Two individuals held in Tour de France doping investigation


French prosecutors have revealed that two individuals are in custody as part of the doping investigation into Tour de France team Arkea-Samsic.

Prosecutor Dominique Laurens said in a statement that the two individuals in custody were part of the "close entourage of the main rider" and that the investigation was only looking at a "small part of the team" rather than the whole team. The Arkea-Samsic lead rider is Colombian Nairo Quintana who finished 17th overall this year and is a former Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España winner, but he was not formally named by the prosecutor.

The investigation targeted "the administration and prescription without medical justification of a substance or a method prohibited during a sporting event and helping and encouraging the use of that substance or method.” With “many health products, including drugs and especially a method that can be qualified as doping” being found.

Quintana released a statement on Tuesday saying “I  would also like to clear up a misunderstanding: neither during the recent Tour, nor during any other previous race, I have never consulted assistants or staff who were not part of the team. I do not have, and have never had, anything to hide.” He continued “I, Nairo Quintana, have been a clean cyclist throughout my sporting life and I have an impeccable biological passport. I want to make it clear to the public, to my fans and to the followers of cycling that never in all my career - junior, under-23 and professional - have I used illegal substances that improve my sporting performance and that betray the principles of sport.”

Arkea-Samsic team manager Emmanuel Hubert said that the investigation did "not target the team or its staff directly. We obviously support our riders, but if the investigation confirms the veracity of doping practices, the team would immediately dissociate itself from such acts.” The UCI released a statement sating it “will take the appropriate measures once it has taken note of the information obtained by the French legal authorities.”

You may also like

View All

Chinese swimmers top anti-doping tests as World Championships begin in Singapore

Chinese swimmers have undergone more anti-doping tests this year than swimmers from any other country ahead of the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore this month, according to a report by the Aquatics Integrity Unit

Read More

The Open to employ Spidercam on 18th green at Portrush

For the first time in golf history, The Open will utilise Spidercam technology, and it will be used on the 18th green at the Royal Portrush Golf Club in Northern Ireland

Read More

ECHR declares Semenya was violated by Swiss Supreme Court

Europe’s top court, the European Court of Human Rights, has declared that DSD athlete and double 800m Olympic champion Caster Semenya was not given the right to a fair hearing by the Swiss Federal Supreme Court in 2020 after World Athletics barred her from competing

Read More

Newsletter Signup

Please enter your email address below: