Armstrong Returns Sydney Medal

Lance Armstrong has handed back the bronze medal he won at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

Armstrong has given the medal to US Olympic officials, who will return it to the International Olympic Committee.

The IOC requested the return of the time-trial medal in January, in the same week the American admitted he had used performance-enhancing drugs.

The 41-year-old was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles and banned from cycling for life in October 2012.

That came after the US Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) produced evidence of widespread doping by him and his former team-mates.

However, he did not admit to cheating until he confessed during an interview with chat show host Oprah Winfrey in front of a worldwide television audience.

"The 2000 bronze is back in possession of US Olympics and will be in Switzerland as soon as possible to the IOC," Armstrong said on Twitter.

US Olympic Committee spokesman Patrick Sandusky confirmed the organisation had received the medal.

Russia's Viacheslav Ekimov won the men's time trial at the Sydney Games, with German Jan Ullrich second.

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Iconic Olympic Moments - Cathy Freeman

Cathy Freeman specialised in the 400 metres and became the Olympic champion for the women's 400 metres at the 2000 Summer Olympics.

Freeman was the first ever Aboriginal Commonwealth Games gold medalist at age 16 in 1990.

At the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Canada, Freeman won gold in both the 200 m and 400 m. She also won the silver medal in the 1996 Olympics and came first at the 1997 World Champion in the 400 m event. 

1998 saw Freeman taking a break from running due to injury. She returned to form with a first place in the 400 m at the 1999 World Championships. 

In 2000 her image was beamed into millions of homes around the world when she became the first competing athlete to be invited to light the Olympic flame at the opening ceremony of the Sydney Olympic Games. 

In winning the gold medal in the 400m her Olympic dream had come true.