Francesco Reda celebrates winning the opening stage of the An Post Rás into Carlow last year. He also took the yellow jersey but was turfed out of the race 24 hours later for receiving an illegal tow. A month later he placed second in the Italian national championships but he subsequently tested positive for EPO (Photo: Paul Mohan - Sportsfile)
Disgraced Italian rider Francesco Reda has been banned for eight years after failing an anti-doping test.
The former An Post Rás stage winner showed traces of the banned blood-booster EPO in his system after finishing runner-up to Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) in last year’s Italian national championships.
- Rás yellow jersey Reda has been disqualified from race
- An Post Rás yellow jersey thrown off race tests positive for EPO
The sanction imposed on him will mean he cannot compete until 2023 because the ban is backdated to when he last competed.
He has also been stripped of that silver medal from the Italian nationals, when he beat Diego Ulissi (Lampre-Merida) into the bronze medal position while riding for continental outfit IDEA.
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Reda wearing the An Post Rás yellow jersey on stage 2 just before he was caught holding onto a car and disqualified (Photo: Paul Mohan – Sportsfile)
Reda was a controversial figure during his short time in Ireland last year, winning the opening stage of the race and taking the first yellow jersey before being thrown out a day later after illegal towing from a team vehicle.
This latest ban is not his first and it was so severe because he is a previous offender.
When he competed in the An Post Rás it was just after he served a 14-month ban for refusing a doping control test in 2013 while riding for Androni-Giocattoli.
There, he was originally banned for two years, but his sanction was reduced after he cooperated with the Cycling Independent Reform Commission (CIRC).
Now aged 33 years, his eight-year ban brings to an end his professional career.
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