From heaven to hell. This was the life and career of Jan Ullrich, 49 years old, former German cyclist, winner of the Tour de France (1997), a Tour of Spain (1999) and Olympic gold at the 2000 Games in Sydney, now by himself told in a documentary (The Hunt) with impressive stories that will premiere on Amazon Prime in November, in which the German talks about his addiction to drugs and alcohol.
“At that time, every day was a matter of life and death. I consumed a lot of cocaine, I drank whiskey like it was water, until I was on the verge of death,” said Ullrich in the promotion of the documentary that promises to be a hit are with the public: “I’d be lying if I said I haven’t fooled anyone, but I think I’ve made peace with my past. Viewers who watch the documentary can put themselves in my shoes and think on the subject,” he added.
The documentary series is an impressive account by the former cyclist about the hell he experienced after being caught in the doping ring in 2006, during the famous Operation Puerto in Spain. Jan Ullrich ended his career in 2007, despite continuing to be involved in the sport, at the time as a sports advisor.
Much of this story, although without so many details, had already been told by Ullrich in 2021, in an interview with the podcast The Move, by Lance Armstrong, another cyclist who descended into hell after being caught in the doping ring. In fact, Armstrong played a very important role in helping him get back on his feet.
“Five years ago I went to hell. I lost almost everything, almost my life. I fought to get out of this situation with the help of friends, experts and of course my family. Many tears were shed, I had sleepless nights , panic attacks, without being able to take the burden off their shoulders,” revealed Ullrich, who experienced this very difficult period in Mallorca, Spain, but now lives in southern Germany, where he runs a cycling tour company.
Punished by TAD
During the filming of the documentary, Ullrich returned to some of the places where he experienced some of his greatest sporting glory: “The aim was to go back to the past, to return to the places where I won important competitions, but where I also made mistakes that allowed me to grow.”
Initially, in 2006, when he was caught during Operation Puerto, and despite some samples confirming the use of doping substances, the German denied this and claimed innocence. It was not until 2013 that Ullrich admitted that he had resorted to doping for the first time.
Previously, in 2012, he was punished by the Court of Arbitration for Sport with a two-year ban for doping. And he watched as the Swiss court stripped him of all results achieved since May 1, 2005, with an emphasis on third place in the 2005 Tour.
His greatest achievement was his victory in the 1997 Tour de France (the first German to do so), where he arrived with a short CV – his most notable performance being a stage win in the Tour of Switzerland.
Jan Ullrich was born in Rostock, in the former German Democratic Republic (GDR). But after the fall of the wall he moved to a school in Berlin. He turned professional in 1995 after signing with Telekom.
Source: DN
