"He bribed everyone, he was tyrannical to his teammates and obnoxious to the peloton" - Jerôme Pineau slams Lance Armstrong's recent comments 'the biggest bandit in the history of sport'

Lance Armstrong was quoted recently as saying "Jan Ullrich, Marco Pantani and myself were treated differently. This is the price to pay when you are the best in a sport." It's fair to say, these comments haven't gone down well with ex-pro Jerôme Pineau.

Launching into a scathing rant on RMC, Pineau made no attempt to hide disdain for cycling's persona non grata. "It's a show, it's always been that way with Armstrong. He cheated more than anyone else," the Frenchman began. "He bribed everyone, he was tyrannical to his teammates and obnoxious to the peloton."

"He was above all laws. With his statements he lumps everyone together, Pineau continues. "He was the strongest because he cheated more than the others! He bought the system! He is the biggest bandit in the history of sport."

Although Armstrong keeps himself relevant to cycling fans nowadays via his 'The Move' podcast alongside Johan Bruyneel and George Hincapie, Pineau sees no place for the American in the sport. "Shut up!" Pineau demands. "He corrupted entire generations, including me. He may have been talented, but he tyrannized the entire peloton. He had the entire political and sporting system behind him. Not everyone was like him , it wasn't me and neither were the guys on my team."

"Don't say you paid for the others! We weren't all like you! I can't hear him talking like that, he's been cheating his whole life," concludes the Frenchman's sensational rant.