Many of us fans were
disappointed to hear the announcement during the Giro d’Italia that “The
Killer”, Danilo Di Luca returned a positive test for EPO. Today the UCI
announced that Di Luca’s Vini Fantini-Selle Italia teammate Mauro Santambrogio
has also returned an “adverse analytical finding” for EPO, and has been
suspended. Two of the Pro Continental team’s most competitive riders have now
tainted the image of the entire team and the sport of professional cycling. In
an already cloudy atmosphere where the sport is trying to rebuild its image—and
providing these tests are verified--this news should come as an affront to
everyone involved in cycling.
Vini Fantini Directeur
Sportif Luca Scinto was quick to criticize and distance himself from the
offenders:
"You're right. Massacre me.
I trusted them. They're mad and I'm an idiot to believe them. They're
crazy and sick," he tweeted Monday.
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| Santambrogio (left) is third rider from 2013 Giro, and second of his team to return a positive doping result |
Santambrogio had never been
a Grand Tour contender before, but often excelled at one-day races. His
climbing and stamina seemed to improve, and at age 28, he was having the season
of his career before...
