Speculation is rife that Bjarne Riis will sell Team Saxo Tinkoff to Russian Oleg Tinkov tomorrow, but even if the expected sale should go through, Bjarne Riis will not be able to escape sanctions should Anti-Doping Denmark rule against him in its ongoing investigation.

Despite Riis’ public and repeated cries of innocence when past riders such as Tyler Hamilton and Michael Rasmussen have claimed that Riis either encouraged or tolerated doping on his squads, ADD has been looking into Riis’ past as a manager and owner of the team

Riis is widely expected to announce his sale of the Saxo Tinkoff team at a press conference scheduled for London on Monday. 

Previously, Italian sports daily Gazzetta dello Sport claimed that Riis might switch from being team owner to general manager in order to be able to work more closely with the riders. 

However, even if the team should switch to Russian registration, ADD told Danish newspaper BT that Riis would not be able to avoid sanctions if found guilty of any wrongdoing. 

“It is irrelevant if he continues to operate in another country. For a sports director, the penalty applies to all work, no matter where the licence belongs. It’s the same as applies for athletes. During a sanction period, a cyclist may not switch to a team with the licence of another country and keep racing for it,” ADD ‘s Lone Hansen told BT.

The ADD verdict is anticipated in January 2014.