Growth Hormone, Steroids, EPO; Spanish newspaperlinks 58 riders to doping - VeloNews

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Spanish daily links 58 riders to doping probe
VeloNews, CO - 21 hours ago
Spanish daily El Páis dropped a bombshell in its Sunday edition, reporting that 58 cyclists - among whom are said to be 15 riders from the Astaná-Würth team and others who competed in last month's Giro d'Italia - are named in police and court documents as part of the "Operación Puerto" doping investigation in Spain.

The story did not name the riders, but described court documents - which still have not been publicly released - purporting to outline a "criminal network" said to be organized and administered by five people accused of involvement in the distribution of banned substances, such as EPO, human growth hormones and anabolic steroids, and running a blood-doping ring.

Spanish doctors Eufemiano Fuentes and José Luis Merino (head of hematology for a Madrid hospital); Manolo Sáiz (the former manager at Astaná-Würth); José Ignacio Labarta (former assistant sports director at Comunidad Valenciana); and Alberto León, a former mountain biker, were arrested May 23 by the doping brigade of Spain's Guardia Civil after a four-month investigation.



URL: http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=T...TXCrLsaZCnnOYN

Sun, 25 Jun 2006 18:35:00 GMT