Lance Armstrong retires - again

Feb 17, 2011, 13:17 GMT

Berlin - American cycling star Lance Armstrong on Wednesday announced his second retirement from competitive cycling.

The 39-year-old, who won the Tour de France a record seven times, retired for the first time in 2005, but staged a comeback four years later and finished third in the 2009 Tour.

Last year he placed 23rd at the Tour after a number of crashes ruined his chance for another victory.

Armstrong, who successfully fought against testicular cancer, said in a statement that he was retiring from competitive cycling to spend more time with his children and to work for his charitable foundation.

'Today, I am announcing my retirement from professional cycling in order to devote myself full-time to my family, to the fight against cancer and to leading the foundation I established before I won my first Tour de France,' he said.

The American already said last year that his last international race would be the Tour Down Under, which he finished earlier this year in 65th place.

Although he has never tested positive to doping, there has been ongoing speculation that he used doping for at least some of his success.