Aug 06 2008
Sella another Sell Out?
Well here we go again… Emanuele Sella has been suspended from the Italian Olympic cycling team after testing positive for the blood booster EPO. Yes, if you are familiar with the Giro results or you watched the race, you may remember he was the Top Climber in this year’s Giro. He also won three tough stages and finished sixth overall. Well, it appears that performance was enhanced. According to cyclingnews.com, the 27 year-old was found to have used the same third generation EPO – CERA (Continuous Erythropoietin Receptor Activator) – that Riccardo Ricco admitted to using in the Tour de France. Here’s the good part: “It was targeted control,” said UCI President Pat McQuaid to Cyclingnews. “The control was done on the July 23 and we sent the samples to Paris for testing.” McQuaid noted that Sella had been targeted based on his actions in and out of racing. “It was a highly targeted out-of-competition test. We are using a range of information to target riders.”
There is not proof that Sella used EPO during the Giro d’Italia, May 10 to June 1, but there is the possibility McQuaid will order his Giro samples tested in the same Paris lab that detected CERA in the July 23 control.
“I don’t know anything about this story, I haven’t been told anything, it’s not true,” Sella was quoted as saying by the ANSA news agency.The UCI is watching closely! Unfortunately, there will be those who still try to beat the system. But the good news is the system is getting stronger… and the cheaters are getting caught!
Glad to hear that the cheaters are being caught…good!! What do they think they will gain….boogles the mind.
LAUREL– Yeah… baffles my mind. But the cheaters are dropping like flies. Good thing!
It was hard not to suspect something after watching his unprecedented performances at the Giro. I hope they do test his Giro samples.
ARLYN — It will be interesting to see his Giro samples retested as well as the results of Ricco’s Giro samples re-tested.
It is obvious that there are a lot of riders who are still not getting the message. If the controls can be tightened up (so that there will not be all the questions about lab procedures that came up in the Landis case) a lifetime ban is probably in order now for dopers.
Sprocketboy– Good point Leslie! And maybe that’s the only thing that will really stop this… an immediate lifetime ban.
I’d agree with Sprocketboy. A lifetime ban might make sportmen (and women) think twice if it is worth the risk. And I also agree with Lily. The net gets tighter and tighter and hopefully less and less cheaters slip through. But for now the sadest thing: Everytime you see an outstanding performance you question if it is real or performing enhanced.
GROOVER– True… and your final thought is something we all can relate to. We don’t want that doubt in the back of or minds as we watch an “outstanding performance.” We want to watch and know that GREAT can also mean CLEAN.