LANCE ARMSTRONG’S DUBLIN-born, former masseuse has this morning rejected his apology after he admitted bullying her for speaking out about his cheating in his interview with Oprah Winfrey earlier.
Emma O’Reilly — who was sued by the shamed rider after she spoke out about his doping to David Walsh — said his confession was “old news” to her.
Speaking on ITV breakfast television, O’Reilly said she had missed a call from Armstrong on Sunday night. The former Tour legend then sent a text saying: “This is Lance, call me please, thanks.”
She said sorry was “not at all” enough at this stage.
“All of it has never felt like vindication – I can never think of another word to use,” said O’Reilly, “but I hate that word because it suggests almost that there was some vindictiveness. I had only ever spoken about it because I hated seeing what some of the riders were going through, because not all the riders were comfortable with cheating as Lance was.
“You could see when they went over to the dark side their personalities change, and I always felt it was an awful shame – they were just young lads in the prime of their life having to make this awful decision, sort of living the dream, yet the dream is a nightmare.
“That was always why I had spoken out – it wasn’t about Lance, it was about drugs and cycling.”
