"A few more years and it'll hit." With these words former professional cyclist Jan Ullrich recently expressed the expectation thatthat his sons could mature into successful cyclists. "They may not yet be at the age to be professionals, but they will come along," said the 1997 Tour de France winner. Ullrich has three sons with his ex-wife Sara Steinhauser, the younger two of whom, Benno (14) and Toni (12), compete in junior races for the Rad-Union Wangen club.
If his boys became professional cyclists, Jan Ullrich would be in good company. In the history of cycling, there are a number of sons who emulate their fathers as professional cyclists; daughters who emulate their fathers or mothers, however, are comparatively rare. Another German father-son team can be found in Jan Ullrich's family:
Tobias and Georg Steinhauser
Tobias Steinhauser is a former team-mate of Jan Ullrich on the Coast/Bianchi and T-Mobile teams, as well as the brother of his ex-wife Sara. Georg is therefore the nephew of "Ulle" and cousin of his sons. Tobias was a professional cyclist from 1996 to 2005, while his son Georg currently rides for the EF Education-EasyPost team. In 2024, the 24-year-old made the headlines when he won the 17th stage of the Giro d'Italia with a mountain finish on the Passo Brocon. In a detailed TOUR interview the two talk about their respective lives in professional cycling.
Erik and Rick Zabel
Son Rick Zabel ended his career as a professional cyclist just a few months ago and spoke at length about it. talked to TOUR. He was a good helper, most recently in the Israel-Premier Tech team, but did not have the talent of his father, who is one of the most successful German professional cyclists of all time. His more than 200 victories include twelve stage wins in the Tour de France, achieved between 1996 and 2001, during which he also won the green jersey of the best sprinter six times in a row.
Didi and Björn Thurau
Dietrich, known as Didi Thurau, was the most successful German professional cyclist in the Tour de France before Jan Ullrich. In 1977, the 22-year-old won the prologue, subsequently wore the leader's yellow jersey for 15 days and finished second in Paris. This sparked an unprecedented enthusiasm for cycling in Germany. The rest of his career was one of constant ups and downs, and Thurau was repeatedly confronted with doping allegations. His two sons, Urs and Björn, also tried their hand at cycling, with Björn being the most successful, but never made it beyond contracts with second-class teams. In 2021, Björn Thurau was banned for nine years and six months by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) for doping offences.
Lars and Tim Torn and Lea Lin Teutenberg
The Teutenberg family in Mettmann forms an entire cycling dynasty. Horst Teutenberg (1938-2021) had three children who were all successful in cycling: sons Lars and Sven and daughter Ina-Yoko. The latter was the most successful of the three siblings on an international level and now works as sports director for the Lidl-Trek women's team. Tim Torn and Lea Lin are Lars Teutenberg's children. Tim Torn currently rides for Team Lidl-Trek. The 22-year-old has celebrated his greatest successes on the track to date as European champion in the elimination race and omnium and as world champion in the two-man team race at the 2024 World Championships in Copenhagen together with Roger Kluge. The 25-year-old Lea Lin Teutenberg currently competes for the Lotto women's team.
Eddy and Axel Merckx
The greatest of all time dominated international cycling for an entire decade between 1964 (amateur world champion) and 1977 (sixth place in the Tour de France). In between, he won the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia five times each, as well as pretty much every other race of note - and usually more than once. Against this background, it is absolutely remarkable how his son Axel (born in 1972) managed to have a very solid career as a professional cyclist despite the eternal comparisons and then work as a sports director. Incidentally, he made his professional debut in 1994 with what was then Team Telekom.
Adrie and Mathieu van der Poel
Too bad for dad that the grandad in this family is a cycling legend. Word has got around that France's cycling idol Raymond Poulidor (1936-2019) is Mathieu van der Poel's grandfather; the most famous non-winner (but three-time runner-up) of the Tour de France was able to witness his grandson's first major successes, particularly in cyclo-cross. Adrie, Mathieu's father, has nothing to hide in view of his career as a professional between 1981 and 2000. Poulidor's son-in-law won the Tour of Flanders, Paris-Tours, the Amstel Gold Race, the Clasica San Sebastian, the Zurich Championships and two stages of the Tour de France (1987 and 1988). He also became world cross-country champion in 1996.
Stephen and Nicolas Roche
The most successful Irish professional cyclist in history experienced his career peak in 1987, the year in which he won the Giro d'Italia, the Tour de France and the Road World Championships in Villach, Austria. The now 65-year-old was only the second cyclist - after Eddy Merckx - to achieve this. In the 2024 season, the new high-flyer Tadej Pogacar joined this exclusive club. However, Stephen Roche is still the only Irish winner of the Tour de France. His son Nicolas has already ended his career. He was a solid helper in several top-class teams, including Sky, BMC and Sunweb/DSM, but was rarely able to realise his own successes. Two stage wins at the Tour of Spain stand out in his palmares. Incidentally, Nicolas Roche had a successful colleague in the Irish professional cyclist Daniel Martin as a cousin, and his father Stephen as a nephew.
Thomas Musch
Publisher
