Lance Armstrong shares cancer experience with young patients at Prague hospital

Less than a week after his historic sixth consecutive victory in the Tour de France, US cyclist Lance Armstrong visited Prague for the first time on Friday. Armstrong famously overcame a battle against cancer before going on to become perhaps the greatest cyclist of all time; when he visited the Czech capital for an exhibition race on Wenceslas Square, Lance Armstrong also found the time to visit the children's oncology ward at Motol hospital, giving young Czech cancer patients living proof that there can be life after the disease.

Lance Armstrong shares cancer experience with young patients at Prague hospital

Lance Armstrong at Motol hospital, photo: CTK

The cycling legend brought smiles to many young patients during his visit. Among them was Tomas Hoznedr. Tomas has just finished treatment for lung and testicular cancer, exactly the same illness which Lance Armstrong fought successfully seven years ago. He thanked the cyclist for taking the time to visit his friends at the children's oncology ward. "It is good to meet someone who has managed to overcome what we have to overcome right now and furthermore has come a long way not only in sport", Tomas said.

Lance Armstrong, who the children at the hospital named Tate Ohanko - "Fast Wind" in Native American - says the key to survival is never to give up hope:

Lance Armstrong at Motol hospital, photo: CTK

"The illness was a wake-up call for me and reminded me that we only have one opportunity in life and in sport. It's still hard for me to go to hospital because I still have fresh memories of my time in hospitals and I understand what the patients and families are going through. So, it's difficult. For me, a hospital has a certain smell. Hospitals all over the world smell a certain way. But as a cancer survivor, I think it's my obligation to share my story and hopefully provide some hope for patients, family members, doctors, nurses. Let's not forget that the doctors also need to be reminded that there's hope."

After his visit to Motol hospital, Lance Armstrong had a few hours to explore Prague before he rushed over to Prague's Wenceslas Square, where he raced against forty-nine other professional cyclists. The square was closed off to traffic to allow the athletes cover an 80 km stretch - one hundred laps around the square. Although Lance Armstrong came fifth he was anything but bothered. "One cannot win every time", he said with a smile on his face, probably still thinking about his trip to Motol hospital and the numerous lives he managed to brighten up that day.