German rider, who has been without a team since 2007, linked with Christina Watches team
Sunday’s Ekstra Bladet reports that former Paris-Nice winner, Jörg Jaksche, might return to racing in 2011 with Michael Rasmussen’s Christina Watches team.
Jaksche, who famously confessed to doping in 2007 in a tell-all interview with German magazine Der Spiegel, was never able to return to racing. Jaksche later admitted that it was not the ‘cleverest thing he ever did’ to confess everything to the magazine, as he was blacklisted following the piece. He tried to find another team, but had no luck, retirement followed.
Now though, it appears Jaksche might get his chance to return. The German could possibly return with Christina Hembo’s new Danish Continental squad. It’s a chance that Hembo neither denies or confirms.
“Jörg has publicly distanced himself from doping, and he has apologized and regrets what he did. Thus, he is definitely a possibility. All who have served their sentences and reject doping, deserve a second chance. That does not mean he will become a part of our team though. We will decide in the coming weeks.”
It’s an eerily similar statement to the ones that Bjarne Riis made about Michael Rasmussen only a few months ago. Unfortunately for Rasmussen, nothing ever came of Riis’s comments, and instead, he and his personal sponsor, Christina Hembo, set about forming their own team.
Jaksche is certainly not against the opportunity to return to racing. At 34 years old, he’s positively young when considering some of the talent that has fared well in recent years.
“Cycling is my passion,” says the former Tour de Suisse podium finisher. “Every athlete wants to decide how and when his career ends. For me, I’m not here to come back and ride the Tour de France. It’s about the chance to return. I’d like to race a few years then end my career in a good and happy way.”
It will be interesting to see if Jaksche gets a nod of the head to join the team. He will certainly be an interesting addition to the upstart squad.