page_title: HTC-Highroad
section_title: Doping scandals: 2006 – 2007
hierarchical_section_title: HTC-Highroad / History / Doping scandals: 2006 – 2007
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Serhij Hontschar beim Prolog der Tour de France 2006 Français&#160;: Sergueï Hontschar lors du prologue du Tour de France 2006 Polski: Serhiy Honchar podczas prologu Tour de France 2006
context_page_description: HTC-Highroad is a professional cycling team competing in international road bicycle races. Their current title sponsor is HTC Corporation, a Taiwanese maker of Smartphones. High Road Sports is the management company of team manager Bob Stapleton. Past title sponsors include Columbia Sportswear and Deutsche Telekom.
  The team was set up in 1991 as Team Telekom, sponsored by Deutsche Telekom. In 2004 their name changed to the T-Mobile-Team. It has 29 riders, 9 physiotherapists or nurses, 9 mechanics and service persons, and has 22 partners. The team is managed by Bob Stapleton and Rolf Aldag. Former leaders include Olaf Ludwig, Walter Godefroot and Eddy Vandenhecke, Luuc Eisenga and Brian Holm, Valerio Piva.
context_section_description: In the most controversial scandal since the 1998 tour, thirteen riders were expelled from the 2006 Tour de France stemming from a Spanish doping scandal, on the eve of Strasbourg prologue to the 93rd edition. Jan Ullrich, one of the favorites to win the race, was among those excluded from the Tour.  Another T-Mobile rider, Oscar Sevilla, was also expelled, leaving the team starting with only seven riders.
  On 9 July, the team announced the dismissal of its sporting director, Rudy Pevenage, for his implication with former Tour de France winner Jan Ullrich in a Spanish blood doping scandal.  "The contract linking T-Mobile to Pevenage has been retrospectively stopped on 30 June," the team's general manager, Olaf Ludwig, said.
  On July 21, 2006, T-Mobile fired Jan Ullrich from the team pending the doping investigation.
  At the 2006 Tour de France, T-Mobile won the team classification for the third consecutive year, Andreas Klöden reached the podium (3rd place) for the second time,  Matthias Kessler won Stage 3, Serhiy Honchar won two individual time trials (Stages 7 and 19) and wore the yellow jersey for 3 days (after Stages 7–9).
  After the Tour de France, the team completely changed; Team manager Olaf Ludwig left the team and was replaced by Bob Stapleton. Rolf Aldag, Allan Peiper and Tristan Hoffman became directeur sportifs. As already discussed Ullrich, Sevilla and Pevenage were dismissed from the team. Several riders who had been with the team for a long time such as Steffen Wesemann, Andreas Klöden and Matthias Kessler left or their contracts were not extended. Jörg Ludewig was put on suspension and his contract was not increased in connection with intention to dope previously in his career and before he joined T-Mobile. Eddy Mazzoleni who was in his first year for the team would also leave. The contracts of Bram Schmitz and Bas Gilling were not renewed. Dr. Lothar Heinrich, the team doctor since 1995, and Dr. Andreas Schmid set up a new comprehensive testing system. Following the revelations that came out of the Operación Puerto investigation, Heinrich allegedly nearly quit the sport but instead he joined with Stapleton and other team staff to create a new system of internal controls and health checks that he insisted would demonstrate that T-Mobile riders were clean and to restore credibility to the sport.
  In May 2007, several former riders admitted using banned substances (including EPO) while riding for the team in the mid 1990s, including Erik Zabel, Rolf Aldag, Brian Holm, Bjarne Riis, Bert Dietz, Udo Bölts and Christian Henn including the seasons in which Riis and Ullrich won the Tour de France. Team doctors Andreas Schmid and Lothar Heinrich also confessed to participating and administering banned substances. The latter was Team Telekom's sporting director until May 3, 2007 when he was suspended following allegations published in former team member Jef d'Hont's book.
  In an effort to present a renewed image the team brought a young team to the 2007 Tour de France, and promoted a drug-free attitude and image. Despite this, team member Patrik Sinkewitz tested positive for elevated testosterone during a training camp.  The test results were only announced when Sinkiewitz had dropped out of the Tour because of injury.  He was still in hospital when he was suspended from Team T-Mobile, and was dismissed on 31 July 2007.
caption: Serhiy Honchar riding the Prologue at the 2006 Tour de France
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