'30 for 30 Lance' Part 2: Fans relive favorite memories of Nike's Livestrong bracelets, 'they were everywhere'
Part 2 of ESPN's '30 for 30 Lance' spoke about the gear that Nike produced for Livestrong, and plunging fans into a generous dollop of nostalgia was the iconic yellow silicone bracelets the sports giant manufactured in 2004. It was done so as to create and show solidarity for cancer survivors. Priced at $1, the proceeds went into the treatment of these patients. Well over 80 million bands were sold and were sported by fans and imminent sports personalities worldwide.
Except, it all came crashing down after Armstrong was found guilty of using performance-enhancing drugs to win his races. If falling from the pinnacle of success to disgrace was one part of the story, the sponsors pulling out from their support was another. Needless to say, Nike stopped manufacturing these bands. However, those who caught the two-part docuseries took a trip back in time remembering the first time they got their hands on the famed bracelet.
"I still have a yellow Livestrong bracelet somewhere around here Lance didn’t break tho Marion Jones did," a fan said. "I honestly don’t know one person who didn’t have a Livestrong bracelet. Those yellow rubber bands were everywhere. #Lance," another fan wrote. "I don’t remember much about Lance Armstrong as a cyclist other than the whole doping thing but I do remember everyone in middle school to early high school wearing those yellow Livestrong bracelets and them knowing nothing about what they even stood for," a tweet read.
"I thought we were gonna watch it as a family everybody knows they had a damn Livestrong yellow bracelet," a fan wrote. "I forgot just how big lance Armstrong was. Everyone was wearing those yellow Livestrong bracelets and he had a bunch of different Nike running shoes," another opined. "After this Sunday's 30 for 30 on ESPN everybody is gonna be rocking that yellow 'Livestrong' bracelet again," a fan observed.
"I was one of the ones who bought into Lance Armstrong's story, hook, line & sinker. I used to purchase the yellow 'Livestrong' bracelets in 5-packs; wore them all the time. It was to the point where it was a must-wear accessory, like a watch," a fan recollected. "I feel like things started going downhill when I stopped wearing those yellow rubber Livestrong bracelets," a fan tweeted.
Just to prove how big a deal it was back in the day, here's one tweet: "You weren’t cool back in the day if you didn’t have a yellow Livestrong bracelet."
