Source: Armstrong tells Oprah Winfrey he doped

AUSTIN, Texas -- Lance Armstrong ended a decade of denial by confessing to Oprah Winfrey that he used performance-enhancing drugs to win the Tour de France, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press.

The admission Monday came hours after an emotional apology by Armstrong to the Livestrong charity that he founded and turned into a global institution on the strength of his celebrity as a cancer survivor.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the interview is to be broadcast Thursday on Winfrey's network. She tweeted afterward, "Just wrapped with @lancearmstrong More than 2 1/2 hours. He came READY!" She was scheduled to appear on "CBS This Morning" on Tuesday to discuss the interview.

The confession was a stunning reversal for Armstrong after years of public statements, interviews and court battles in which he denied doping and zealously protected his reputation.

Armstrong is planning to testify against several powerful people in the sport of cycling who knew about his doping and possibly facilitated it, The New York Times reported Monday night on its website, citing several unnamed people who had knowledge of the situation.

Even before the taping session with Winfrey began about 2 p.m., Armstrong's apology suggested he would carry through on promises over the weekend to answer her questions "directly, honestly and candidly."

The cyclist was stripped of his Tour de France titles, lost most of his endorsements and was forced to leave the foundation last year after the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency issued a damning, 1,000-page report that accused him of masterminding a long-running doping scheme.

About 100 staff members of the charity Armstrong founded in 1997 gathered in a conference room as he arrived with a simple message: "I'm sorry." He choked up during a 20-minute talk, expressing regret for the controversy over performance-enhancers, but he stopped short of admitting he used them.

Before he was done, several members were in tears when he urged them to continue the charity's mission of helping cancer patients and their families.