UCI Hijinks? You be the judge . . .

[BumbleBeeDave]

This was on the VeloNews web site today. I guess the Spanish police could get a blood sample from Ulrich himself, but it sure makes me wonder when the UCI refuses to do something that could potentially exonerate a rider. I guess they could also spin it as not wanting to play a role in proving his guilt, but I still wonder, given past shenanigans from them . . .

What do you think?

BBD

___________________________________

UCI won't give Ullrich's blood to Spanish police
By The Associated Press
This report filed August 9, 2006

Jan Ullrich's blood samples won't be turned over to Spanish police investigating a doping scandal, the president of the world cycling body said Wednesday.

Ullrich, the 1997 Tour de France winner, was among the top riders implicated in May when police arrested five people at a Madrid clinic after seizing drugs and frozen blood.

The UCI samples could be used for a DNA comparison with the frozen blood found in the raid. Police suspect the samples were to be prepared for performance-enhancing transfusions to still-unidentified riders.

"The blood of the riders in our possession from doping controls is used for research purposes," UCI president Pat McQuaid said. "To give it for DNA comparisons is against our rules."

Ullrich and Ivan Basso were among the riders excluded from the Tour de France because of alleged links to the doping scandal.

[Grant McLean]

If it is against the rules,
what can the UCI do? The "hijinks" took
place when the rule was made, not now.

g

[Lifelover]

I would have assumed that there is strict guidelines as to what the UCI can do with samples taken from riders.

Otherwise they could start cloning a bunch more Livestrongs