself at different times amused and appalled. I want to give this book to everyone who thinks that just because athletes pass their drugs tests that means they're not cheating.

After finishing the book I went and checked out Armstrong's twitter profile. I was pretty sickened to see that he still has "7 X TdF champ" on there. Don't tell David.