Austrian cyclist Bernhard Kohl, who retired after admitting he used a banned blood booster during last year’s Tour de France, says the top 10 finishing riders in the race could have all tested positive for doping.
Kohl finished third in the Tour last year and won the polka-dot jersey for best climber, but was then caught for using the blood-boosting hormone CERA when French anti-doping agency AFLD retested the race samples.
In an interview on Tuesday with sports daily L’Equipe, Kohl said he knew he was going to test positive after AFLD’s involvement.
PHOTO: AP
“At first, I once again tried to reassure myself: ‘OK, I was dead — but we were all dead,’” Kohl said. “Many other riders had taken [banned substances].
“What were the French authorities going to do? Disqualify everyone in the race? I told myself they wouldn’t dare. Oddly, only three of us got caught. I am convinced that the top 10 could have been positive.”
Riccardo Ricco of Italy and Stefan Schumacher of Germany also tested positive for CERA at last year’s Tour.
The 27-year-old Kohl said the first extraction of blood began in August 2007 and that he received three blood transfusions during the following year’s race.
“The first one after the sixth stage, the second one before the Pyrenees and the last one before the Alps,” said Kohl, who named former manager Stefan Matschiner as having helped him with the transfusions.
Kohl said he injected himself with CERA three days before the start of the race, but claimed there was no organized cheating within then team Gerolsteiner.
“There was no systematic doping inside the team, for sure,” he said. “But I think they should have suspected what we were doing.”
Kohl also criticized the biological passport scheme implemented by cycling’s governing body with the World Anti-Doping Agency.
“The top riders are so good at doping that they know what they need to do to keep their blood levels stable to escape targeting,” Kohl said.
The former interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani on Thursday was sentenced to nearly five years in prison for bank and tax fraud after he stole nearly US$17 million from the Los Angeles Dodgers player’s bank account. Ippei Mizuhara, who was supposed to bridge the gap between the Japanese athlete and his English-speaking teammates and fans, was sentenced in federal court in Santa Ana to four years and nine months after pleading guilty last year. He was ordered to pay US$18 million in restitution, with nearly US$17 million going to Ohtani and the remainder to the US Internal Revenue Service. He was
SPEEDSKATER: Her bronze medal ended Taiwan’s run at the Asian Winter Games without a medal since the nation first participated in the second iteration in 1990 Speedskater Chen Ying-chu yesterday made history as the first athlete representing Taiwan to secure a medal at the Asian Winter Games. Competing at the HIC Speedskating Oval in Harbin, China, Chen clocked 10.510 seconds in the women’s 100m event, finishing third behind South Koreans Lee Na-hyum and Kim Min-sun, who posted times of 10.501 and 10.505 seconds respectively. Her bronze medal ended Taiwan’s drought at the Asian Winter Games since the nation first participated in the second iteration in 1990. This year’s Games mark Chen’s debut at the event. Previously excelling in roller speedskating, she won six medals at world championships before transitioning
The 40-year-old LeBron James on Thursday became the oldest player to score 40 points in an NBA game, putting up a season-high 42 in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 120-112 victory over the Golden State Warriors. James passed the record held by Michael Jordan, his idol and the only other NBA player to score 40 after his 40th birthday. “I’m old, that’s my take,” James said when asked about his latest achievement. “I need a glass of wine and some sleep, that’s what I think.” Jordan did it for the Washington Wizards just three days after turning 40 in February 2003. James is 38
Taiwan’s Lin Yun-ju and Kao Cheng-jui were defeated by their Chinese counterparts 3-0 on Saturday in the men’s doubles final at the World Table Tennis (WTT) Singapore Smash. Lin and Kao received their silver medals after being defeated by third-seeded duo Lin Shidong and Wang Chuqin of China 2-11, 4-11, 11-13. The Taiwan pair were left playing catch-up early in the match after the Chinese duo proved unstoppable in the first and second game. Although Lin and Kao picked up their pace in the third game and at one point took a 10-8 lead, they were crucially unable to take
RSS