More serious allegations against the Astana team have surfaced in the Italian media. On Monday, La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that doctor Michele Ferrari who has been banned for life, visited the team at a training camp in Montecatini Terme in November 2013.

Investigators who also have the Astana team under observation in the Padua doping investigation, are reported to have taken photographed Ferrari outside the team hotel dyring the meeting. Contacted by cyclingnews.com, a spokesman for the team refused to comment on the case.

Ferrari who has become known as Doctor EPO, has supervised world class riders like Lance Armstrong, Mario Cipollini and Tony Rominger and until 2007 he was the coach of the current Astana team leader Alexandre Vinokourov who tested positive for blood doping and served a two year ban. The controversial doctor has been banned for life by the Italian Olympic Committee CONI. Riders who have had contact with Ferrari like Michele Scarponi (Lampre, now Astana), Filippo Pozzato (Lampre-Merida) and Giovanni Visconti (Movistar) have all served suspensions of a few months as a result of the Padua investigation.

In its report, Gazzetta does not mention names of Astana riders that should have met Ferrari last November. However, Tour de France winner Vincenzo Nibali should not have been among them.

In the article, Gazzetta dello Sport relies on the 500-page report by the public prosecutor in Padua which was mentioned by La Repubblica a few days ago. Led by prosecutor Benedetto Roberti, the investigators are reported to have collected lots of damning evidence again Ferrari during their 4 years of looking into his business. The report which has now been handed over to CONI, names more than 90 riders but biathletes and triathletes should be involved in the case.