Melbourne, Jan 17 : Lance Armstrong has promised to attack during the Tour Down Under, and laughed off suggestions that his comeback was a bit like the return of Jesus Christ

Refuting suggestions that he will treat the race as a glorified training ride, the seven-time Tour de France champion today fronted more than 100 local, national and international media, and answered questions for more than an hour about his comeback to cycling.

"I've been called a lot of things in my life ... and I don't know that He rode either. He did a lot of things, but I don't know that He rode," Armstrong said.

Armstrong said while he paid some attention to the hysteria that surrounded him he tried to filter out the extremes, preferring not to believe the most flattering of reports and the most negative.

"I guess it boils down to just trying to stay grounded, trying not to be too obsessed with all of this," he said.

He admitted the attention had been more then he expected, but said that it was also good for cycling and good for the primary reason he was back, the global fight against cancer.

Looking fit, Armstrong took questions on a diverse and sometimes bizarre range of topics from his cycling form and his global quest to conquer cancer, to German politics, doping in cycling and what his ultimate legacy might be.

He said he was nervous about racing again and while the competitive juices had already started to flow, success at the Tour Down Under just meant not being the first one dropped in Tuesday''s opening stage.

Armstrong seemed not only physically well prepared to resume his professional career but more than mentally ready to handle the challenges presented by three years away from the sport and any lingering doubts about declarations that he always raced clean. (ANI)