Ullrich banned from public races in Germany
The German cycling federation (BDR) has banned former Tour de France winner Jan Ullrich from competing in any amateur or public races in the country after the retired athlete was found guilty of blood doping last week.
Ullrich, the 1997 Tour winner who was also a five-times runner-up in the world's biggest race, was suspended for two years by the Court of Arbitration for Sport for blood doping with the help of a Spanish doctor at the heart of a scandal that stretching back to 2006.
"According to the anti-doping rules of the BDR the ban includes non-licence holders and so it also concerns public races," said BDR Vice President Udo Sprenger.
"So Ullrich is banned from starting in any German public race that has been authorised by the BDR," he said.
Ullrich, who had been due to enter a race in Bielefeld in August 2012, had repeatedly denied any contact with Eufemiano Fuentes, the doctor who had been investigated as part of Spain's Operation Puerto before admitting to it a day after his ban last week.
The scandal broke in 2006 when Spanish police raids uncovered more than 200 code-named blood bags, some of which were linked to cyclists.
Ullrich retired in 2007 after also winning an Olympic gold and silver medal at the Sydney 2000 Games. He became the first German to win the Tour de France in 1997.
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It's like asking a paedophile to become a teaching assistant.The geezer's a cheat.
Jan Ulrich was the better Grand Tour rider than LA.
This is just the tip of the iceberg,
He is also:
Banned from wearing Lycra in any public German location
He is not allowed to enter a bike shop on sacred German soil.
If seen on a Focus bike or any bike equipped with continental tyres anywhere in the world he will placed under arrest.
Adheres to a 50 metre restraining order against any minor on a bike in case he corrupts their fragile little minds.
Not allowed to give blood….except in Spain.
What a waste of time.
Get a grip and move on. Let the man get on with his life, he’s not evil. Focus on other sports where they are getting away with it.
True indeed Richard & all the other fans..97 was my 2nd tour..Alp duez for a week, My hero won the stage then rode past me AGAIN going into his hotel next to the Pierre & Vacance where i stayed with my young family,then leaving the Alp that night & driving to Morzine Avoriaz to see Marco and Jan do it all again on the Joux Plane..Sweet memories indeed..By the way Longdene, i've spent 6 of the last 7 summers either @ Les Arcs, Pla ,d'Adet or La Mongie emulating the Giants of the Road(very slowly mind)
This seems a pointless exercise to ban him from all races and tend to agree with most of the other comments on here. Perhaps the Germans missed a trick here and they could have used Ullrich in a similar role to that of David Millar. He could help with the young guys coming through and give them an insight into what not to do,
As for the other 200 bags, after 6 years they should be named and shamed and accept the punishment could be quite an interesting list of names.
What ever other think about Jan Ullrich, he is one of great cyclist and I admire him.
Sad for the accusation, but for me Ullrich is one of best German cyclist ever have until today.
So keep on going Jan.... many people support you an d you have the right to go cycling and taking part in race, why not ? During his race days, no doping offense and why so big news about Operation Puerto ?
What in god's name does this change ? Nothing ! Ulrich is still one of my fav's, and possibly one of the greatest modern day cyclists ever !
"poxy beauracrats!" - Best quote from RICHArD ever !
Leave jan alone for fecks sake, its pathetic. eddy merckx next ? best part is the people on here slagging hjm off. guy was a legend . try turning them gears like he did, pain pain pain pain. get off your sofa and try it u losers
I admit it, I'm biased!
I shouted for Jan every season and when he was led away from Le Tour because of Puerto I was enraged. No proof and very little objectivity appeared to be applied in the aftermath and it's taken a long time to get to the bottom of it.
I was happy that Basso did his time. I shouted for Valverde to do his time after the DNA proof arose.
I still want all those others to suffer & the proof about other sports to be revealed.
Now we have the decision on Jan, and you know what? I'm OK with it! He's been found guilty and I still only have the good memories.
It's a biased view ...... and I'm happy to have it on this occasion!
eb .... I know it's not a perfect solution, nothing is. But getting Ullrich even to the current statement of " i'd do things differently because it was wrong " is a big message!
German cycling, at professional level, is in a mess & it needs high profile help to say it needs to get back on the straight & narrow. There's no one higher profile than Jan Ullrich!
Another thing.. the difference between the two countries, the mentality
#SPAIN
We dont care about a positive test or what the rest of the world thinks, our boy CONTADOR is innocent. President of spain , high govt officials, football coaches, university professors say the same thing openly without any shame.
The other extreme.....
#GERMANY
Ulrich has suffered for a long period, but that doesnT matter. The guy needs to pay a heavy price ( should be lynched) for what he did. Yes, Yes, we have heard about Pantani, but what is right is right, and what is wrong is wrong,...that is the most important thing for GERMANS ( compassion for a fellow human being has no place..)
Two extremes that are bad...just saying..
For god sake, leave this guy alone. He retired years ago and has no intention in returning. He's went through alot of stuff and now he gets banned from public races??? Where is this heading? It's just ridiculous.
How about naming the other 200 people involved in scandal or are there top tennis players and soccer players under them? Ohhh yeah i forgot, these people earn alot in those sports so they need to stay "clean".
Richard..Ullrich an anti doping ambassador?? He's never unequivocally renounced doping because he know's if he did he would lose his titles. He seems to value his titles more than any notions of contrition or redemption. Besides, he buys into that warped.twisted idea that a lot of idiots buy into; that widespread doping levels the playing field....therefore he wasn't cheating.. total bol. lok.s
1#-Well... it is a NOT fair to Ulrich. The guy has suffered a lot, I dont think it is right to make him go through the same thing again after 6 years. The guy has to make a living, he has to be able to live a normal life. I am a fan of ARMSTRONG but it is time to see Ulrich as a father, as a fellow human being. Getting chased by rude german journalists everywhere AGAIN AFTER 6 YEARS? and getting treated worse than a murderer/criminal is unjust. This will be difficult not only for Ulrich but also for the family. The world has already lost PANTANI. " You are our hero but we will lynch you and your family the day we find you breaking rules" doesnt sound right. This makes me sad even though I am Armstrongs fan, GERMANY need SHOW A LITTLE COMPASSION.
2#- More than 200 blood bags were found, nobody says anything about the footballers , tennis players etc. BUT somehow the world doesnt care. Jan ULRICH is the only person who needs be lynched right???? Even Germany doesnt ask questions about the other 200 bags.This is HYPOCRISY!!!!
That is a very German thing to do. It is neither right nor wrong, but just is. Come to the US and do Tours in Colorado or CA. Plenty of rich cycling fans that would want to hobnob with a star. Ulrich didn't do any wrong. He just got caught in the ignorant media storm. Look at his team. Is Zabel banned from these events? Doubt it.
the vast amount of money spent bringing a RETIRED cyclist to court by the uci/wada or who ever spent the money, should of been spent on prevention of PED. So now he cant do a sportif. What has been significantly gained by the german authorities. If it was BDR who spent the money, they should have used the money to do extra testing of their atheletes, esp out of season. Allright tony m!!
In any sport anyone caught doping should be banned for ever.
This is @#$%! It was the Germans(east) along with the Russians who started state sponsored DOPING folks! Not Spain or Italy but Germany! Now they take the "moral high road" and public TV stations will not show the Giro or the Tour So to make their point they are now CLEAN the BDR bans Ullrich! How unbelievable and hypocritical this is.
Ridiculous!
#3
They still need Contador to race, He's the big draw!
The question should be "why did they bother chasing someone who has been retired for 5 years?"
BDR would have done better for themselves, racing in Germany & Jan by getting him on board as part of the drug free (Ok .... reduced) future. He's got a story to tell and he does come across as a penitent. He could have been a great ambassador for drug free German cycling.
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