CNN picks up Armstrong doc to air Saturday

October 24, 2012 by Adam Benzine

The World According To Lance

U.S. network CNN has acquired The World According to Lance (pictured), a documentary about disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong, who was this week stripped of his Tour de France victories.

CNN will air the 45-minute documentary this Saturday (October 27) at 9 p.m. EST.

The broadcast comes hot on the heels of the International Cycling Union’s decision two days ago to formally strip Armstrong of his seven Tour de France titles and ban him from cycling for life, for his involvement in what U.S. sports authorities describe as a massive and widespread doping program.

The documentary was produced by ABC Australia for the broadcaster’s ‘Four Corners’ strand, and the doc’s director/reporter was Quentin McDermott.

The deal was penned by UK-based factual distributor Journeyman Pictures, which also inked agreements with VRT, TV2 Norway, TV2 Denmark, NOS Holland and MNet. Journeyman said the U.S. deal comes as part of an ongoing relationship with CNN.

In an email sent to realscreen, McDermott said work began on the doc around seven weeks ago, when the USADA first announced its decision to ban Armstrong for life and strip him of his titles.

“Armstrong himself would not agree to be interviewed for our program, but when we located and were granted exclusive access to sworn depositions from Armstrong himself, and several of his accusers, we knew we had a story worth telling,” he added.

“We worked at great speed to secure the agreement of key witnesses… In all we filmed in nine locations: Sydney, Australia; Dallas and Austin, Texas; Missoula, Montana; Detroit, Michigan; Montreal, Canada; Paris, France; London, and Hertfordshore in England, in a whirlwind round-the-world tour.

“Now that the world governing body of cycling, the UCI, has confirmed USADA’s sanctions against Lance Armstrong, the sworn testimonies uncovered by ‘Four Corners’ become even more significant.”

Tags: CNN, Journeyman Pictures, Lance Armstrong, Quentin McDermott, The World According to Lance