http://velonews.com/article/84098/newsflash-ioc-to-retest-beijing-blood-samples
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Blood samples taken at the Beijing Olympics are to be reanalyzed for a new variant of the banned blood booster EPO using a new detection system developed for the Tour de France, the IOC announced Wednesday.
The retroactive controls are designed to seek out the presence of the new generation of EPO known as CERA (Continuous Erythropoiesis Receptor Activator).
The IOC's announcement comes 48 hours after reanalyzed samples from the Tour de France using the latest technology unearthed two drug cheats - Germany's Stefan Schumacher, winner of both time trials in this year's race, and Italian Leonardo Piepoli, who won the 10th stage of the Tour.
Spokesman Emmanuelle Moreau told AFP that the re-testing is consistent with IOC policy.
"This is part of our normal procedure," he said. "We keep the samples for eight years and whenever a new test arrives we carry out new tests."
The CERA form of EPO was detected for the first time at this year's Tour in the sample of Italian cyclist Riccardo Riccò with a full test developed to combat it by the French laboratory at Châtenay-Malabry.
Riccò was caught based on the results of urine test. But the lab also has a set of blood parameters, which indicate the use of CERA.
The laboratory is currently retroactively checking 15 blood samples from this year's Tour with two of those producing Schumacher and Piepoli's positive tests.
It was that double success that "prompted the IOC to retest samples from Beijing," explained Moreau.
The IOC is now in the process of moving all the Beijing samples to its headquarters in Lausanne before finalising the conditions and timing of the new tests.
"A joint IOC/WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) commission is going to decide the procedure," Moreau said.
More than 1000 blood samples were taken at the Games as part of over 5000 anti-doping controls. The 2008 Games were held up by the IOC as proof that it was winning the war on drugs with only a handful of positive cases compared to 26 at Athens in 2004.
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Blood samples taken at the Beijing Olympics are to be reanalyzed for a new variant of the banned blood booster EPO using a new detection system developed for the Tour de France, the IOC announced Wednesday.
The retroactive controls are designed to seek out the presence of the new generation of EPO known as CERA (Continuous Erythropoiesis Receptor Activator).
The IOC's announcement comes 48 hours after reanalyzed samples from the Tour de France using the latest technology unearthed two drug cheats - Germany's Stefan Schumacher, winner of both time trials in this year's race, and Italian Leonardo Piepoli, who won the 10th stage of the Tour.
Spokesman Emmanuelle Moreau told AFP that the re-testing is consistent with IOC policy.
"This is part of our normal procedure," he said. "We keep the samples for eight years and whenever a new test arrives we carry out new tests."
The CERA form of EPO was detected for the first time at this year's Tour in the sample of Italian cyclist Riccardo Riccò with a full test developed to combat it by the French laboratory at Châtenay-Malabry.
Riccò was caught based on the results of urine test. But the lab also has a set of blood parameters, which indicate the use of CERA.
The laboratory is currently retroactively checking 15 blood samples from this year's Tour with two of those producing Schumacher and Piepoli's positive tests.
It was that double success that "prompted the IOC to retest samples from Beijing," explained Moreau.
The IOC is now in the process of moving all the Beijing samples to its headquarters in Lausanne before finalising the conditions and timing of the new tests.
"A joint IOC/WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) commission is going to decide the procedure," Moreau said.
More than 1000 blood samples were taken at the Games as part of over 5000 anti-doping controls. The 2008 Games were held up by the IOC as proof that it was winning the war on drugs with only a handful of positive cases compared to 26 at Athens in 2004.
