Seven people accused in Operation Puerto doping scandal in cycling would be finally stand trial in Spain, facing up to two years in prison.

More than 50 cyclists were implicated, including three-time Tour de France champion Alberto Contador, Ivan Basso, Jan Ullrich, and Alejandro Valverde, in the use of performance-enhancing substances or practices.

From News.smh.com.au:

The accused, who also stand to lose their professional licences, are charged with endangering athletes‘ health in their handling of blood samples since they cannot be charged retroactively for a doping crime.

Cycling’s biggest doping scandal has been a scar to Spain’s reputation for fighting doping as a Madrid judge twice shelved the case.

Spanish authorities found bags of blood, blood transfusion equipment and anabolic steroids from raids in Zaragoza and Madrid in May 2006.

Valverde is the only Spanish rider who has been punished using Puerto evidence.

Tags: Alberto Contador, Alejandro Valverde, anabolic steroids, cycling, doping scandal, Ivan Basso, Jan Ullrich, Operation Puerto, Tour de France

Posted in buy steroids, Steroid Cycles, steroid nation, Steroids and Anabolic Steroids, Steroids in Olympics, Steroids in Sports

Seven people linked to Operation Puerto doping scandal in cycling would be finally stand trial in Spain, facing up to two years in prison.

More than 50 cyclists – including three-time Tour de France champion Alberto Contador, Ivan Basso, Jan Ullrich, and Alejandro Valverde – in the use of performance-enhancing substances or practices were implicated.

From News.smh.com.au:

The accused, who also stand to lose their professional licences, are charged with endangering athletes’ health in their handling of blood samples since they cannot be charged retroactively for a doping crime.

Cycling’s biggest doping scandal has been a scar to Spain’s reputation for fighting doping as a Madrid judge twice shelved the case.

Spanish authorities found bags of blood, blood transfusion equipment and anabolic steroids from raids in Zaragoza and Madrid in May 2006.

Valverde is the only rider from Spain who has been punished using Puerto evidence.

Tags: Alberto Contador, Alejandro Valverde, anabolic steroids, cycling, doping scandal, Ivan Basso, Jan Ullrich, Operation Puerto, Tour de France

Posted in buy steroids, Steroid Cycles, steroid nation, Steroids and Anabolic Steroids, Steroids in Olympics, Steroids in Sports

Seven people linked to Operation Puerto doping scandal of cycling would face trial in Spain, facing nearly two years in prison.

Sports doctor Eufemiano Fuentes, former Liberty Seguros team boss Manolo Saiz and five others arrested in 2006 on suspicion to offer doping services to cyclists will be tried, Madrid’s Superior Court said in a statement.

From Mercurynews.com:

Puerto implicated more than 50 cyclists—including three-time Tour de France champion Alberto Contador, Ivan Basso, Jan Ullrich and Alejandro Valverde—in the use of performance-enhancing substances or practices. Spanish sports bodies could not use evidence to ban athletes because of Spanish law, which has since changed.

The accused, who also stand to lose their professional licenses, are charged with endangering athletes’ health in their handling of blood samples because they cannot be retroactively charged for a doping crime.

Cycling’s biggest doping scandal has impacted Spain’s reputation against doping because a Madrid judge twice shelved the case.

In May 2006, bags of blood, blood transfusion equipment, and anabolic steroids were found by Spanish authorities from raids in Zaragoza and Madrid.

Tags: Alberto Contador, Alejandro Valverde, anabolic steroids, cycling, doping scandal, Ivan Basso, Jan Ullrich, Operation Puerto, Tour de France

Posted in buy steroids, Steroid Cycles, steroid nation, Steroids and Anabolic Steroids, Steroids in Olympics, Steroids in Sports

Giro D’Italia champion Ivan Basso has admitted being involved in the Operation Puerto doping scandal, according to the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI).

A statement on CONI’s website said, “The office of the anti-doping power of attorney has listened today to Ivan Basso and he has widely admitted his own responsibilities relative to Operation Puerto and has supplied the maximum collaboration in order to clear up the relative facts of his involvement.”

From Independent.ie:

CONI, which acts as Italy’s anti-doping body, said Basso had made an impromptu appearance to the authorities on Monday to explain his position. He had appeared before a CONI doping hearing last Wednesday which was adjourned with no new date fixed.

The Italian rider has been accused of violating article 2.2 of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Code concerning “use or attempted use of a prohibited substance or a prohibited method.”

“We are calm and aware we have done the right thing,” Basso’s lawyer Massimo Martelli was quoted as saying on the Gazzetta dello Sport website.

“If Ivan has done what he has done it is because he loves his sport. We looked each other in the eyes and we said to each other that it was a case of lifting this weight off our backs, from our conscience.”

Basso could now face a two-year ban though it is believed that his offer to help the authorities may lead to leniency.

Tags: doping scandal, Ivan Basso, Operation Puerto

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Marta Dominguez, the World steeplechase champion, has recently denied involvement in doping after testifying before a judge in the Spanish anti-doping investigation Operation Galgo.

She told reporters after spending 2 ½ hours in a closed session at the Madrid court, “I am innocent and I will return to competition as soon as I recover from my pregnancy.”

From USAToday.com:

The 35-year-old Dominguez was one of 14 people detained on Dec. 9 after the Spanish Civil Guard found anabolic steroids, hormones, bags of blood and blood-doping equipment in raids across the country.

Dominguez said nothing had been confiscated from her home and denied dealing doping substances. She said she was implicated through wiretaps.

“A lot of damage has been done to my image, my family and my loved ones,” she said.

Dominguez, who is four months pregnant and not competing, has previously denied any wrongdoing.

Other suspects include her coach Cesar Perez, former European 5,000-meter champion Alberto Garcia and Eufemiano Fuentes, the doctor at the center of cycling’s Operation Puerto probe.

The Spanish athletics federation has said that Dominguez, who also is a two-time European 5,000-meter champion and one of Spain’s most decorated athletes, will be stripped of her medals if found to have been involved in the doping ring.

More than 350 Spanish track and field coaches released a statement recently saying that suspects should be investigated to the full extent.

Tags: anabolic steroids, doping, doping ring, Marta Dominguez, Operation Galgo, Operation Puerto

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The Spanish Cycling Federation (RFEC) will be asking authorities for records and test results pertaining to the recently reopened Operation Puerto probe into an alleged doping ring.

According to an official, who refused to be named, the federation will ask for the Puerto records from the judge.

From in.reuters.com:

The investigation was originally launched in 2006 when raids uncovered anabolic steroids, blood transfusion equipment and more than 200 code-named blood bags, some of which were linked to leading riders.

Police listed more than 50 athletes, including former Tour de France winner Jan Ullrich, Tour of Spain winner Roberto Heras and Giro d’Italia winner Ivan Basso.

The probe was twice halted without any prosecutions but a Madrid court last month ordered it be reopened after considering various appeals.

Spanish rider Alejandro Valverde appeared before an anti-doping hearing in Rome last week after being accused by the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) of involvement in the Operation Puerto scandal.

Spanish sports paper AS recently reported that the federation was looking to punish cyclists and technical staff implicated in the investigation.

Tags: Alejandro Valverde, anabolic steroids, doping ring, Operation Puerto, Tour de France

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Cristina Perez is a woman scorned by the Spanish authorities and she threatens to retaliate.

“Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,” says the character (incidentally named Perez) of a William Congreve’s play, and Perez plans to get back at her husband’s defamers by revealing Spanish athletes’ usage of steroids and other prohibited compounds.

Perez’s husband, Dr.  Eufemianio Fuentes, was arrested in 2006 in Operation Puerto for his alleged role in the country’s biggest blood doping ring.

“To call a doctor dedicated to sports science who has killed no one a criminal mastermind seems shameful to me,” Perez said.

“I know what happened at Barcelona ’92 and I’m a Pandora’s Box that, if opened one day, could bring down sport,” Perez she told a Spanish newspaper. “But out of respect for my companions, the people who sacrificed so much, I’m staying quiet. Although I could speak out and ruin all those caught up in this little world.”

Perez, who also ran on Spain’s 1,600-meter relay team at the 1992 Olympics, was referring to  Spain’s medal haul in Barcelona ‘92 wherein the host country won 13 gold, seven silver and two bronze medals. Four years earlier at Seoul Olympics, Spain was able to grab one gold, one silver, and two bronze medals only. The improvement in the medal tally, according to Perez, was largely due to the doctor’s work.

Operation Puerto has implicated more than 50 professional riders, including Francesco Mancebo, Alejandro Valverde, Oscar Sevilla, Jose Gutierrez, and Alberto Contador. Contador was the 2007 Tour de France champion.

Tags: Alberto Contador, anabolic steroids, Barcelona Olympics, blood doping network, Cristina Perez, Dr. Eufemianio Fuentes, Operation Puerto, Spanish athletes, Spanish cyclists, steroids

Posted in steroid nation, Steroids and Anabolic Steroids, Steroids in Sports