Lance Armstrong returns bronze medal he won in 2000 Olympics

AUSTIN, Texas – Lance Armstrong says he has returned the bronze medal he won in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.

The International Olympic Committee stripped Armstrong of the time-trial medal in January after he publicly confessed to using performance-enhancing drugs during his career. Armstrong says he gave it back to the U.S. Olympic Committee.

Armstrong tweeted Thursday: “The 2000 Bronze is back in possession of @usolympics and will be in Switzerland asap.”

Armstrong had denied doping for years until his confession after a detailed report released last year by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. Armstrong also has been stripped of the seven Tour de France titles he won from 1999-2005.

The IOC previously stripped Tyler Hamilton, a former Armstrong teammate, of his time-trial gold medal from the 2004 Olympics after he acknowledged doping.