Four-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong shakes hands with New York City Police Officer Royster in downtown New York. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        NEW YORK — Fans couldn't get enough of Lance Armstrong in the New York City Cycling Championship.

        A wave of Lance-mania hit lower Manhattan during the inaugural event as fans cheered and yelled his name each time they saw the four-time Tour de France champion.

        More than 100,000 fans, including comedian Jerry Seinfeld, crowded the 1.2-mile route and were not disappointed even though Armstrong finished 28th overall, in 2 hours, 6 minutes, 54 seconds.

        He was 16 seconds behind winner Ivan Dominguez, of the Saturn team, in the 62.5-mile road race.

        “Lance is the king of the sport right now,” said Gerard Bisceglia, chief executive officer of USA Cycling.

        Fans waved signs supporting Armstrong and rang cow bells when they saw him coming. One person waved a Texas flag in honor of Armstrong's home state.

        The 62.5-mile race was Armstrong's first in the United States since winning the Tour title last week in Paris. The course snaked through New York's financial district, taking riders past skyscrapers on Water Street.

        Though the cyclists raced a few blocks away from the World Trade Center site, Armstrong said it was hard not to think about what happened nearly a year ago.

        “This race was special in light of what happened a few blocks from here. You can't forget that,” Armstrong said. “After 9-11, I wanted to come here to do something, a tribute, somehow, some way.”

        Armstrong had not participated in a race in New York until Sunday. The road race does not suit Armstrong's style since he is a mountain specialist. He even joked about the condition of the streets.

        “I've never seen pot holes like that,” Armstrong said. “They're as wide as a car and deep as a swimming pool. Seriously, the surface was not that bad.”

        Joking aside, Armstrong is an inspiration to fans.

        Even after the race was over, many people crowded outside restaurant windows where Armstrong gave a press conference a few blocks from the course. They chanted, “Lance, Lance!” and he waved back.

        Even second-place finisher Vassili Davidenko from Russia, noticed the tremendous turnout.

        “It's unbelievable how many people there were today,” Davidenko said.

        Armstrong was one of six members of the U.S. Postal Service team to race Sunday. Antonio Cruz was the top finisher from that team, finishing seventh.

        Up next for Armstrong is a race in Italy on Saturday and one in Switzerland a week later. His final race of the season is the 110-mile road race in San Francisco on Sept. 15.

        He has his eye on winning a fifth-straight Tour de France next summer.

        Perhaps his popularity and quest to win another Tour will inspire a new generation of cycling fans.

        “I believe that sports revolve around athletes,” Armstrong said. “Look at what Michael Jordan did for the NBA and what Tiger Woods is doing for golf. Without athletes, you can't have a kid who wakes up and says I want to be a cyclist.”

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