Armstrong makes first speech since USADA doping report

US cycling star Lance Armstrong
says he has been through a
"difficult couple of weeks" as he
faces a catalogue of cheating
allegations.
But he did not refer directly to the
scandal in his first speech since the
US Anti-Doping Agency named him
as the central figure in a major
doping ring.
The 41-year-old was speaking at a
Texas event to mark the 15th
anniversary of his cancer charity,
Livestrong.
He maintains he is innocent, and
urged supporters to keep up their
work.
The US Anti-Doping Agency
published a 1,000-page report last
week saying he had been at the heart
of "the most sophisticated,
professionalised and successful
doping programme" ever seen in
sport.
Armstrong's lawyer has described
the report as a "one-sided hatchet
job".
'Not deterred'
At Friday's Livestrong event in his
home city of Austin, Armstrong urged
supporters of the charity to keep the
work going.
"It's been a difficult couple of weeks,
for me, for my family, for my friends,
for this foundation," he said. "I've
been better... but I've also been
worse."
Since he founded the charity in 1997
- after being diagnosed with testicular
cancer but before he first won the
Tour de France - it has raised nearly
$500m for survivors' programmes
and raising cancer awareness.
Livestrong says Friday's gala event -
attended by 1,500 guests including
Hollywood stars Sean Penn and
Robin Williams - raised $2.5m
(£1.6m) for the charity.
"Thank you so much for your
support, it means the world to me, to
all of us," said Armstrong. "We will
not be deterred, we will move
forward."
He resigned as its chairman last week
in an effort to distance Livestrong
from his doping allegations.
Sportswear giant Nike and brewer
Anheuser-Busch were among the
companies who this week
announced they were ending their
sponsorship of Armstrong, while
continuing to back his foundation.
The USADA has demanded
Armstrong be banned from cycling
for life and stripped of his seven Tour
de France titles.
Armstrong, who lives in Austin,
retired from professional sport in
2011.
On the basis of Friday's event, the
cyclist still has his supporters, says
the BBC's James Pearce in Texas,
although these days they can be
counted in their thousands rather
than the tens of millions.
Those who travelled to applaud his
speech left none the wiser about the
lies that Armstrong appeared to tell
them over the years, adds our
correspondent.
He is expected to address some
4,000 cyclists at the start of the
annual fundraising Livestrong
Challenge race through the centre of
Austin.