Lance Armstrong Finishes First Boston Marathon

Among the 25,000 men and women in Monday's Boston Marathon field was seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong.

Armstrong finished the course in 2 hours, 50 minutes and 58 seconds.

It was his third marathon since he retired from professional cycling.

He qualified for Boston with a 2:46:43 finish at last year's New York City Marathon. The qualifying time for Armstrong's 35-39-year-old age group is 3 hours, 15 minutes.

Armstrong won the 1993 World Cycling Championship before being diagnosed with an aggressive form of testicular cancer in 1996. Though the cancer spread to his lungs and brain, Armstrong recovered to win seven straight Tour de France titles from 1999 to 2005.

He ran his first marathon a year later, finishing New York in 2:59:36.

Armstrong is raising money for the Lance Armstrong Foundation, which pursues an agenda focused on cancer prevention, access to screening and care, the improvement of the quality of life for cancer survivors, and an investment in research.

"I'm excited to be here," told WBZ's Steve Burton before the race.

"If I broke 3 hours I'd be happy. I'm not in perfect shape, but the point is to get out here and enjoy it and really be part of the atmosphere and the ambiance of this great marathon."

Armstrong's foundation has 50 runners in the race. They hope to raise $250,000.

Via wbztv.com