I can count off on one hand the number of times I've used testosterone gel - because it doesn't really do much.

I assumed the amount wouldn't be detectable. I also didn't feel that I had done anything wrong.

I made a big mistake. There's no doubt about it. But there have been positive testing cases in the past where the offender wasn't attacked to quite the same extent, especially not by other riders.

I stayed in Hamburg a few more days, and during that time I received a visit from Rolf Aldag, the sporting director at T-Mobile. He advised me to tell the truth.

The truth is that things were already going so poorly for me that nothing surprised me anymore. But then the BKA sent 20 agents to search my house.

Of course they were saying: No doping! But as a rider, it's difficult to believe that things can really change from one day to the next.

I spent my first two years as a professional with Mapei in Italy, on their youth team. We rode in minor races. Doping wasn't an issue. S