Astrology by Paul Saunders : Lance Armstrong – Are his past actions catching up with him?

Friday 24 August 2012

Lance Armstrong – Are his past actions catching up with him?

Lance Armstrong

Lance Armstrong is back in the news as he surprisingly dropped his opposition to drug charges aimed at him through the US anti doping agency, the USADA. I say surprisingly, but it was not a surprise to me. If the charges are upheld, he may be banned from the sport of cycling and his 7 Tour de France titles may be stripped away from him, however this decision by Armstrong is a “clever” move as he will no longer be publically questioned over his actions, yet  his continued protestations of innocence will throw doubt over any ban imposed. Seven years after his last victory, a rich man who is thankful for even being alive after suffering testicular cancer, Lance I think is prepared to leave the memories of those 7 yellow jersey wins in the world’s toughest race as a testament to his sporting greatness.

LanceArmstrong natal

Lance Armstrong’s chart is one that has always troubled me. He was born on 18th September 1971 in Plano, Texas ( nobody seems to have a birth time for him). He is double Virgo with both Sun & Moon in the sign of the Virgin and they are joined in the sign by Pluto and Mercury. The thing that hits me about this chart is a complete lack of emotion. No planets in water signs, and the Moon lacking in pure emotion in precise and critical Virgo. If you are a bike rider in the Tour de France, any stray emotion saps your strength, so this is one reason why he was undoubtedly a successful bike rider. This chart also has 7 planets in mutable signs and this indicates a supreme strategist, someone who can adjust his position to suit the situation. As such, Lance Armstrong is cold and hard, very intelligent, logical & flexible and that is how he approached his cycling career and life in general.

Now with an ultra critical approach to his existence in questioning every aspect of it (Sun, Moon and Mercury in Virgo), a cool and ambitious Saturn square to Mercury, a need for recognition Sun Pluto conjunction I am making Lance out to be robot on a bicycle and when he entered competition, effectively that is what he became. He was not an exciting cyclist, he used team strategy and a relentless approach to drive his maybe more talented opponents into the dirt. However he does have a far more congenial side to his nature too with Venus in Libra, which is popular and inclusive and attracts people to him. This is the sign of the mediator, someone who can see all sides of a situation and react to them accordingly. Pluto also connects to Venus bringing with it an intense nature especially within relationships of any kind. When you see Lance speak, one is often struck by the passion and intensity of his arguments & statements; this is the work of Pluto on his Sun and on his Venus.

Lance’s Saturn (work and ambition) is in Gemini, and this explains his profession. Gemini is the sign representing local transportation (bicycles) ruled by Mercury and these two planets are in a tense square aspect. Saturn is one part of a grand air trine connection Mars in Aquarius and Uranus in Libra. There is only one fixed planet on this chart in Mars, and the will to win here is very determined indeed. Receiving a trine from Uranus pushes this determination to be victorious through the roof, and add in the ambition of Saturn and we have a circuit of energy that refuses to be beaten. To win any endurance race, one needs a store of not only talent, and there is plenty here because the the influence of Uranus and Aquarius, but also of unbreakable spirit. There is no break in the cycle of energy of a grand trine, and the one is one of the most powerful ones I have seen in a sportsman, but it is also troubling.

Uranus wants to push back the boundaries of sport and achievement and it’s influence is considerable. How would Lance do this? Firstly, through achievement in riding his bike, the square aspect emanating from Saturn, one of two “exit doors” from the grand trine. By the way, for all this stored trine energy and talent to be released, one needs a channel of tension or of action down which it can pass. The other exit door is through an opposition from Saturn to a close Neptune Jupiter conjunction in Sagittarius. Now this is interesting because Jupiter in Sagittarius is open to anything that can expand one’s life for the better, can bring international adulation and fame (remember the desire of Sun Pluto) and Jupiter in Sagittarius will take any amount of risks to achieve this. Neptune here expands the possibilities even further. Neptune is inspirational but also cloudy, deceptive, it rules drug use and illegal practices. Pose the aspirations of Saturn against the possibilities that Neptune and Jupiter can bring and you have a big choice (opposition) to make. Neptune allows one to hide what one is really doing on, to deceive others into thinking one thing, while you are doing another. The nature of deception within the structure of a grand air trine is also discussed by Bil Tierney in his excellent book “Dynamics of Aspect Analysis”. In it he says that those with grand air trines can use their powers of persuasion and their cleverness to coax others to work on their behalf for their advantage. In accordance with this idea, the Saturn to Jupiter Neptune opposition makes a wedge formation to that diplomatic Venus in Libra conjunct Pluto, so I think he could have used his charm and his popularity (Venus) and through technical and medical means (Virgo Stellium) to keep a huge secret (Pluto) from everyone.

The question is, did Armstrong cheat? Taking in his cold calculating Virgo nature, his adaptable clever approach to life, the ambition of the grand air trine and the questions posed by Saturn’s opposition to Jupiter and Neptune, I think it is highly probable that he used whatever means were at his disposal to achieve the adulation that this chart desires!!

LanceArmstrong transits 

The problem with Neptune is that eventually the mists do clear and the truth is unveiled. Right now, Neptune is square to the Nodal axis and this has been doing a considerable amount of damage to people’s reputations recently. Look at the chart above and you can see the North Node, point of destiny conjunct to that Jupiter/Neptune conjunction. When the doping charges were announced on 29th June 12, the South Node was sitting bang on Armstrong’s Saturn hurting his career name. You can see imagine how that have moved around clockwise. Neptune square to the Nodes is exposing all that is hidden now. Neptune is also making an nasty inconjunct to his Sun and Pluto which is deflating and defeatist to him personally.

Strong nodal connections in my view force you to change the direction of your life as fate takes it’s course and things you don’t expect hit you between the eyes. Take note of them, for they are as powerful as any planetary transit, if not more so. For Lance Armstrong, such a vocal and strident voice in the sporting world, it seems as if he has accepted that he can’t fight what is happening, and to do so would only hurt his reputation more and as well as his legacy. People can take away titles but they can’t take away memories, and who’s to say that other cyclists in those races weren’t using hidden illegal tactics against Armstrong? He is taking the clever path as he always has, a hero for some and a controversial and polarizing figure for others… 

***** Update 16th January 2013 ****

Lance Armstrong met with Oprah yesterday to finally come out about his life of doping and cheating. This is happening as transiting Jupiter in retrograde closes in on his natal Saturn at 6:32 Gemini (Jupiter is now at 6:46 Gem) and squares his Mercury, the planet of the media at 9 Virgo.

LanceArmstrong transits

Transiting Jupiter is activating his natal Saturn opposition to Jupiter and Neptune. Now we will see the real truth (Saturn) in an interview (Mercury) on TV (Neptune) as this conjunction will expose all his excesses (Jupiter) about doping (Neptune) to an expectant worldwide audience (Jupiter). It just shows you that if you have done wrong, Jupiter is not all sweetness and light as some think it is.

Focusing on his natal fixed star connections, his Saturn is in paran with star Zosma active for his middle age, which shows suffering associated with his work and career. That is now coming to pass.

Armstrong's Mars has a paran connection with Sadalmelek, the somewhat lucky star in the constellation of Aquarius, active for him in the early part of his life. This in a sporting sense (Mars) shows someone "who made his own luck", and good things would thus have happened to him because of his obsessional efforts.

Finally, his Sun was in paran with Antares, the royal Persian star of passion and obsession in Scorpio also in his early years. Here personal success comes through one's hard work and focus, but the Royal stars always promise that success can come, but at a price. The Sun here is connected to a star that is associated with transformation, and in doping he transformed himself into an athlete who seemingly could not be beaten. The thing is, if you abuse a Royal star, you will pay the penalty later on in your life and all the gains you made will be lost forever...

Now is the time for Armstrong to really face the music and lose all that he gained and much much more...

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8 comments:

  1. I was uncertain how a Virgo Sun (supposedly honest) could be so deceptive... You've helped me understand.

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  2. WOW! I was just thinking to myself, "That Lance Armstrong was probably a Virgo". I just had a feeling. I typed in Lance Armstrong Zodiac, and sure enough! Then I found your article. Wow. Very extensive. Great stuff.

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    1. Hiya, i'm just wondering what about your understanding of Virgos made you guess that Lance was one?

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  3. I really hadn't been up to date on what was going on with Lance, I decided to watch the Oprah interview to catch up. 15 minutes into the interview, I said "This guy sounds like a Virgo!" I quickly made a Google search and BINGO! I can say VIRGOS are GOOD people (although COLD and unemotional), but very flawed when it comes to how obsessive they become when it comes to being PERFECT or wanting to achieve things in life (by any means necessary).

    They are extremely dedicated to what they do, and wont be satisfied with anything less than the BEST. They are consumed with wanting to MASTER things, whether good or bad (short cuts). They find things SIMPLE to do (which some might think are ELABORATE but to them are not) and if and when they find a way to a short cut, to be the best at what they do, they TEST it and try it and if it WORKS, they RUN with it (This isn't ALWAYS bad).

    Is it crazy? sure, is it a bit sick? sure.. but they tend to think of things as "We're just SMARTER". lol As stupid as that might sound.. its the truth.. they don't ever intend to HURT anyone, they are aware of consequences and will deny things as much as they can (this doesn't mean they're in DENIAL by any means.. they're NOT, they just want to see HOW MUCH PROOF YOU HAVE, they love a CHALLENGE, show them how smart YOU can be). They know they'll have to face the TRUTH and that's up to them to deal with, and live with, and they do. As I continued to watch the interview.. I was literally laughing, this guy is the EPITOME of what a Virgo can be.. being asked if he ever "felt bad about what he was doing?" NO.. SCARY. It's not that he ever thought he was NEVER going to get caught, im sure he knew he would (As a Virgo you'd be stupid to think you NEVER would). He was just willing to face it when the day came and all the PROOF was out and things had been challenged, etc.

    The whole picture on twitter with him laying at home showing off the 7 yellow jerseys.. lmao. Virgos tend to be so ARROGANT, even if they know they're WRONG. Virgos stick to the "PROVE IT, EXPOSE ME.. lets see how SMART YOU ARE, Tire me out with the evidence before I give in"

    Virgos are THINKERS, not "FEELERS" but they are GOOD people above it all (his cancer foundation, raising millions, etc, etc) Just flawed by perfectionism (if this makes any sense to you all), and always wanting to be the best at what they do. Not an excuse, but it is what it is.


    Ps, I don't speak for ALL Virgo's.

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    1. Thanks for this; I found it really interesting!

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    2. "They are extremely dedicated to what they do, and wont be satisfied with anything less than the BEST. They are consumed with wanting to MASTER things,"

      I know one (Sun) Virgo who is exactly like that.
      I know one Virgo rising who is also like that - myself.

      On the other hand, I know WAY more than one (Sun) Virgo who just couldn't give a damn. Perfectionism? "Life is too shoooort for that" (actual quote).

      I also know an array of Libras who are anything BUT objective or balanced (they only see one point of view: their own) or peace-makers (they like nothing better than to stir trouble and egg people against each other); a gaggle of Scorpios who are anything BUT "deep" (very superficial, in fact), or "mysterious", or sex-obsessed (or even decent lovers, for that matter); a school of Pisces who are anything BUT impractical, or dreamy, or clingy, or the usual stereotypes; I even know a Capricorn - born smack in the middle of the sign - who is very conservative and stubborn, but amazingly impractical and disorganised, and who displays a jaw-dropping lack of planning skills.

      My point? Stereotypes are just stereotypes.
      They have no real practical value.




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  4. First of all, WE DON'T KNOW when exactly was he born.
    His Virgo ascendant is calculated on the basis of the standard "12 p.m." used when the hour of birth is unknown.

    Also, wasn't this supposed to be a wow (good "wow) for Virgos' careers - at least for rising Virgos? Many astrologers keep praising the current aspects.
    (As a late Virgo ascendant, I must say there have been some excellent unexpected developments in my career these past few days. Whether it will all come to fruition remains to be seen.)

    However, what's with this Sun sign stereotyping about Virgos being "honest", "critical" and so on?

    For example:

    "Virgos are THINKERS, not "FEELERS" but they are GOOD people"
    (And yes, I realise you are not speaking for all Virgos. :-))

    Some are, some aren't. Just like any other Sun sign.

    I have met an inordinate number of Virgos in my life, and they are all VERY different from each other.
    (BTW, Caligula, the great debaucher of all time, was a Virgo, to name just one example.)
    The same goes for every single Sun sign, but some - Virgos, among them - seem to show greater discrepancies than others.
    Very many people even seem to be the exact opposites of their Sun sign stereotypes. (And those stereotypes themselves aren't always accurate, in the first place.)

    Anyway, people, you should know better than type-casting by Sun sign!



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