The 1997 Tour winner Jan Ulrich is once again under doubt due to doping; the German who was sacked from the T-Mobile team last year after being involved in the Spanish doping investigation called "Operacion Puerto" while being accused of using Erythropoietin (blood buster) and Grow Hormone. Apparently, the 33-years-old cyclist used the prohibit substances to enhance his performance to win the Tour ten year ago too.
The disgrace has come to the German's life who keeps denying the use of any performance enhancing drugs since D' Hont, masseur of Telekom during the 90's has declared to the press he had even seen the Tour de France champion being injected with the banned substances during the years he worked for the team. D' Hont actually wrote a book about doping at the Telekom (currently T-Mobile) when Bjarne Riss, also a tour winner, was part of the team. Actually, Riss already confessed to be guilty and was stripped out of his yellow jersey.
The new incriminations of doping come as a result of the introduction of the new anti-doping law last May and regarding the implication of the cyclist in the Operacion Puerto. However, a Spanish court ruled in March that Spain's new anti doping laws could not be retroactively applied.
While Ulrich denies any link with Eufemiano Fuentes, the Spanish doctor responsible of providing doping services to the Pro Tour cyclist as well as for possession of frozen blood bags and doping equipment in his house and clinic; D'Hont is ready to present his new book, which apparently contains more material to blame the German of using doping during his career as a professional cyclist. The masseur actually provided the Bonn's attorney and the Focus Magazine with some evidence regarding Ulrich and T- Mobile's team guilt.
German professional cyclist Patrick Sinkewitz has also considered withdrawing from the race due to the strict ban on doping which lies on the team. He also provided investigators with information on how Andreas Schmid and Lothar Heinrich (T-Mobile doctors) administered performance enhancing drugs to cyclists through blood replacement treatment, even after the suspension of Jan Ulrich from the Tour de France in 2006.
The evidences are plenty, cyclists are highly affected and fans are very disappointed. Jan Ulrich can not expect more trouble; the German star is falling down from his podium as well as many Tours famous already did.
