Any face-to-face encounter Tyler Hamilton has with Lance Armstrong will not be a pleasant one. That proved to be the case in 2011 when Hamilton was met with what he considered "aggressive contact" initiated by Armstrong at an Aspen restaurant.
The former Tour de France champion and now disgraced cyclist reportedly told Hamilton his legal team would, according to ESPN, "tear you apart on the witness stand," and "make your live a living [expletive] hell."
There was, however, a change of tone during a U.S. federal government false claims lawsuit.
"It was strange, strange. We spoke. Small talk. He laughed at my hair, I laughed at his beard like all mates would do," Hamilton told the New Zealand Herald newspaper (via Cyclingnews.com). "There were a lot of lawyers around and officials, but yeah, we shook hands a couple of times. It was not easy for me to answer direct questions about him, what we went through. There's a lot at stake. I've read in the papers that it could be up to US$120 million [damages]."
"I don't know what he thinks, but I know what I need to do," he added. "You answer questions that could affect that and that is mind-blowing, but I went in there and told the truth. But it [also] sucked [as] there were some questions about his character, with him sitting right there, some of the bullying and stuff."
Teammates and close friends on the U.S. Postal Service team before becoming rivals, Hamilton still believes Armstrong needs to tell his own truth.
"For him, for the sport of cycling, for all sport, I think we do need to hear the whole truth," he said. "Whether or not we'll hear that, we'll see."
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