At the annual meeting, the Movement for a Credible Cycling MPCC have praised Astana for their swift reaction to the doping positives of the Iglinsky brothers. On the other hand, they criticize Neri Sottoli for their handling of the Matteo Rabottini case and the Italian team may now be expelled from the organization.
After three doping cases within a short time the Astana team has come under criticism. But the Movement for a Credible Cycling (MPCC) has praised the Kazakh team led by Alexandre Vinokourov for its reaction to the positive EPO tests of the Iglinskiy brothers Valentin and Maksim.
In a press release following the annual meeting held in Paris on Monday and Tuesday, the movement makes it clear that the self-suspension that started in the middle of October, is "in complete accordance with the regulations of the MPCC" that require it to be imposed within a short time frame.
A member of MPCC since 2013, Astana suspended their racing campaign for a week in accordance with the rules of the association and so missed the final WorldTour race, the Tour of Beijing. The team was still able to do the more important Il Lombardia as Maxim Iglinskiy waited a few days before asking not to have his B sample tested and thus giving an indirect doping confession.
As opposed to this, MPCC vented criticism of the Neri Sottoli team in the Matteo Rabottini case. The Italian pro continental team was the only team that didn't adhere to the rules in 2014. Like the Iglinskiy brothers, Rabottini tested positive for Epo in in August. At the annual meeting, it was made clear that Neri Sottoli did not give "an acceptable explanation". The team's membership of the MPCC is now "depending on its next explanations."
The press release startes that the associations tries to increase its cooperation with the UCI. Currently, the UCI is examining the possibility of introducing self-suspensions. Furthermore, both organizations hope to find a common stance on the issue of corticosterois use.
Finallly, MPCC also added "biological passport cases, use of electric and motorized bikes, corruption and illegal sports betting" to its rules. If the UCI open disciplinary proceedings in these areas, self-suspensions will also come in consideration.
Roger Legeay was again elected as president of the MPCC. Team managers Iwan Spekenbrink (Giant-Shimano), Vincent Lavenu (Ag2r) and Yvon Sanquer (Cofidis) have been confirmed as members of the MPCC Board for 2015.
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