Alex Zülle

"Zulle" redirects here. The Zulle is a tributary of the Dender, a river in Belgium.

Alex Zülle (born 5 July 1968) is a Swiss former professional road bicycle racer. During the 1990s he was one of the most successful cyclists in the world, winning 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.

Alex Zülle

Zülle at the 1993 Tour de France
Personal information
Full name	Alex Zülle
Nickname	Perro Loco "Rompetechos"
Born	5 July 1968 (age 56) Wil, Switzerland
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight	72 kg (159 lb; 11 st 5 lb)
Team information
Discipline	Road
Role	Rider
Rider type	All-rounder
Amateur team
1988-1991	Helvetia, Isotonic, Churrasco, Mavick
Professional teams
1991–1997	ONCE
1998	Festina
1999–2000	Banesto
2001–2002	Team Coast
2003–2004	Phonak
Major wins
Grand Tours Tour de France 2 individual stages (1995, 1996) Giro d'Italia 3 individual stages (1998) Vuelta a España General classification (1996, 1997) 9 individual stages (1993 - 2000) Stage races Tour de Suisse (2002) Tour of the Basque Country (1995, 1997) Paris–Nice (1993) Volta a Catalunya (1996) One-day races and Classics World Time Trial Championships (1996)
Medal record Representing  Switzerland Men's road bicycle racing World Championships 1996 Lugano Elite time trial

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.^[1]

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.^[1]

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.^[2] He remained with ONCE until 1997.^[3] 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.^[4]

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.^[5] Zülle said he took it to satisfy his sponsors. He also said he was deprived of his spectacles during the police interview.^[6] On 28 November 1998, Zülle's haematocrit was found to be 52.3%, 2.3% over the limit.

His career coincided with that of Miguel Indurain, five-times 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. Following financial problems for his employer, Team Coast, Zülle transferred to Phonak on 27 March 2003 in a rare mid-season switch.^[7]

Zülle retired in 2004, and held a party for his fans in Wil in October that year.^[8]

• Doping at the Tour de France
• List of doping cases in cycling
• List of sportspeople sanctioned for doping offences

• Alex Zülle collected news and commentary at The New York Times