MNN - Mother Nature Network

After years of denial that he ever used performance-enhancing drugs to best the competition and earn his record seven Tour de France titles, Lance Armstrong has reportedly come clean with Oprah Winfrey. 

 

The 41-year-old sat down with the talk show host yesterday in what was described as a "no-holds-barred interview" to speak candidly about the accusations from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. Appearing on the "CBS Morning Show," Winfrey said Armstrong was "forthcoming" during their 2.5 hour conversation; adding that he came clean in the manner she did not expect. "It was surprising to me," she said. "My team, all of us in the room ... I feel that he answered the questions in a way that he was ready."

 

Asked if Armstrong at all expressed remorse during the interview, Winfrey says it's up to the viewers to come to that conclusion. 

 

"I choose not to characterize," she said. "I would rather people make their own decisions about whether he was contrite or not. I thought that he was thoughtful. I thought that he was serious ... I thought that he met the moment."

 

The interview, which will be broadcast over two nights in its entirety on the OWN network and online, came about after Winfrey contacted Armstrong via email. She said they met privately at her home in Hawaii over the holidays where he agreed the timing was right to speak.