Times Online | Ullrich the comeback king ready for trial of strength

Times Online has a good profile on Jan Ullrich, and what an amazing comeback he's made to be back at this level of competition.

This afternoon, however, ten million Germans are expected to tune into television coverage of Ullrich’s effort to reverse his narrow deficit on Armstrong in the most gripping finale to the Tour in memory. The fact that Ullrich, 29, is racing at all is unexpected, but a decisive victory over the American, who has won all the final time-trials in his four-year reign, would be unforgettable.

Twelve months ago, Ullrich’s career was in freefall. Scorned by Telekom, his sponsor, and deserted by the German public after years of excuses for poor performances, the final humiliation came early in July. As Armstrong left Luxembourg en route for a fourth successive Tour win, Ullrich faced the press in Frankfurt and hesitatingly tried to explain how he had found himself in a nightclub taking Ecstasy.