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City of Allen, TX pokes fun at Armstrong (and then apologizes)

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Mues from the City of Allen wrote the following to Armstrong:

Dear Mr. Armstrong,

You've won seven Tour De Frances. You beat cancer. You helped raise nearly $500 million for the fight against cancer with your Livestrong Foundation. You've done countless commercials for Nike. Needless to say, you've been a busy guy. But with yesterday's news that you are stepping down as chairman of the Livestrong Foundation and no longer will endorse Nike, you finally have some time on your hands for new challenges. As they say, when one door closes, another one opens.

With this in mind, the City of Allen Parks and Recreation Department cordially invites you to compete in the City's annual Rudolph Run on December 1. We understand that you have been banned from both the New York City and Chicago marathons, but we would welcome your participation in either our 5K run or 1 mile fun run, with or without reindeer antlers. Now in its 18th year of existence, this family affair supports the Allen Independent School District - certainly a cause worthy of embracing.

The City of Allen is firmly and adamantly anti-doping, but it should be noted that there will be no testing at Rudolph Run. After all, we are keenly aware that having one's nose wired for electricity as Rudolph is alleged to have done is akin to unnatural performance enhancement. Who are we to judge the rigors of driving a sleigh around the world in one night and/or riding a bike 2,000 miles over grueling terrain during a 23 day time span?

We hope to see you in Allen, just a couple of exits north of your hometown of Plano, on December 1. Furthermore, we wish you the best of luck with your future endeavors. Remember all of the other reindeer used to laugh and call Rudolph names (like Pinocchio). And they never let poor Rudolph join in any reindeer games (like marathons). But eventually all the reindeer loved him again. And they shouted out with glee. So join us for Rudolph Run and you'll go down in history!

Best Regards,

Allen Parks and Recreation

The city has since apologized, saying the letter "may be considered to be in bad taste."

Lance Armstrong Letter

Original Armstrong Story reported by Pegasus News