The blood sample which can prove whether or not the Spanish cyclist Alejandro Valverde really committed doping was once again refused to be handed over. Alejandro Valverde Belmonte is a two-time silver medallist in the UCI Road World Championships. He grabbed his two medals in the year 2003 and 2005. He has been racing for the UCI ProTeam Caisse d’Epargne. His specialties in road bicycle racing is varied. He is considered to be a strong climber, a sprinter, and a time trialist. Currently, he is the Champion in the Spanish National Road Race.

The Spanish Cycling Federation said they would appeal regarding the ruling. They also said that they are totally and absolutely disagreeing with the decision. In 2006, an affair of blood-doping termed Operación Puerto erupted against a doctor named Eufemiano Fuentes together with some accomplices. Some sourced had linked Valverde in this affair. In this affair, doping products had been uncovered together with some blood bags as well as code names which apparently is linked to top athletes. 60 cyclists had been linked to this highly-organized doping system. Most of the doping are heavily reliant on blood transfusions.

In the initial investigation, the name of Valverde was not linked. However, internal documents linking confiscated bloods to Valverde through codes such as Piti, Valv, and 18 were uncovered from the Court 31 in Madrid. Valverde had been banned in 2007 to compete in the UCI Road World Championships, which was held in Stuttgart. However, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) had cleared Valverde making him able to compete during the championships. Though Valverde had been cleared by the CAS, it does not mean that he is not anymore considered as a suspect.

Early this year, DNA samples that were taken from last year’s Tour de France had been linked by the Italian National Olympic Committee to the blood that were seized in the Operación Puerto. When Valverde appeared to the Olympic Committee in February, he maintained that he is innocent. He even questioned the jurisdiction of the Italians regarding this case. It was recommended earlier this month by the anti-doping prosecutor of the Italian Olympic Committee that Valverde should be given a suspension for two years. In response, the Italian Olympic Committee said that they will conduct a hearing regarding the said matter on May.

According to CONI, the said case shall be moved to CONI’s in-house anti-doping court. Valverde was confronted by Ettore Torri, a CONI prosecutor, regarding his DNA evidence as well as documents that shows that Valverde had a contact with a doctor during the height of his case on blood doping in Spain. Coming from his spokesman, it was said that Valverde was “surprised” when the CONI prosecutor recommended that his disciplinary proceedings should continue because of a fact that he did not commit. In Valverde’s statement, it was written that CONI presents completely erroneous arguments. It was also written there that CONI acts in illegal ways and is being non-obedient to what has been ordered by the legal courts of Spain.

Furthermore, they had been in violation of the basic rights of riders. Originally, over 50 cyclists had been linked in the Puerto doping ring. Top riders such as Italy’s Ivan Basso, who had served a ban for two years, had been included.

This week, it is expected that there will be increased calls for the European Union to force the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to soften its new rules on conducting drug tests outside the competition. The said new rules are being criticized for allegedly being invasive of the athletes’ privacy. More than that, the World Anti-Doping Code is said to be contradictory to the domestic laws of European Union States. Hence, it must be disregarded.

Several issues were listed by the EU advisory panel on data protection and privacy in its 19-page report. In the said report, the panel wanted the privacy legislation of Europe to be incorporated in the WADA code. With the code, athletes are being forced to declare their whereabouts for an hour per day. This declaration is intended for surprise testing. The EU advisory panel wants this practice of forced declaration to be changed.

These findings were rejected by WADA immediately. They call these findings as unfounded. More than that, they worry that these challenges that are being posed on their accepted and well-established anti-doping practices are undermining the efforts in combating the practice of doping in sports. In fact, Mr. John Fahey, the president of WADA says that these challenges are not offering any solutions that are constructive. Given the report made by the said EU panel, members of the European Parliament like Emine Bozkurt are intending to make the EU executive commission act immediately on it. According to her, countries which already adapted their anti-doping codes based on the rules of WADA have to revert back the changes that they have made.

All of Europe had been very much critical about the WADA rules. In fact, European officials are calling that the system be suspended till after the issues are cleared up. Aside from European officials, big-time athletes as well as international federations just like FIFA are also critical about the implemented rules.

With the current WADA system, athletes are supposed to let WADA know their whereabouts for one hour per day during the seven days of the week for the next three months. All of this information are available in the internet and could be updated through a text message or via e-mail. This system is being contended, especially by lots of athletes, as infringing to their right to privacy. They could be tested anytime even if they are on the beach or even when they are on the club. At least 65 athletes from Belgium already started to file proceedings in the court against WADA’s whereabouts system. They cited the European Convention on Human Rights in their proceedings. Another incident of recalcitrant behaviour from Europe was the passage of the Spanish decree that gives athletes the capacity to refuse having drug tests during the night.

In defense, WADA says that they have undertaken sufficient legal advice to make sure that their rules are not in violation of any provisions in the European Convention on Human Rights. They also criticized the EU panel’s report. According to them, the report is challenging well-established anti-doping practices and rules that were long-accepted. With the said statements made by WADA, Bozkurt said that it just made the options fewer and made the confrontation more intensified. Right now, Boskurt is wondering how a dialogue between EU and WADA could be started.

A mysterious ailment has struck 21 polo horses before the start of the competition during the U.S. Open Polo Tournament in Wellington. These ailments are seen to have caused these horses to die. During the necropsy of the 21 polo horses, haemorrhaging had been found by university scientists. However, the investigators still have not yet figured out what really killed these prized horses.

After preliminary examinations of the polo horses were finished by the officials from the College of Veterinary Medicine of University of Florida, 15 horses were examined by the university. The other six necropsies were conducted in Kissimmee’s state lab. Based on the law enforced investigations made by both the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, there are no evidence as to whether there was a criminal wrongdoing or any foul play involved in the said incident. What is being indicated in the evidences is that the horses had been injected or ingested with something that led them to their eventual death. Right now, what was injected or ingested is what is being figured out. Some people are speculating that these may be due to steroids.

It was reported that the ailing of the 21 horses started during Sunday afternoon. This was the time when they arrived at the International Polo Club Palm Beach fields in Wellington. As they arrived, some horses became dizzy and eventually, they started to collapse. People that are on the stands rushed to the field to help the horses. Fourteen horses died on Sunday while the seven remaining died on Monday. It is being speculated that some toxin have caused the death of the polo horses. Investigators say that the horses probably have come into contact with this toxin or it could probably have been a reaction to a drug that the horses have ingested.

According to Tim O’Connor, the spokesman for International Polo Club Palm Beach, the horses are housed since December in Wellington at the Lechuza Caracas property. They had been transported to the field via open-air trailers. From the initial results of the necropsies, bleeding was seen in some horses by the university scientists. However, these bleedings are just in minimal amounts are not placed in consistent locations. The specific cause of the horses’ death is still not clear given the gross findings.

It is expected that more results will be seen tomorrow after the tests on the horses’ water, environment, and feeds will be conducted. Officials are also still planning to have further tests on the tissue and blood samples of the horses. The tissue samples had been collected by the veterinarians from the horses while they are still alive. According to Sarah Carey, the spokeswoman for the University of Florida veterinary school, there are things that a tissue from a live animal could reveal which could not be revealed by a tissue from a dead animal. A lot of the testing will be done at the Racing Lab of University of Florida. This laboratory is testing race horses for substances that are banned.

While there are no hard rules that dictates how owners must care for their own horses prior a match, players of polo as well as owners are usually calling for drug testing of both horses and riders. With this disaster, some polo enthusiasts are hoping that the turn out of the said tests will be explainable. They are also hoping that this event will serve as a lesson for polo players and horse owners. The 21 horses received a memorial service on Thursday.

Last year, the International Cycling Union launched the most awaited tool to combat doping — the biological passport program. Although it has not yet identified any rider with the said programme, the UCI says that it will be revealing the first cases before May 9, in time for the opening of the first Grand Tour this summer in Venice, the Giro d’Italia.

UCI spokesperson Enrico Carpani said that with the first case, they have to be absolutely sure that they can defend themselves in court. It has to be safe and reliable so experts, as well as the legal department, are working on it. He also says that he expects the first cases to be released before the Giro commences.

In January of 2008, the passports were launched and regarded as the solution to cycling’s doping problems since it involves steroid profiling, longitudinal testing and long-term blood profiling. Theoretically, this could provide information on irregular fluctuations and value deviations on the blood profile which will allow authorities to identify cheats even if they don’t test positive for the substance. However, this is not the cure-all for doping. In last year’s Tour de France, six positive results were yielded by using the conventional blood and urine tests instead of the passport testing.

According to Carpani, the real challenge for UCI is more of legal than scientific in nature. Last year, when the UCI said that 23 riders needed to be tested further, no one was named publicly and no action has yet been taken. This year, some riders are again subject to scrutiny but as to how many, the UCI has not disclosed. The UCI still needs to strengthen its basis before making any public announcements.

David Millar, the British rider who was formerly banned for EPO use in 2004, now sits on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s athletes’ committee. Millar, while recovering from a broken collarbone, says that the anti-doping movement’s ultimate goal is to catch athletes using new and undetectable drugs. The exposé of the first case is taking time since the passport is not as visible as a drug test, he said, but the release will make the passport more credible. Millar will be joining the Garmin-Slipstream team, together with Bradley Wiggins, in the Giro d’Italia.

The American team remains poised for this year’s Tour de France. Lance Armstrong, a member of the team while also recovering from a broken collarbone, will be joining in the Giro. Former World Anti-Doping Agency chairperson Dick Pound says that he thinks the seven-peat tour winner broke the anti-doping rules in March. He said that Armstrong left a French agency tester waiting for thirty minutes while he was having a shower. Pound thinks it is pretty obvious that if you are chosen for testing, you have to be chaperoned from the moment you are notified until the time you provide the sample. Lance, who calls himself the world’s most tested sportsperson, unquestionably knows that. The French Anti-doping Agency will be discussing this matter next month.

A royal decree was approved by the Spanish government that allows the athletes of Spain to refuse to have anti-doping controls between 11 in the evening and 8 in the morning. The said decree is also applicable for foreign athletes who are training in Spain or already residents in the country. This decree, which will take into effect within a few weeks, is applicable to all controls, whether it was ordered by a national or an international sports federation.

The said decree contravenes a code from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). It is stipulated in a code that in principle, athletes must be available to have doping controls at any time during a day. With the said decree, any athlete could now refuse to be tested in the evening without any fear of facing sanctions.

Prior to the passing of the said decree, several athletes had been complaining about how the WADA code is too restrictive. In fact, Rafael Nadal, the highest-ranked male tennis player in the world, calls the WADA code as being disrespectful of the athletes’ privacy.

The code of WADA requires athletes which are identified by their international federations to inform the agency every three months about their daily activities and whereabouts. Whenever an athlete is not found wherever he said he would be for three times within a period of 18 months, that athlete will be considered to be a violator of anti-doping regulations. He would then have to face sanctions.

After having a dispute regarding the rules on drug testing for the top football players, WADA and the world’s governing body for football FIFA have reached an agreement. They both agreed that only a limited number of players will now be required to give a detail on their daily whereabouts whenever it is off-season. Only those players which are considered “at risk” will be the main focus of the controls. Those who are “at risk” are those who are on the process of recovery from injuries or those who previously used a substance that is banned.

Reconsiderations regarding the WADA whereabouts rule are being negotiated by both the international governing authority FIFA as well as by the European body UEFA. The whereabouts rule makes all elite-level athletes that are registered in testing pools required to give those who will conduct their drug tests a three months’ notice about their location for every hour each day.

The rule about whereabouts is part of the WADA code for 2009. Extensive consultations with several sports federations from the world took place prior to its enforcement. FIFA was included among those sports federations that were consulted.

Both FIFA and UEFA had been asking WADA to grant special privileges for football players. In fact, the president of FIFA, Mr. Sepp Blatter insists that the strictest standards of the new WADA code should exempt football. They want football players to avoid having a 365-days-a-year testing standard, which is what was met by athletes from other sports. Exemption for players during their off season is also being called for by the same bodies. Off-season is usually running between mid-May to the last week of June.

According to both FIFA and UEFA, the controls that are usually being undertaken whenever players are having their short holiday periods are unacceptable. They want players to be respected in their private lives. However, Mr. David Howman, the director general of WADA stated that the rule cannot be changed until the end of the year. Thus, football has to wait.

Hopes of having the Olympic football at the St. James’s Park may be halted by an anti-doping row and could cost the city hundreds of thousands of dollars. The Newcastle United Stadium had been chosen as the venue for the upcoming world’s finest young footballers on the 2012 Olympics. However, football’s ruling bodies have not accepted the new rule laid down by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

The WADA is an independent foundation established through a collective initiative led by the International Olympic Committee or the IOC. The Agency was created on November 10, 1999 in Lausanne, Switzerland to advocate, coordinate and monitor the battle against drugs in sports.

The WADA was initially funded by the International Olympic Committee, but now receives half of its budget from them and the other half comes from different government around the world. The governing bodies of the WADA are composed in equal parts by representatives from different sporting movements including athletes and government of the work. Most of the agency’s key activities are scientific researches, development of anti-doping capacities, education and monitoring of the World Anti-Doping Code – the document harmonizing regulations about anti-doping in all sports and countries. WADA also constructs an annual list of prohibited substances as well as methods that are not allowed for the athletes to take or use.

With the new “whereabouts” law, top-flight football players will have to fall in line with other sports and provide player location for one hour each day including summer holidays. But the governing bodies of the UEFA and FIFA are against this as they claim that there is the need to protect the private lives of the athletes – this conflict makes Newcastle city officials worry about the event being axed.

According to Newcastle City Council and Executive member for Culture Pauline Allen, the upcoming Olympics is a perfect opportunity to showcase the city and attract tourists. According to her, they are really looking forward to hosting some football games at the St. James’s Park and that it would be very disappointing if football will be taken out, yet they were more concerned that their region will lose the chance to have a taste of the Olympics. She also added that they were looking forward to being part of the Olympics in Newcastle and that they can show people their lovely city which has a real passion for football on any stage.

MEP Lib Dem of the North East Fiona Hall said that hosting football matches as part of the Olympics can provide a great potential for the region. The event can draw tourists to the North east and lead to job creation and a local economic boost. Lib Dem further added that the although Olympic committee are right to take a strong stand because the use of performance enhancing drugs constitutes cheating regardless of whether it is team or individual sports, it would still be a huge blow for Tyneside if the decision would cause the cancellation of the Olympic football matches.

A joint statement issued by the two footballing authorities says that they are formally rejecting the stance taken by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) concerning the “whereabouts” rule and more specifically the individual locations of the team sports’ athletes. The FIFA and the UEFA are further opposing the individual “whereabouts” rule and would rather see it replaced by collective location rules, along the scope of the team and within the stadium infrastructure. The statement also provides for the Fifa and Uefa and their request for WADA to reconsider its position on the “whereabouts” rule.