Sunday was the first anniversary of my mom’s death. It was also the final stage of the Tour de France.
So how are my family’s personal tragedy and the world’s biggest cycling race connected?
In 28 million ways. You see, Lance Armstrong and his Radio Shack cycling team switched out their kits for the last day of the race, donning black jerseys with the number 28 on the back to represent and pay homage to the 28 million people worldwide fighting cancer.
Think about it: twenty-eight MILLION. And as Lance Armstrong pointed out, when you add into that number the families and friends of those cancer sufferers, who are also deeply affected by the disease, that number multiplies exponentially.
Seeing those jerseys and hearing Armstrong interviewed about them was very moving for me on Sunday, mostly because I was already thinking about cancer a great deal on Sunday, but also because I had NO IDEA just how pervasive cancer is. It’s now the number one cause of death worldwide.
And say what you like about Lance Armstrong himself, or the switching-jerseys stunt (because they didn’t get them approved in advance of the race, they were forced by organizers to change, which delayed the start of the stage by 20 minutes), you can’t fault his commitment to fighting cancer. From the iconic Livestrong yellow wristbands
to this latest public awareness campaign in the Tour de France, Lance Armstrong is a committed and passionate advocate in the fight against this terrible disease.
Guess what else took place on Sunday? The annual Weekend to End Women’s Cancers (Calgary event). Coincidence? Yes, but it certainly is enough to make you think.