Argus Sports Staff
The hottest name in world cycling arrived in Cape Town this week to prepare for the Rapport Cycle tour, which starts next Friday in Sea Point.
Jan Ullrich, leader of the Telekom team, is the first Tour de France winner to compete in this event. He won cycling's premier race in 1997 and was also victorious in the Tour of Spain last year.
But it will not be the first time that Ullrich has raced here. He walked away with the sprinter's title in 1994 Rapport Tour.
He has come a long way since then and Telekom's appearance at the tour is being followed closely in Germany.
Race promoter Guido Eickenbeck said this week that more than 35 German journalists as well as the three main German television networks were here to cover the tour and in particular, Ullrich. "He is more popular in Germany than Michael Schumacher at the moment," Eickenbeck said.
Eickenbeck also confirmed that the Telekom team would not compete in this year's Giro del Capo tour or the Cape Argus/Pick 'n Pay cycle tour.
"There is an inaugural World Cup tour in Milan, Italy, at the same time and they (Ullrich and the Telekom team) will definitely compete at that event," Eickenbeck said.
Ullrich came from nowhere to win the Tour de France in 1997. He was not even team-leader of the Telekom team at the time. Danish rider Bjarne Riis had to concede control of the team to the young German.
He dominated the time trials at the race in the same way as the last Tour de France great, Miguel Indurain.
Ulrich had a poor 1998 and 1999 until the final big race of 1999 when he won the Tour of Spain in September and he is in excellent form for the Rapport tour.
This year's event will again bring together teams from Australia, France, Switzerland and Germany. Africa are represented by a team from Eritrea, but the strangest team must be the Linda McCartney team - named after Beatle Paul McCartney's late wife.
Last year's winner Michael Rich from the Swiss team Post Suisse and the winner of the "King of the Mountain" competition, Jan Koertz of Belgium will again compete.
The tour, this year is confined to the Western and Southern Cape - in previous years it crossed the country - and starts and finishes in Sea Point. The race will go as far as Mossel Bay.