Breaking: First Nissan Leaf going to Lance Armstrong in September [w/video]

There's just no way we could have predicted that the legendary cyclist Lance Armstrong would become the first official U.S. owner of the Nissan Leaf, but that appears to be the case. Not only will Lance be first in line, word is he will get his Leaf in September, nearly three months before the general public has a shot at getting into Nissan's all-new EV.

Why Lance Armstrong? Well, Nissan has provided more than 40 support vehicles for the 800-mile, eight-day Amgen Tour of California, including one Leaf which appeared at the finish line for each stage. In addition, Armstrong was chosen as an official spokesperson for the Leaf, so it's not a huge surprise Armstrong will become the first person in the U.S. to get his hands on the electric hatch. Nissan's director of marketing and media, Erich Marx, noted that Armstrong was chosen because his fitness and constant drive for perfection are a perfect match to the qualities of the Leaf. If that's still not reason enough for selecting Armstrong, than here's the kicker: Armstrong mentioned that breathing the exhaust fumes from support vehicles during long cycling tours can reduce his overall performance, and that's exactly the type of mindset that could make the Leaf a success. Follow the jump to listen to Lance talk about the benefits of the Nissan Leaf.

[Source: Promo Magazine via Nissan-Leaf | Image: PoweriPics - C.C. License 2.0]

The video meant to be presented here is no longer available. Sorry for the inconvenience.