Bjarne Riis

• Danish champion in the road race in 1995, 1996
• Danish champion in the time trial in 1996
• Danish champion in the team time trial in 1998

• Tour de France 1996
• Six stages of the Tour de France
• Two stages of the Giro d' Italia

• Amstel Gold Race 1997

Bjarne Riis ( born April 3, 1964 in Herning ) is a Danish former professional cyclist and current directeur sportif of the cycling team Team Saxo Bank.

In 1996, he became the first and so far only Scandinavians the Tour de France. As a result of his confession to have doped during this time with EPO, cortisone and growth substances, it was canceled in June 2007 from the official list of winners. Since doping fraud barred after eight years, but he could of Cycling Union UCI victory but no longer know, and now Riis is officially back out as the winner of 1996.

Career

Cyclist

Riis began his professional career in 1986 in the Tour de France, Riis continuously improved. Having become fifth in 1993, it reached third place in 1995. Before the 1996 season, the Dane of certainty Ballan joined the Telekom team and won the Tour de France this season. He was then voted Denmark's Sportsman of the Year.

The following year, Riis won the Amstel Gold Race in the spring but could not repeat his performance in the Tour de France, and was seventh in the victory of his teammate Jan Ullrich. Overall Riis reached four stage wins in the Tour, the Giro d' Italia, he got two stage wins. Riis finished his career in 2000, after he had never fully recovered from a crash at the Tour de Suisse 1999.

Rankings in the Grand Tours

Team Manager

After his resignation as a professional cyclist Riis has built his company Riis Cycling 2001 A / S own successful team that was first called after the first main sponsor of Team CSC Computer Sciences Corporation. Since 2008, the team is, inter alia, named after the new sponsor Saxo Bank.

Doping accusations

In 1997 there were accusations of Olympic champion Pascal Richard, that Riis had a positive doping test at the training camp in Lanzarote. He even commented on the allegations by saying that he had never tested positive. The former Team Telekom masseur Jef D' hont accused Riis in a broadcast on 26 March 2007 television interview, to have massive doping with EPO. In professional circles, Riis was nicknamed " Monsieur 60 %," an allusion to the often measured at him hematocrit of 60 %, which was significantly higher than the normal value. The blood doping agent EPO increases the number of red blood cells and therefore also one of the hematocrit, but is directly detectable only since 2000.

Doping confession

During a press conference on 25 May 2007 in Copenhagen Riis confessed, in the period from 1993 to 1998, the doping agent erythropoietin (EPO ), growth hormones and cortisone taken to improve performance to have. The EPO he bought and took her own, a. His victory in the Tour de France in 1996 was under the influence of the doping agent EPO, cortisone and growth substances, such as Riis admitted publicly.

The Tour title can Riis officially no longer be denied, as the eight -year period has expired for that. The Tour de France has removed him after his doping confession from her list of winners. The final decision lies with the cycling world governing body UCI, this Riis had but merely asked to return his yellow jersey. Christian Prudhomme, director of the Tour, Riis described as " persona non grata ", which he no longer wanted to see in the Tour de France. Riis waived in the sequence forward to supporting his team CSC on tour in 2007. At the Tour de France 2008 Riis, who had introduced a comparatively extensive doping control program for his team was, again welcome.

In autumn 2007, Jörg Jaksche said Riis had threatened him with " massive consequences " if Jaksche call 2007 names on his doping confession. The Dane was supposedly " ensure that Jaksche never get back in the sport of cycling ." Riis denied this and said that it had issued only Jaksche advice.

Doping allegations against Riis team

In the course of doping investigation against Lance Armstrong loaded Tyler Hamilton, who in the years 2002 and 2003 for Team CSC drove Riis. He had brought along with him the now become known by the Spanish doping scandal Fuentes physicians Eufemiano Fuentes and knew of his doping program. On July 2, 2013 it was announced that the Danish Anti -Doping Agency against Riis determined, a new witness is Michael Rasmussen.

Others

The Swedish music group Koop released on their 1997 album released Sons of Koop song Bjarne Riis.

During his playing days Riis was called the " Eagle of Herning ." Why is an eagle eye in the logo of Riis Cycling and an eagle head on the jersey of Team Saxobank.

Riis is married to the former Danish handball player Anne Dorthe Tanderup.