Jan Ullrich reveals details of latest health scare
Former Tour de France champion insisted he's no longer struggling with dependency yet said he's suffering from back pain.
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
Jan Ullrich has revealed new details of his latest health scare.
Last month, German media reported that the 1997 Tour de France champion ended up in a Mexican hospital following a recent trip to Cuba.
Speaking to the German media Bild, the 48-year-old said it was not a relapse of his long-running abuse problems.
“I had a thrombosis and very severe blood poisoning,” Ullrich told Bild. “I escaped death again.”
Also read: How a clean and sober Ullrich pedaled back from the brink
There was some media speculation that Ullrich had suffered a relapse, but he said that was not the case.
“I am no longer an addict,” Ullrich said. “I had a control before the treatments, and that was negative.”
Ullrich also revealed he’s suffering from serious back problems, something he linked back to his racing days.
“I have three or four intervertebral discs that have completely collapsed,” he said. “Today I’m only 1.81m tall when I was 1.83m before.”
Ullrich confirmed that former Tour nemesis Lance Armstrong visited him in the hospital.
The pair have been in close contact over the past several years, including a high-profile return to the public eye for Ullrich last fall.
“He was the first person to come to see me at the hospital, he helped me a lot,” Ullrich said. “I want to thank him for that.”