Lance Armstrong reportedly plans to admit to doping for the first time in an interview with Oprah Winfrey that will be taped tomorrow at the disgraced cyclist's home in Austin, Texas.
USA Today cited "a person with knowledge of the situation" as saying Armstrong plans to admit to doping throughout his career, but that he probably will not go into great detail about specific cases and events.
The announcement that Armstrong had agreed to an interview, to air on Winfrey's OWN cable TV network on Thursday, sparked widespread speculation that he might finally confess to being a drug cheat after years of strenuous denials.
It will be Armstrong's first interview since he was stripped in October of his seven Tour de France titles after the US Anti-Doping Agency said he helped orchestrate the most sophisticated doping programme in sports history.
Armstrong sent a text saying: "I told her [Winfrey] to go wherever she wants and I'll answer the questions directly, honestly, candidly. That's all I can say."
Last week, The New York Times reported that Armstrong, 41, was considering publicly admitting he used banned performance-enhancing drugs in a bid to return to competitive sport in marathons and triathlons.