Emanuele Sella Admits Doping At CONI Hearing
ROME, Aug 8, 2008 (AFP) - Italian cyclist Emanuele Sella admitted to taking
the banned blood booster EPO at an Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) hearing
here on Friday.
After the hearing, in which he and Italian women’s cyclist Marta
Bastianelli were banned from all competitions, Sella issued a statement in
which he admitted taking the drug.
In the statement, Sella “honestly admitted to having had access to an
unauthorized drug and clarified the context in which he had received this
substance.”
“I have got a weight off my shoulders. I’m conscious of what I did and as a
result I decided to cooperate,” Sella told Gazzetta dello Sport after the
hearing.
CSF team rider Sella tested positive for the EPO (erythropoietin) out of
competition last month following three stage wins at May’s the Tour of Italy.
Sella, a specialist climber, put in an excellent performance, powering home
in the mountainous 14th, 15th and penultimate stages, to place sixth in the
overall standings.
But it was that strong showing - together with high finishes from
team-mates Fortunato Baliani (seventh) and Domenico Pozzovivo (12th) - that
raised the suspicions of doping officials.
Bastianelli, 21, the 2007 women’s race race world champion, will miss the
Beijing Olympics.
Sella’s countryman Ricardo Ricco was kicked off the Tour de France and
sacked by his team for failing a drugs test, also for EPO.
Photo by: CorVos Pro
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