Seven–time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong has qualified for the Leadville Trail 100 mountain bike race by finishing first in the Crested Butte Alpine Odyssey.

Armstrong has famously ridden the demanding 100-mile enduro before, winning in 2009, and now, in his second retirement, he’s decided it’s time to dust down the mountain bike and compete again.

The popularity of the Leadville main event means that potential competitors must qualify, which Armstrong and Rebecca Rusch did successfully last weekend at the Crested Butte Mountain Resort in Colorado in the final Leadville Qualifying Series Race.

At the qualifying event, 100 riders secured a place in the Leadville race which takes place on 13 August. Age groups separate the racers and Armstrong won his 40-49 age group, set over a testing 63-mile course.

29er hardtail Armstrong’s bike of choice

Armstrong chose a Trek  Superfly Elite 29er hardtail for the race, and it proved the right choice: in the final six miles the Texan closed a one-minute gap to Greg Krause, who would go on to finish second. Armstrong’s winning time was 4hrs 32mins 31secs.

Armstrong has however not confirmed that he’ll race the Leadville 100, saying “I’m old and I’m retired,” but we can’t see him turning down the chance to take the title again.

What do you think, will he race? Let us know in the comments box below or Tweet us @bikemagic.