[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 105 (Thursday, July 28, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Page S9309]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  SENATE RESOLUTION 222--HONORING THE VICTORIES OF TEAM DISCOVERY AND 
AMERICAN CYCLISTS LANCE ARMSTRONG AND GEORGE HINCAPIE IN THE 2005 TOUR 
                               DE FRANCE

  Mrs. HUTCHISON (for herself, Mr. DeMint, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. Martinez, 
and Mr. Leahy) submitted the following resolution; which was considered 
and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 222

       Whereas Team Discovery included Lance Armstrong of Texas 
     and George Hincapie of South Carolina from the United States, 
     Jose Luis Rubiera, Manuel Beltran, and Benjamin Noval from 
     Spain, Pavel Padrnos from the Czech Republic, Jose Azevedo 
     from Portugal, Paolo Savoldelli from Italy, and Yaroslav 
     Popovych from Ukraine;
       Whereas Team Discovery won the 2005 Tour de France under 
     the leadership of Lance Armstrong, who rode to victory by 
     completing the 2,232-mile, 21-stage course in 86 hours, 15 
     minutes, and 2 seconds, finishing 4 minutes and 40 seconds 
     ahead of his nearest competitor;
       Whereas, by winning the Tour de France on July 24, 2005, 
     Lance Armstrong became the only competitor in the history of 
     the Tour de France to win cycling's most prestigious race in 
     7 consecutive years;
       Whereas George Hincapie rode stage 15, which was 127.4 
     miles long and included 1 above category climb, 4 category 1 
     climbs, and 1 category 2 climb, for a total of 33.5 miles of 
     climbing at an average gradient of 7.96 percent;
       Whereas stage 15 was considered the hardest stage of the 
     2005 Tour de France and the victory of George Hincapie atop 
     Pla d'Adet marks his first Tour de France stage victory;
       Whereas George Hincapie is only the 8th competitor from the 
     United States to win a stage in the Tour de France;
       Whereas George Hincapie has participated in the Tour de 
     France 10 times and is the only teammate to assist Lance 
     Armstrong in each of his Tour de France victories;
       Whereas Lance Armstrong and George Hincapie displayed 
     incredible perseverance, determination, and leadership over 7 
     years with their teammates in prevailing over the mountainous 
     terrain of the Alps and Pyrenees and in overcoming crashes, 
     illness, hard-charging rivals, and driving rain on the way to 
     winning the premier cycling event in the world;
       Whereas, in 1996, Lance Armstrong defeated choriocarcinoma, 
     an aggressive form of testicular cancer that had spread 
     throughout his abdomen, lungs, and brain, and has remained 
     cancer-free since treatment for the disease;
       Whereas Lance Armstrong is the 1st cancer survivor to win 
     the Tour de France;
       Whereas the accomplishments of Team Discovery have made the 
     team an inspiration to millions of people around the world: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) honors--
       (A) the victory of Team Discovery in the 2005 Tour de 
     France;
       (B) professional cyclist Lance Armstrong for his record 7th 
     consecutive Tour de France victory; and
       (C) professional cyclist George Hincapie for his 1st Tour 
     de France stage victory; and
       (2) commends Lance Armstrong and George Hincapie for being 
     pioneers of the sport of cycling in the United States.

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