It was two years ago this week that Lance Armstrong admitted to Oprah Winfrey that his “mythic story” was “one big lie.” That moment, combined with a documentary by Alex Gibney, put an end to Lance Armstrong’s life as a celebrity. The not-7 time Tour de France winner was disgraced in public and had to leave the Lance Armstrong Foundation. It was renamed LiveStrong. And from the looks of it, the foundation isn’t living strong at all.
The foundation’s Form 990 for 2013 tells a sad story. Total revenue fell from $38 million in 2012 to $23 million in 2013. And while total expenses fell by about $6.5 million, LiveStrong claimed they were $8 million in the hole for 2013. The prior year, their loss was only $132,350.
Because of this, LiveStrong’s grant giving fell by $3 million — from a little over $9 mil to $6 mil. But their total salaries stayed about the same, dropping just about $500,000. So while their donees suffered, at least the Live Strong staff kept going strong.
Indeed, President and CEO Doug Ulman still drew a total of just over $400,000 in 2013. Nine executives besides Ulman took home six figure paychecks. The highest paid was one Morgan Binswanger, VP of External Affairs, at $208K.
How times have changed since Armstrong left. When the disgraced former athlete was an international star, in 2009, LiveStrong received $41 million in grants and contributions from the public and other institutions. In 2013, the number had dwindled to $15 million. Their total assets also fell from $112 million to $103 million.
Armstrong was forced to resign from the foundation, and his name was taken off of it. He hasn’t been erased completely. But in his bio under “Our Founder,” no mention is made whatsoever of Armstrong’s career or cycling. His entire scandalous history no longer exists. It simply says Lance Armstrong is a “father, cancer survivor, advocate and philanthropist.”
