Cycling is a popular spectator sport in a country full of avid pedallers. The sport’s image in Germany, as in other European nations, has recently been sullied by doping scandals involving professional riders, but people still turn out to watch German riders in the Tour de France and smaller, local races. The best-known cyclist is Jan Ullrich, the first German to win the Tour de France, in 1997, and runner-up five times. Ullrich retired in 2007 amid continuing doping rumours.