Daniel Friebe, as a host of the Cycling Podcast, is one of the most interesting spoken-word commentators on cycling and this lives up to that.

Jan Ullrich, a sad and lonesome tale of cycling’s best there Jan Ullrich, a sad and lonesome tale of cycling’s best there

Both Ullrich and Armstrong were embroiled in doping scandals in the final years of their careers: and eventually banned and publicly shamed.The long awaited biography of Jan Ullrich by the eloquent and knowledgeable Daniel Friebe does not disappoint. No one who rode in this period escaped suspicion and/or prosecution and history has revealed both Ullrich and Armstrong as drug cheats. He read articles dating back as far as the early nineties, watched numerous races, but also interviewed coaches, colleagues and friends of the famous cyclist. He put close to a minute into ‘extra-terrestrial’ tester Miguel Indurain who would go on to win the Olympic time trial that year and more than two minutes into the man who would win silver in the Olympic time test, Abraham Olano, the German riding at a 50 kph plus average. Het tijdschrift voerde bewijs aan dat Boehringer een van de vele West-Duitse farmaceutische bedrijven was die eind jaren tachtig bescheiden bedragen betaalden voor het rekruteren van zo’n 50.

Jan Ullrich: The Best There Never Was PEZ Bookshelf: Jan Ullrich: The Best There Never Was

Jan Ullrich: The Best There Never Was is the first biography of Jan Ullrich, arguably the most naturally talented cyclist of his generation, and also one of the most controversial champions of the Tour de France. Ullrich was admitted to a rehab clinic in 2018 to deal with his addiction issues, while also dealing with problems in his personal life, with Pevenage present to help Ullrich during these dark moments. Yet few knew Jan Ullrich, who was not fluent in English and rarely agreed to interviews with American media.In fact, it was Alberto Contador and Andy Schleck's battle in the fog up the Tourmalet on stage 17 of the Tour de France. It is reported that he was admitted to hospital following a layover in Mexico, en route home, and was later transferred to a Swiss clinic for therapy. Ullrich remains an enigma, the cycling wunderkind from East Germany who rode in the magenta jersey of T-Mobile and always finished second to Lance.

Jan Ullrich, The Best There Never Was by Daniel Friebe Jan Ullrich, The Best There Never Was by Daniel Friebe

Between prologue, epilogue, the 23 chapters and 448 pages, The Best There Never Was is in suitably grand tour length and scale. Ullrich may never have lived out his full potential to become the greatest rider of his era, for now he seems to have gotten the greatest biography of them for sure.Ullrich’s story inevitably links with the history of doping in pro cycling and this, too, together with the murky slew of silence and skewed morality surrounding it, is explored with clarity. The big debate in ’97 was whether Ullrich would be ‘let off the leash,’ to go for the win in the Tour or again play the part of loyal helper to Riis. There the achievement was to give an authentic voice - sometimes it really sounded like a Cav interview recounting a sprint finish. Eight top four finishes in the Tour de France in 10 years is a stunning performance by any measure but having set the bar so high in ‘96 and ‘97 anything except a win was going to be a disappointment. He was soon also voted Germany’s most popular sportsperson of all time, and his rivalry with Lance Armstrong defined the most controversial years of the Tour de France.

Jan Ullrich: The road to redemption – Rouleur Jan Ullrich: The road to redemption – Rouleur

After making a recovery, Ullrich was able to look back and talk about his problems and their rivalry. Once the interview was over, the wider public’s reaction to Ullrich was another aspect of the trip that answered some of my questions. Friebe brings you on his journalistic journey interviewing those close to Ulrich, something I really enjoyed since you get to feel the interviewee's awe, regret, discomfort, even hostility at times.This got me a chance to go to the London Six Days, Tour de Yorkshire and the Tour of Britain to name a few before eventually joining Eurosport's online team while I was at uni, where I studied journalism. The criminal trial for the murder of cyclist Moriah Wilson that has gripped the nation and cycling world alike gets underway in Austin, Texas, today. The result was that Lance went into the Tour lean and mean whilst Jan was just about coming into form as the race finished – three weeks of the, ‘proper pro-life’ having knocked him back into shape.