This has gone too far. Real reason for raid on hotel.
From Cyclingnews.com
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id= ... sep29news3
You can't even use an oxygen tent now?! What's next, you can't weightlift? You can't use vitamins or supplements? Trainers are out? You can't train between races?! (Chariots of Fire anyone?)
And does it really require a police raid?! Nice use of tax payer money.
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id= ... sep29news3
The Italian police raid on the hotel of the Luxembourg team Friday night was not related to stories associating Fränk Schleck to Dr. Eufemiano Fuentes, but had to do with Benoit Joachim. On his antidoping control, Joachim had indicated that he slept in an oxygen tent, which is not allowed in Italy, according to RTL Luxembourg and sportweek.nl.
It was not immediately clear whether the Astana rider had the tent with him at the World Championships or not. However, the sid press agency claimed that the police removed "several bags" of material from the team's hotel. Twenty policemen were said to be involved in the raid, which lasted eight hours.(SW)
You can't even use an oxygen tent now?! What's next, you can't weightlift? You can't use vitamins or supplements? Trainers are out? You can't train between races?! (Chariots of Fire anyone?)
And does it really require a police raid?! Nice use of tax payer money.
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Love your final sentence - so Daily Heil
- @ddraver
That one involved the Lotto team. I remember from then that Italy is the only country in Europe for which their use is illegal. I know, it sounds daft to me too !!!
Seem to remember that year (possibly '05) that 2 or 3 non-Italian teams were 'caught' with oxygen tents.
In the run up to an important race the rider will take Epo or blood dope, boost their haemocrit up to the max, and then after only a couple of days their use of Epo will be undetectable in tests. If anyone queries the increase in haemocrit the rider will then say `Oh I have been using a hyperbaric tent` and no one will be able to prove otherwise.
I`m not even sure that such an excuse even holds water given that hyperbaric tents are intended to allow a rider to train at altitude and then sleep at what is effectively sea level, so increasing the speed of acclimatisation. Of course `altitude training` is itself yet another convenient cover for Epo use and blood doping!
It is also worth noting that a number of studies have questioned whether altitude training does actually lead to an increase in sea level performance. One thing is for sure `800 ml of packed cells` blood doping and the use of Epo certainly do!
Like I say, why did Joachim have to take the tent with him, there are no gains. Unless it's some decoy tool, "look, here's why my haematocrit is so high" or maybe the guy is just stupid and doesn't understand why and how he trains and uses these things?