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Jan Ullrich still has it!!!

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Haha...

So Jan is really busy these days ! Organizing (or having someone organize) that "luxury group ride" on Ventoux and he was in Paris on Sunday for the arrival of the Tour. Not as an official guest of course (his request went unanswered last year for the presentation) and he apparently didn't meet any riders this time (met Pogi last year), oh well...

View: https://www.instagram.com/p/CgcRvSfsI4d/


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Jan visited the museum dedicated to his rival Pantani.
To welcome him was the father of il Pirata:
“A very exciting day for me. Meeting Marco's father and visiting the museum brought back many memories "
 
Having just watched Pogacar excel in the recent classics it got me thinking about Jan Ullrich......

We all know the stories of what could have been for Jan if he had more dedication.

If he did focus on classics in season, which type of Classics could he have been a contender in if he targeted them??
 
Jan did win the Olympic road race in Sydney. I don't think it's unfeasible that he could have won Lombardia, if he managed to stay fit into autumn. I'm not sure if he would been competitive in Liège in those days, with the punchy finale into Ans. Maybe Amstel would have been an option, which had a flat finish in Maastricht during that era.
 
What makes him a bigger freak than Pogacar or Remco?
Don't know if you followed his career but he had serious problems with alcohol, diet and he never really trained like a pro. He was 3 or 4 times runner up in the Tour (and he won one Tour), only loosing to the best GT rider of all times (please, don't argue with me about this. It's just my opinion).
 
Don't know if you followed his career but he had serious problems with alcohol, diet and he never really trained like a pro. He was 3 or 4 times runner up in the Tour (and he won one Tour), only loosing to the best GT rider of all times (please, don't argue with me about this. It's just my opinion).

I did. He was second in 1996, 1998, 2000, 2001 and 2003, so actually five times.

I know he had lots of problems and was labeled as the biggest talent ever but I still sometimes wonder what a rider like Pogacar or Evenepoel has to do to be considered as a bigger talent.

The same can be said about Vandenbroucke. I guess it's some sort of wishful thinking and 'what could have been, if just..." thinking that is prevalent here. And people being attracted to mental fragility in riders.
 
I did. He was second in 1996, 1998, 2000, 2001 and 2003, so actually five times.

I know he had lots of problems and was labeled as the biggest talent ever but I still sometimes wonder what a rider like Pogacar or Evenepoel has to do to be considered as a bigger talent.

The same can be said about Vandenbroucke. I guess it's some sort of wishful thinking and 'what could have been, if just..." thinking that is prevalent here. And people being attracted to mental fragility in riders.
He achieved so many things in cycling (Tour, Olympic gold medal, Vuelta) having the same work ethic as Carlos Betancur. Of course Pogi and Remco are two wonderful talents but they are pros in everything they do.
 
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I did. He was second in 1996, 1998, 2000, 2001 and 2003, so actually five times.

I know he had lots of problems and was labeled as the biggest talent ever but I still sometimes wonder what a rider like Pogacar or Evenepoel has to do to be considered as a bigger talent.

The same can be said about Vandenbroucke. I guess it's some sort of wishful thinking and 'what could have been, if just..." thinking that is prevalent here. And people being attracted to mental fragility in riders.
If careers are cut short, whether by tragic consequences or their own undoing, when athletes, performers, politicians are in their “prime”, their perceived “greatness” or legacy will get amplified compared to similar folks who we see over a full span of a life or a career. I think it’s because our brains tend to see this flat or increasing trajectory of success, based on the information we have up to that point.
 
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If careers are cut short, whether by tragic consequences or their own undoing, when athletes, performers, politicians are in their “prime”, their perceived “greatness” or legacy will get amplified compared to similar folks who we see over a full span of a life or a career. I think it’s because our brains tend to see this flat or increasing trajectory of success, based on the information we have up to that point.

Probably true. Ulrich's career wasn't cut that short, though. First time on the Tour podium was in 1996, last time in 2005. But obviously yes, he was set to feature in 2006 too.

But I have to hand it to him, that his relative longevity is quite remarkable when you consider his problems. That's a lot of bouncing back.

I look forward to reading the Friebe book because I admittedly was just a child when he was active.
 
Probably true. Ulrich's career wasn't cut that short, though. First time on the Tour podium was in 1996, last time in 2005. But obviously yes, he was set to feature in 2006 too.

But I have to hand it to him, that his relative longevity is quite remarkable when you consider his problems. That's a lot of bouncing back.

I look forward to reading the Friebe book because I admittedly was just a child when he was active.
I love watching Ullrich on the bike, especially watching the big guy churn out power up long climbs. He developed before the shift (or smokescreen) to “spinning” up climbs, which shows off his power even more noticeably. It was such a bad deal that he crashed through his team car’s back window just before the Tour prologue that year, I was really hoping he could knock off Lance.
 
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So did I miss the documentary in English about Ullrich or was it cancelled ?

I follow '"him" (I doubt he does any of the posting) on FB and it's a bit pathetic, going lyrical about "re"living past climbs while charging 25000€ to the old dudes who want to ride with him.
 

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