German Champion Fabian Wegmann (Image credit: Patrick Reed)
By Susan Westemeyer in Dortmund, Germany
Fabian Wegmann faces the challenge of a new team after seven years with Team Gerolsteiner. Now with Team Milram, the 28-year-old knows all too well that the doping scandals that affected his previous team continue to affect German cycling.
His Gerolsteiner teammates Stefan Schumacher and Bernhard Kohl both tested positive for blood booster Erythropoietin derivative CERA during the 2008 Tour de France.
At the Team Milram presentation in Dortmund, Germany, on Wednesday, Wegmann said that the shock of those doping cases has left open wounds. "It was a very hard blow. You ride for these people and you trust them. You are together with them day and night when you are away. It just takes a while to come to grips with all of what happened."
He hopes that German cycling has reached a new beginning. "There is only one way to go, and that is the clean way. It has to be that way. We are doing everything we can; we are even paying for our own doping controls. There is not much more that we can do and now it is up to us to offer good sport and earn back the trust of the fans and the media."
Wegmann noted that he would be the team captain for the 2009 Spring Classics. Those are his important races, along with the World Championships and the Giro di Lombardia.
The German Champion is also looking forward to the Tour de France, especially since he had to abandon the race this year after missing the time limit in the 19th stage.
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