The veteran TT rider joins a growing list of amateur cyclists now serving doping bans.
A veteran cyclist from Britain has been caught using blood-booster EPO after a sample he gave at a doping test following a local time trial was retested.
UK Anti Doping said while Robin Townsend (46) had tested positive for the stimulant modafinil in a 100 mile TT last September, his sample was rechecked after it received further intelligence about his drug taking.
And during that second round of testing, the sample came back with an adverse finding for EPO.
The rider, who is the reigning 12-hour record holder in the UK, tried to argue his drink was spiked by a rival.
Townsend, who rode for Team Swift at the time of the offence, was banned for four years in January.
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That ban was imposed after he tested positive for the stimulant modafinil following an in-competition test at the Burton and District Cycling Alliance 100 miles event on September 5th, 2015.
However, on December 8th, 2015, as a result of intelligence passed to UKAD, the same sample was re-tested for erythropoiesis stimulating agents.
The re-analysis returned an adverse finding for EPO. Another ban of four years was imposed though it runs to exactly the same timeline as his initial ban.
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Townsend is therefore banned from all sport for four years.
He was provisionally suspended in October of last year and when his four-year ban was confirmed in January it was backdated to October 8th, 2015, and runs until midnight on October 7th, 2019.
The veteran joins a growing list of British amateur riders – some of them veterans and juniors – currently serving doping bans.
UKAD director of operations, Pat Myhill, said receiving information about Townsend was key to his sample being re-tested for EPO.
“The receipt and use of information and intelligence is critical to delivering an effective anti-doping programme,” he said.
“In the case of Robin Townsend, we received intelligence, which we assessed and acted upon by undertaking additional analysis of the original sample.
“This has resulted in a further adverse analytical finding.
“We encourage anyone with information about doping to come forward and speak to us.
“No matter how small the piece of information is, you can help shape what we do by talking to us in confidence via reportdoping.com.”
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