On Tuesday, the UCI announced that Germ\u00e1n Dar\u00edo G\u00f3mez Becerra, who rides (rode?) for Team Polti VisitMalta tested positive for Boldenone and one of its metabolites. Boldenone is a good ole anabolic steroid. It was originally developed for veterinary use, but for athletes it\u2019s used to increase muscle mass, strength, and red blood cell production.<\/p>\n
Polti 2.0<\/p>\n
G\u00f3mez Becerra\u2019s team was (is?) sponsored by a familiar name in cycling, Polti.<\/p>\n
Polti came back to the pro cycling peloton in 2024. It\u2019s an Italian household appliance company that has a rich history in the sport. Originally, Team Polti was an Italian professional cycling team active from the early 1990s to 2000.<\/p>\n
The team had all kinda superstars. After being chucked from the 1998 Tour de France during the Festina Affair, Richard Virenque joined Team Polti for the 1999\u20132000 seasons. Virengue won the Mountains classification in both years. The Frenchman also insisted he was clean, even as his former Festina teammates admitted using EPO.<\/p>\n
A history of appliance<\/p>\n
In 2007, ex-Polti rider J\u00f6rg Jaksche said he dabbled in the good stuff. He said he was first introduced to EPO by directeur sportif Gianluigi Stanga during the 1997 Tour de Suisse.<\/p>\n
Then there\u2019s the former world champion Gianni Bugno. The Italian star also raced for Polti towards the end of his career. He rode for several teams with a\u2026dubious history of blood boosters. (But was never caught.)<\/p>\n
In fact, the only time he got popped was for caffeine in 1994. Back then, it was possible to use caffeine if it was under a certain threshold. And he went way over it. For that, he received a two-year suspension.<\/p>\n
But anyway, let\u2019s not dwell the past. The current Polti team is run by Alberto Contador and Ivan Basso. Basso was a star cyclist, riding for teams like CSC or US Postal, and won the Giro d\u2019Italia twice. In May 2007,<\/p>\n
Basso appeared before the Italian National Olympic Committee, and admitted his involvement in a drug scandal, describing it as \u201cattempted doping\u201d and acknowledging that, while he hadn\u2019t actually doped, he was aware that attempting it is equivalent to doping, and said he would serve his suspension before returning to racing. Anyway, he was suspended for two years.<\/p>\n
Contador and Basso<\/p>\n