It has now transpired that at least three riders in the same Masters road race in the US earlier this year were doped.
A third Masters cyclist has been caught doping in the same road race in the United States. The latest rider won his event but has now been sanctioned for EPO use.
In recent months it emerged another two riders in the same event had tested positive and been banned.
The three bans were record in the Vuelta a Miami earlier this year. It is unclear if further anti-doping processes are currently underway relation to the same race.
News that a third cyclist has tested positive at the Vuelta a Miami comes days after another Masters cyclist in the US, aged 58 years, was caught doping in another event.
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In the Miami event; Enrique Lopez (36), of Homestead, Florida, was the outright winner of the Vuelta a Miami, thus also scooping the 30-39 years category.
However, a sample taken from him after the race back in July tested positive for EPO. And Lopez has now been banned for four years.
“Regardless of the level of competition, athletes deserve a fair and level playing field,” said USADA chief executive Travis T Tygart in the ruling on Lopez’s case.
“USA Cycling’s RaceClean initiative and others like it help build a culture of clean sport in which hard work and healthy performance are prioritized, while also holding accountable those who violate the rules by using powerful performance-enhancing substances.”
Lopez tested positive for recombinant erythropoietin (EPO) as the result of an in-competition urine sample he provided on July 29, 2018, at Vuelta a Miami.
He then continued to race, despite a doping process having begun against him.
He collected a number of top results, including one victory, before his provisional suspension was imposed on September 4th.
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Two other riders had already been caught doing and were banned in the same race.
Mijail Gonzalez, a 44-year-old from of Hialeah, Florida, has been banned for four years. His urine sample was found to contain dexamethasone.
The substance is a corticosteroid “in the class of Glucocorticoids” and its most common medicinal use is as an anti-inflammatory.
It has also been used by endurance athletes to combat the side effects of racing at high altitudes.
However, the race in Miami that Gonzalez was competing in was flat and held at sea level. He finished 11th, narrowly being denied the $50 on offer for 10th prize.
The second cyclist already banned following analysis of samples taken after the same race was a 48-year-old Raul Diaz from Miami. He returned a positive sample for EPO.
Results from the race show him listed last in the results. His urine sample was found to contain “dexamethasone and recombinant erythropoietin (EPO)”.
The ruling on his case said: “When confronted with his positive test Diaz admitted using dexamethasone via a non-permitted route and EPO.
“Both glucocorticoids and peptide hormones, growth factors and blood-boosting substances, such as EPO, have powerful performance-enhancing benefits.
“And (the substances) have been demonstrated to give athletes an unfair advantage over fellow competitors.”
In an unrelated case – but also arising within Masters road racing in the US – it emerged last week Steven Strickler, of Newport Beach, California, had tested positive.
The 58-year-old tested positive for an anabolic agent from an in-competition urine sample collected on April 29, 2018, at the Dana Point Grand Prix.
His urine sample was analysed using a specialized test that differentiates between anabolic-androgenic steroids naturally produced by the body and prohibited anabolic agents of external origin.
Anabolic agents have powerful performance-enhancing capabilities and can give an athlete an unfair advantage over fellow competitors.
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