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News

Armstrong vs. Eggers: ‘Duel
in the Pool’ to benefit teens with cancer

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  • Lance Armstrong

By SUE WUETCHER
Published: March 22, 2012

Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong will “duel in the pool” with a former UB student and triathlon coach to benefit teen cancer victims during his visit to UB next month.

The duel, sponsored by UB, Roswell Park Cancer Institute and Melissa’s Living Legacy Teen Cancer Foundation, will take place at 4 p.m. April 28 in the Alumni Arena Natatorium.

Armstrong will close the 2011-12 edition of UB’s Distinguished Speaker Series with a lecture at 8 p.m. that day in the main arena of Alumni Arena.

Armstrong accepted a challenge by Orchard Park native Mary Eggers, a fitness coach working with the Teens Living with Cancer (TLC) program, to battle it out in a 50-meter kickboard sprint in the Alumni Arena pool. Eggers had issued the challenge via Twitter when she heard about Armstrong’s speech at UB in an effort to draw attention to TLC and its TLC Fit program.

Teens Living with Cancer is the peer-support program of Melissa’s Living Legacy Teen Cancer Foundation.

Proceeds of the event will benefit Armstrong’s LIVESTRONG campaign and the TLC chapter in Rochester, as well as to help establish a TLC chapter at Roswell Park.

Attendance at the “Duel in the Pool” will be by invitation only; the videotaped race results and behind-the-scenes footage will be shown during Armstrong’s public lecture.

The audience for the event will be teen cancer patients from both Roswell Park and Teens Living with Cancer in Rochester, providing an opportunity for both current and future members of the support group to meet and share their experiences.

The fundraising goal set by LIVESTRONG and TLC is $100,000, all of which will go to the organizations. For more information and to donate, visit the Teens Living with Cancer website.

Tickets to Armstrong’s Distinguished Speakers Series lecture are available through the Alumni Arena ticket office and at all Ticketmaster locations, including Ticketmaster.com. For more information, visit the Office of Special Events’ website.