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Alex Zulle

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Full name
  
Alex Zulle

Name
  
Alex Zulle

Discipline
  
Road

Role
  
Bicycler


Rider type
  
All-rounder

Height
  
1.84 m

1991–1997
  
Weight
  
69 kg

Alex Zulle Alex Zulle GW

Nickname
  
Perro Loco "Rompetechos"

Born
  
5 July 1968 (age 56) Wil, Switzerland (
1968-07-05
)

1988-1991
  
Helvetia, Isotonic, Churrasco, Mavick

Tour de france 1995 09 la plagne alex zulle


Alex Zülle (born 5 July 1968) is a Swiss former professional road bicycle racer. During the 1990s he was one of the best cyclists in the world, winning back-to-back in the 1996 and 1997 Vuelta a España, taking second place in the 1995 and the 1999 Tour de France. He was world time-trial champion in Lugano in 1996.

Contents

Alex Zulle Alex Zulle amp Lance Armstrong veloprocyclingtours

Tour de france 1995 alex zulle a la plagne


Early career

Alex Zulle wwwprocyclingstatscomriders2013thumbsAlexZu

Zülle was born and brought up in Wil in the canton of St. Gallen, son of a Swiss father, Walter Zülle and Wilhelmine, from Brabant, Netherlands. As a child he wanted to be a skier but at 18 he was injured in an accident. He began cycling in the Netherlands for rehabilitation before giving up because it was too windy.

Alex Zulle zulle6jpg

His father, having bought cycling equipment, persuaded him to give cycling another go when they returned to Switzerland. After several years as a successful amateur, Zülle turned professional in 1991. He approached the former sporting director of the Swiss team, Helvetia, Paul Köchli, but Köchli signed Laurent Dufaux instead.

Alex Zulle ONCE cycling team Wikipedia the free encyclopedia

Zülle then approached Manolo Saiz, but was rebuffed because, among reasons, he did not contract riders who wore earrings. Eventually, Saiz softened and Zülle rode for ONCE as a stagaire or apprentice in the Volta a Catalunya. He attacked frequently and finished third. Saiz relented and Zülle signed his first professional contract in September 1991. He remained with ONCE until 1997. Most of its riders were Spanish. Zülle spoke only Swiss-German when he joined but at the end of the Vuelta a España he answered journalists in Spanish.

Festina affair

In 1998, Zülle joined Festina. The team was banned from the 1998 Tour de France amid doping allegations which later became known as the Festina affair. Five Festina riders including Zülle admitted taking EPO. Zülle said he took it to satisfy his sponsors. He also said he was deprived of his spectacles during the police interview. On 28 November 1998, Zülle's haematocrit was found to be 52.3%, 2.3% over the limit.

1999–2004

His career coincided with that of Miguel Indurain, five-time Tour de France winner. Zülle was second in the Tour in 1999. He also won the Vuelta a España and Tour de Suisse, and stages in the Giro d'Italia.

Zülle retired in 2004, and held a party for his fans in Wil in October that year.

References

Alex Zülle Wikipedia


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