Jan Ullrich has a lot to tell, about sporting highs and hard falls. The cycling star was the first German to win the Tour de France, but later he lost not only numerous titles but also a large part of his good reputation. He never makes a comprehensive doping confession, now he wants to "unpack".
The only German Tour de France winner, Jan Ullrich, wants to "unpack" in a documentary series. This was announced by the Amazon Prime Video streaming service in a statement. In four episodes, the career, the successes and the crashes of the former cycling star should be looked back on.
"There's been a lot of news about me lately, good and bad. Now it's time for me to tell my story, the whole story of how I went from hunter to hunted. I'd like to take you on a journey through my Life. With all the turbulence, setbacks and challenges, "Ullrich was quoted in the message. The native of Rostock had previously rejected an extensive doping confession. "I have nothing to blame myself for. I have never cheated or harmed anyone in my entire career," he said after the scandal tour in 1998. It remains unclear whether Ullrich will now openly work through his own doping past.
25 years ago, Ullrich was the only German to win the most important cycling race in the world and triggered a cycling boom in Germany. The career of the multiple world champion came to an abrupt end in 2006 after his connection to doping doctor Eufemiano Fuentes became public. His team T-Mobile had suspended him just before the start of the Tour de France.
58 suspects were named, including star Jan Ullrich. But he continued to deny it - until the Federal Criminal Police Office proved by means of a DNA comparison that several blood bags seized at Fuentes contained the blood of the 1997 tour winner. Ullrich visited Fuentes two dozen times between 2003 and 2006 and paid 80,000 euros to dope himself with his own blood – illegally, of course. The public prosecutor's office in Bonn saw it as "sufficient evidence that Mr. Ullrich used doping methods". In 2013, Ullrich admitted for the first time that he had doped, but only with his own blood. On the other hand, the statement of the former Telekom masseur Jef D'hont, who said in 2007: "Jan took Epo and also growth hormones - 100 percent sure. Now he has to say what happened back then."
Before the Tour de France this summer, an ARD documentary had caused a great response. In it, the Olympic champion from 2000 did not have a say himself. It was not mentioned when the documentary will appear on Amazon Prime Video.
