Davide Rebellin, the former top pro rider who just recently retired, has been killed while out cycling in his native Italy. The 51-year-old was hit by a truck during his training ride this morning.
He was killed in an apparent hit a run incident at Montebello Vicentino near Vicenza with local media reporting the police were trying to track down the truck and driver.
Rebellin had continued to rider until this year in the lower ranks of pro cycling; his last team being the Italian Continental level outfit Work Service Vitalcare Vega.
In his prime he won the Ardennes treble in 2004; Amstel Gold Race, Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Rebellin would then go on to win Flèche Wallonne twice more; in 2007 and 2009.
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However, by the time he took that 2009 victory he was in trouble for doping. The previous year he’d taken silver at the Beijing Olympics but his sample was positive for EPO-Cera.
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He was riding for Gerolsteiner in 2008, the team that also produced Stefan Schumacher and Bernhard Kohl. Both of those riders were also caught doping; using EPO-Cera.
Rebellin’s 2008 adverse result was only announced in April of the following year. A two-year ban was handed down and while he came back after the ban his name is always inextricably linked to doping.
He returned to racing with Italian Continental team Miche-Guerciotti and then Meridiana Kamen from Croatia. He progressed on to the ProConti ranks with CCC Polsat-Polkowice in 2013 and stayed with them until the end of 2016. Since then, he had ridden for Continental teams.
