Lance Armstrong may have been stripped of his Tour de France medals and banned from cycling competitions for life based on allegations that he used performance-enhancing drugs, but if donations to Lance's LIVESTRONG cancer charity are any indication, the court of public opinion is on his side.
According to ESPN, donations LIVESTRONG surged after Lance's penalty came down from the United States Anti-Doping Agency last week:
The Livestrong foundation's CEO, Doug Ulman, told ESPN on Friday night that unsolicited donations were up almost 25 times as compared to Thursday.
Ulman said $3,200 came in Thursday to the organization's website, which was in the range of what it typically receives. As of 4:30 p.m. ET on Friday, Ulman noted $78,000 in donations.
The number of people donating increased as well.
On Thursday, the foundation had 45 people donating through the website. On Friday, hours after the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency said it had enough information to strip Armstrong of his seven Tour de France titles, 411 people felt compelled to donate.
Lance's big-name sponsors, including Nike and Anheuser-Busch, also stood by the athlete, whose foundation has raised close to $500 million in the fight against cancer.