So emaciated that every muscle and vein is visible, a cyclist battling bulimia reveals the state of his legs after a race.
Former world champion Janez Brajkovic, 35, posted the shocking image after his comeback event following a 10-month doping ban.
He was suspended in July last year after testing positive for methylhexaneamine, which he says was in a food supplement that was one of the only things he could eat.
Janez, who was world under-23 time trial champion in 2004, said: "I took a meal replacement, it was contaminated but that was the only thing I could keep inside.
"It happened to me that there were no days I would not cry before embarking on a ride. I was desperate and depressed."
The Slovenian cyclist posted the shots after competing in the CRO Race in Croatia, where he finished 38th while British rider Adam Yates won.
Captioning the pictures, Janez said: “It’s only about not f ** it up now.”
Fans were stunned by the images, one joking: "All set for Halloween ."
Another asked “Does that hurt?” and a third said: "I admire you, I am tipping my hat to your will, desire and love for cycling.”
Sports doctor Natasa Desnica said: "In this sport, this is a normal occurrence.
"I have seen cyclists shortly after three weeks of cycling races in France, Italy and Spain who looked like him.
“Their legs were incredibly tiny, with no subcutaneous fat, and they were even dehydrated, so every bone could be seen as well as veins, and you could see every single muscle like on an anatomical atlas.
“The cyclist recovers from this relatively quickly, his appearance normalises, it is only a matter of how such cycles have a lasting effect on health.”
