Tour of France
Tour de France: Ex-winner Ullrich feels sorry for sprinters
Jan Ullrich won the Tour de France in 1997. photo
© Bernd Weißbrod/dpa
Ex-cycling star Jan Ullrich feels sorry for the sprinters at the Tour de France because of the numerous difficult mountain stages this year. “I am convinced that this tour will be the toughest tour of all time,” said the 49-year-old Tour de France winner in 1997 in an interview with “Bild”.
Ex-Rad-Star Jan Ullrich has at the Tour de France sorry for the sprinters because of the numerous difficult mountain stages this year. “I am convinced that this tour will be the toughest tour of all time,” said the 49-year-old Tour de France winner in 1997 in an interview with “Bild”.
Alps, Pyrenees, Jura, Vosges, Massif Central – that’s tough. “I really feel sorry for the sprinters on this tour, they will have to fight and suffer to even reach Paris. Some of them will probably fall out of the grace period,” predicted Ullrich.
The 110th Tour de France starts on Saturday and leads over 3399.5 kilometers from Bilbao in Spain to Paris. With eight mountain stages and only one time trial, the tour will be decided in the high mountains. The organizers would have a completely different approach this year, said Ullrich. “As a fan, I think that’s good. For the drivers, however, it will be even more strenuous than usual,” he said.
The 2000 Olympic champion admitted that he used to struggle when he faced a tough mountain stage. “I often said at the finish: That’s it, I won’t start anymore, I’m done. But after a massage and a shower it went again,” reported Ullrich.