Roman Kreuziger (Tinkoff-Saxo), a key lieutenant to multiple Grand Tour winner, Alberto Contador, will not contest the 2014 Tour de France.
Tinkoff-Saxo today announced it had agreed with Kreuziger that he will not ride any more races for the team until an investigation into alleged biological passport abnormalities in 2011 and 2012 is concluded.
Kreuziger denies any wrong doing, and has pledged to defend himself against any charges, according to the statement issued by Tinkoff-Saxo, who are supporting their rider.
The announcement, made a week before the Yorkshire Grand Départ of the 101st Tour de France, will deprive Contador, a pre-race favourite, of the man who rode by his side for almost the entire race last year.
“Through our own medical staff and independent verification the team was satisfied that Roman’s blood profile had valid medical and scientific explanations other than the use of doping methods or substances,” a Tinkoff-Saxo spokesman said. “This was subsequently confirmed by the expert opinions Roman shared with the team.”
An investigation by the Cycling Anti-Doping Foundation (CAFD), an independent body mandated by the UCI to operate the biological passport programme, concerns a period when Kreuziger raced for Astana.
Tinkoff-Saxo’s statement said: “The team has decided, in agreement with Roman, that he will not ride in any races including this year’s Tour de France until more information becomes available to the team.”
The statement defined the period in which the abnormalities are alleged to have occurred as from March 2011 until August 2011, and from April 2012 until the end of the 2012 Giro d’Italia.
Kreuziger was first informed by the UCI of CAFD’s concerns in a letter dated June 28, 2013, Tinkoff-Saxo’s statement said. Kreuziger responded with the opinions of two experts, whom he said had conducted independent investigations into the alleged abnormalities and concluded that fluctuations in his blood passport profile “did not indicate anti-doping violations.” Kreuziger submitted his response to the UCI on October 3, 2013.
“The rider had no further contact with the UCI until receiving a letter of 30 May 2014,” the Tinkoff-Saxo statement said. “He was advised that the CAFD’s Experts Panel did not accept his explanation.”
Kreuziger had since sought the opinion of a third independent expert, but CAFD has also rejected this latest analysis.
A Tinkoff-Saxo spokesman said: “Though he won’t be racing for now, until more information becomes available to the team it will not provisionally suspend Roman unless required by the UCI or the Czech Federation.”
