The alleged blood doping that was being run out of Austria has seen two current pro riders, a retired rider and a World Tour team sports directed all named by the UCI today.
Bahrain
Merida has seen two of its people implicated; rider Koren Kristijan and sports
director Bozic Borut.
Alessandro
Petacchi, who won 48 Grand Tour stages in a career than only ended in 2015, is
also named.
UAE
Team Emirates rider Durasek Kristijan is the fourth person named by the UCI in
the context of potential anti-doping violations by the UCI.
Kristijan’s
name emerges just 24 hours after his UAE Team Emirates squad said its Colombian
rider Juan Sebastian Molano (24) had left the Giro after "seemingly
unusual physiological results".
Koren
Kristijan, Bozic Borut, Alessandro Petacchi and Durasek Kristijan are all
provisionally suspended by the UCI on the basis of information received from
the Austrian authorities.
Advertisement
Durasek
Kristijan is under suspicion for last year while the others are under suspicion
for the period 2012 to 2013.
Koren
was riding the Giro with Bahrain Merida but has been sent home suspended by the
team.
Durasek
was riding the Tour of California with UAE Team Emirates and has also been
suspended.
Related News
In
March, Austrian cross-country skier Max Hauke was as one of five athletes
arrested in Seefeld, Austria, during the Nordic World Ski Championships.
Leaked
footage of what is said to be an anti doping raid showed him in the middle of a
blood transfusion process.
A
sports doctor was also arrested as part of the operation that saw the skiers
detained.
The
international media has reported the doctor is the head figure in what is an
alleged blood doping ring.
It
is further alleged he kept bags of blood in freezers, which look set to be
examined for DNA.
The
four people named by the UCI today is linked to the doping inquiry that first
became public knowledge two months ago after the arrests of the skiers.
“The UCI has also provisionally suspended the above-mentioned individuals
pursuant to Article 7.9.3 of the UCI Anti-Doping Rules,” the UCI said of Koren
Kristijan, Bozic Borut, Alessandro Petacchi and Durasek Kristijan.
“The UCI and the Cycling Anti-Doping Foundation (CADF), the independent body
mandated by the UCI to define and lead the anti-doping testing strategy and
investigations in our sport, have been in close contact with the sport and
state authorities involved in the Aderlass investigation, in particular with
the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the Austrian law enforcement
authorities.
“The UCI and the CADF, will continue to cooperate with and assist all
parties involved in these investigations but, in view of the nature of the
ongoing investigation, will not make any further comment at this stage.”
Topics
