Johan Bruyneel, general manager of Astana and
former sporting director of Lance Armstrong’s US Postal and Discovery Channel
outfits, said Tuesday he thought reports of the seven-time Tour de France
champ returning to racing were only “a rumor.”

Armstrong intended to come out of retirement and bid for an eighth Tour de
France title, VeloNews reported on its website on Monday but “I think it’s a
rumor,” Bruyneel said ahead of the tenth stage of the Tour of Spain.

“I’ve tried to ascertain where this rumor might have come from. The fact
is Armstrong trained and participated in a mountain bike race, one of the
toughest in the United States and a race of 160 km and came second,’ said
Bruyneel in allusion to the Leadville Trail 100 in Colorado last month.

VeloNews quoted Armstrong as saying afterward: “It’s the first time in
three years that I’ve done seven hours of cycling.”

The magazine added that Armstrong, who will turn 37 on September 18, is
poised to join the Astana team and compete in five road races, according to
“sources familiar with the developing situation.”

According to VeloNews, Armstrong will compete in the Amgen Tour of
California, Paris-Nice, the Tour of Georgia, the Dauphine-Libere and the Tour
de France, racing for no salary or bonuses.

The magazine added that his return to road racing would be the centerpiece
of a story in the upcoming issue of Vanity Fair magazine later this month.

But a spokesman for Astana told ESPN.com that the team had “no plans” with
Armstrong.

“Lance Armstrong is no part of our team. Team Astana has no plans with
him,” Astana press officer Philippe Maertens said in an e-mail from Spain.

Armstrong, who was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 1996, rebounded from
the disease to win seven straight Tour de France titles from 1999 to 2005
while vigorously denying ever doping along the way.

For Bruyneel, it was clear that by racing in Colorado Armstrong had
obviously had to sign up to the US anti-doping programme, hence the
speculation he might make a return to the circuit.

Bruyneel said he believed it would be “difficult” for Armstrong to return
to top level racing “as he stopped competing three years ago.”

However, he also said that “if he were serious about a comeback … myself
having a team I could not imagine him at CSC or Rabobank.”

“I have not spoken to him. I’m going to try to do so today (Tuesday) or in
the coming days,” Bruyneel told reporters.