Saunier Duval drops sponsorship

[pelagius]

Originally Posted by creekster

They used to call Ullrich Bagel Boy and strudel boy and so forth. WhIle true he lost form every year, and more so than most riders, he was never really fat. But he certainly had that repuation. Most serious bike riders are really fat snobs, like waters.

I also think that he kind of liked the fact that Ullrich always lost to Armstrong ... It made him more of a tragic hero particularly when they thought Armstrong was dirty and Ullrich was clean.

[creekster]

Originally Posted by pelagius

I also think that he kind of liked the fact that Ullrich always lost to Armstrong ... It made him more of a tragic hero particularly when they thought Armstrong was dirty and Ullrich was clean.

I think that certainly endeared him to the French, who love second fiddles like Poulidor. When Ullrich won the Tour when he was a young man fresh out of East Germany's athletic factories he was heralded as the uber-star for Germans to love and admire. They fully expected him to win a bunch more. I think their admiration for him as a close but no ciagr hero came after Armstrong kicked his butt a few times (and they thought LA was doped, as you say). IMO, few ahtletes have ever gotten inside another's head like LA got into Ullrich's head.