Riccardo Riccò

Infobox Cyclist
ridername = Riccardo Riccò


image_caption = Riccò at the 2007 Settimana internazionale di Coppi e Bartali
fullname = Riccardo Riccò
nickname = Cobra
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1983|9|1
country = Italy
height = height|m=1.73
weight = convert|59|kg|lb|abbr=on|lk=on
currentteam = None
discipline = Road
role = Rider
ridertype = Climbing Specialist
amateuryears =
amateurteams =
proyears = 2006–2008
proteams = Saunier Duval-Scott
majorwins = Giro d'Italia, 3 stages
Giro d'Italia, Young Rider jersey (2008)
Tirreno-Adriatico, Points jersey and 2 stages (2007)
updated = July 18, 2008

Riccardo Riccò (born 1 September 1983 in Formigine) is a professional road bicycle racer from Italy. Born in Formigine, Emilia-Romagna, Riccò rode on the UCI ProTeam Saunier Duval-Scott. He was ejected from the 2008 Tour de France for doping violations.

Career

He joined UCI ProTeam Saunier Duval-Prodir in 2006 after two successful seasons as an amateur rider, during which he won the Settimana Bergamasca. Prior to joining the team he tried to become a professional with Ceramica Panaria - Navigare in 2005 but wasn't allowed because several blood tests revealed his hematocrit levels exceeded those acceptable. Saunier Duval's sportif director, Mauro Gianetti, suggested he spend a week in the UCI laboratory in Lausanne to prove that his blood values were natural. Further exhaustive tests by the UCI confirmed that Riccò´s hematocrit level was naturally over 50%. This has since been questioned however when, on July 17, 2008, it was revealed that Ricco had a non negative test for EPO, the hematocrit boosting drug, following the stage 4 time trial at Cholet. [cite web
title = Professional Racer's Details - RICCO Riccardo
publisher = saunierduval-scott.com
date =
url = http://www.saunierduval-scott.com/cyclingteam/riderDetailN.jsp?idrider=1137515749423
accessdaymonth = 8 February | accessyear=2008] [cite web
title = An interview with Riccardo Riccò, June 2, 2007
publisher = cyclingnews.com
date = June 2, 2007
url = http://www.cyclingnews.com/road/2007/giro07/?id=/riders/2007/interviews/riccardo_ricco_giro07
accessdaymonth = 8 February | accessyear=2008] It has since been suggested by fellow pro-rider Jérôme Pineau that Riccò openly doped even as a junior rider [cite web|url=http://jpineau.blogs.velomagazine.fr/|title=Content qu'il dorme en taule|publisher=Velo Magazine|accessdate=2008-08-18] .

Saunier Duval (2006-2008)

Riccò's breakthrough came during the 2007 Tirreno-Adriatico, when he won two consecutive stages and the Points Classification. He also won a stage and finished second in Settimana internazionale di Coppi e Bartali. He then finished ninth in Amstel Gold Race and sixth in La Flèche Wallonne in his first ever appearance in the Ardennes Classics. [cite web
title = 71st Flèche Wallonne - PT
publisher = cyclingnews.com
date = April 25, 2007
url = http://www.cyclingnews.com/road/2007/apr07/flechewallonne07/
accessdaymonth = 8 February | accessyear=2008] He rode the Giro d'Italia as a domestique of team leader Gilberto Simoni and in the process he took the 15th stage at Tre Cime di Lavaredo ahead of his team-mate Leonardo Piepoli. He would finish sixth overall, seven minutes behind eventual winner Danilo Di Luca. In the season finale Giro di Lombardia, he finished second after losing a two-man sprint against Damiano Cunego.

In 2008, Riccò rode the Giro d'Italia as team leader, and impressed in the mountains, taking two stage victories, the young rider's classification, and was 2nd overall in the general classification, 1:57 behind winner Alberto Contador. It is suspected that Riccò's performance was not clean. Doping expert Michel Audran has stated that CERA was in use by some riders in the 2008 Giro [cite web|url=http://www.bikeradar.com/blogs/article/doping-expert-stunned-by-ricco-positive-17595|title=Doping expert stunned by Ricco positive|publisher=ProCycling|accessdate=2008-08-18] CERA is the supposedly untraceable third generation EPO used by Riccò in the Tour de France weeks later.

On July 10, 2008, Riccò won stage 6 of the Tour de France with a hilltop finish at Super-Besse giving him his first Tour de France stage win. There were, however, some rumors saying that test results revealed abnormalities in his blood level. The team and the athlete claimed there were no doping issues, however, since Riccò has a naturally high hematocrit level. He reportedly has a UCI certificate attesting to an hematocrit of 51%, 50% being considered the accepted upper limit since 1997. Three days later he experienced his second win at stage 9 of the Tour de France with a break away climb of the Col d'Aspin.

2008 Tour de France doping scandal

On July 17, 2008, Riccò tested positive for the banned blood booster Continuous Erythropoiesis Receptor Activator (a variant of Erythropoietin), [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/other_sports/cycling/7511518.stm BBC SPORT | Other sport... | Cycling | Tour 'winning war against doping' ] ] from a sample taken following the fourth stage, making him the third rider to test positive for this substance in the 2008 Tour de France after Moisés Dueñas of Barloworld and Manuel Beltrán of Liquigas. He was immediately ejected from the Tour and his team Saunier Duval withdrew of their own volition. Saunier Duval announced the next day that team manager Mauro Gianetti had "lost faith in" Riccò and that he had been fired from the team [http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/feedarticle/7661220] Riccardo Riccò spent the night at the police station and then was indicted on charges of "use of poisonous substances". Riccò denied the charges and told RAI television "I'm very bitter. I spent a night in the police station and it was like being in prison. The magistrate listened to what I had to say. They searched my bags but only found some vitamins that we all use and so they decided to let me go home." The prosecutor, Antoine Leroy, testified that medical supplies including syringes and equipment for intrevenous drips were found, but were unused, in his hotel room. According to AFP, the prosecutor said in the first searches, "there were no doping substances as such" found. [ [http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2008/jul08/jul19news www.cyclingnews.com - the world centre of cycling ] ]

It was later revealed that Riccò had attempted to escape doping control officials after stage 4 of the Tour, but had been caught in traffic. As a result of this, officials decided that he was to be tested after every stage. [ [http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,24063859-11088,00.html Tour drugs cheat Riccardo Ricco tried to flee testers | Herald Sun ] ] It was also revealed that CERA's manufacturer Roche Pharmaceuticals had secretly worked closely with the World Anti-Doping Agency to develop a test for the drug, and this was how Riccò had been caught. [ [http://tour-de-france.velonews.com/article/80701/roche-no-marker-in-new-epo-drug VeloNews | Roche: No marker in new EPO drug | Tour de France Coverage ] ]

In the week following the race, Riccò admitted to the Italian Olympic Committee that, independent of the team, he had been taking EPO in preparation for the 2008 Tour de France, and he accepted responsibility for his actions and apologized to his teammates and fans. He now faces a two year ban as well as potential criminal prosecution in France for possessing "poisonous substance." [http://tour-de-france.velonews.com/article/81064/Riccò-admits-to-doping. Retrieved30JUL2008] Riccò told the Italian newspaper "La Republica" that it was the banned doping Doctor Carlos Santuccione who supplied the new form of EPO. [cite web|url=http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2008/aug08/aug06news2|title= Riccò names supplier|publisher=Cyclingnews.com|accessdate=2008-09-06] On October 2, 2008 Ricco was handed a 2 year ban by the Italian Olympic Committee. [cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/7648483.stm |title=Ricco handed two-year doping ban |publisher=BBC News |accessdate=2008-10-05 |date=2008-10-02]

Major results

;2005
* Settimana Ciclistica Lombarda overall and stage 2 and 3
* Giro della Toscana stage 4;2006
* 1st, Japan Cup
* 1st, Stage 5, Settimana Coppi-Bartali
* 2nd, Stage 6, Tour of California;2007
* 12th, Overall, Tirreno-Adriatico
** 1st, Points classification
** 1st, Stage 3
** 1st, Stage 4
* 9th, Amstel Gold Race
* 5th, La Flèche Wallonne
* 1st, Stage 5, Settimana internazionale di Coppi e Bartali
* 1st, Stage 4, Tour de San Luis
* 6th Overall, Giro d'Italia
** 1st,
** 2nd,
** 5th,
** 5th, Mountains classification
** 2nd, Young rider classification
* 2nd, Giro di Lombardia;2008

* 2nd Overall, Giro d'Italia
** ("Maglia bianca")
** 1st,
** 1st,
*Tour de France
** 1st, Stage 6 (pending doping findings)
** 1st, Stage 9 (pending doping findings)

ee also

* List of doping cases in cycling

References

External links

* [http://www.saunierduval-prodir.com/cyclingteam/riderDetailN.jsp?idrider=1137515749423 Rider biography]
*trapfriis|italy.Ricco.htm
*Cyclingwebsite|11297

Persondata
NAME= Riccò, Riccardo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION={Road bicycle racer
DATE OF BIRTH= 1983-09-01
PLACE OF BIRTH=Formigine, Province of Modena, Italy
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=