Tour de France Investigation for Alleged Doping

The French police conducting a preliminary investigation since last July in Paris to check doping allegations hanging over several teams who participated in the Tour de France 2009, a prosecutor said Tuesday in Paris. The Astana team, one of Lance Armstrong and the race winner Alberto Contador is likely to be concerned but not specifically covered by the procedure, said a spokeswoman. Several French media had said that the investigation concerned Astana.

The investigation was launched following the discovery in bins by the company managing the waste in the event of suspected residues was apparently from teams such as syringes and infusion equipment. These wastes have been delivered to police in circumstances still unclear. Investigations have been entrusted by the prosecution to an investigative specialist, the OCLAESP (Central Office for the fight against environmental damage and public health).

Preferential treatment for Astana?

Expertise have been ordered on the seized products to determine if they contain traces of illegal products, and prosecutors also asked for DNA research. “We’re at the stage of analysis and expertise to determine if it found banned substances and DNA for any charge to riders,” said the spokesman for prosecutors in Paris. If the suspected violation is confirmed, a criminal may be open, with possibilities of enhanced legal investigations.

French law prohibits the trafficking of drugs but not their use. A report by the French Agency for the fight against doping unveiled last week had suggested that the Astana team had received preferential treatment in terms of controls from the International Cycling Union Tour 2009. French justice has greatly contributed to reveal the widespread doping in cycling, including an investigation team and the Festina rider Richard Virenque in the Tour 1998, which led to a sensational trial and conviction in 2000.