Disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong has returned the bronze medal he won at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney nine months after he was stripped of it.

The US Olympic Committee (USOC) ordered the American to return the prize after he admitted to years of performance-enhancing substance abuse.

"I can confirm that the United States Olympic Committee has received the bronze medal awarded to Lance Armstrong at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney," USOC spokesman Patrick Sandusky said.

"The International Olympic Committee and the USOC had previously requested that the medal be returned. The USOC has made arrangements to return the medal to the IOC."

Armstrong, who was also stripped of his seven Tour de France titles, has been hit with lawsuits from the US Justice Department and his former sponsor the US Postal Service since the revelations.