Paolini gets 18 month cycling ban

By Euronews

Published on 13/04/2016 - 21:45

Italian cyclist Luca Paolini has been banned for 18 months by the ICU for a “non-intentional” anti-doping rule violation. The 39-year-old rider

Italian cyclist Luca Paolini has been banned for 18 months by the ICU for a “non-intentional” anti-doping rule violation.

The 39-year-old rider failed a test for cocaine on last year’s Tour de France, and that proved to be the result of accidental consumption of a cocaine metabolite in a medical treatment.

Paolini is an experienced team rider often unheralded who won a Giro d’Italia stage in 2013 and one in the Vuelta in 2006. Most recently he has been providing the legwork for sprinter Alexander Kristoff.

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