It appears Australian cyclist Robert Stannard, who was suspended for unexplained anomalies in his biological passport, will return to the peloton with Bahrain – Victorious.
The findings occurred between 2018 and 2019, which ultimately led to a retroactive suspension by the UCI that ended in 2022. He was riding with Alpecin-Deceuninck in 2023 and set to ride the 2023 road worlds in Glasgow, but once AusCycling learned of the suspension, was removed from the roster. A biological passport is an electronic record that compiles the results of all doping tests conducted over time.
Denied doping
He denied wrongdoing, but the UCI’s Anti-Doping Tribunal found him guilty of using a prohibited substance or method. In a statement from the international cycling body, the suspension was also announced to be backdated.
“In accordance with the applicable rules, i.e. the World Anti-Doping Code and the UCI Anti-Doping Rules, the Tribunal decided that the period of suspension shall start on August 17, 2018, i.e. the day of the appearance of the first abnormality, taking into account the delay with which the rider’s abnormalities were communicated to the UCI,” it read.
Stannard, who took a win at the 2022 Belgian Tour de Wallonie, is now eligible to compete again immediately. The 25-year-old was also fined 70 percent of his salary from 2018 and 2019. “I have been notified by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) that it considers that I committed an Anti-Doping Rule Violation more than four years ago,” Stannard said in a statement back in 2023.
“And I have never intentionally or knowingly used a prohibited substance and will therefore ask for my case to be referred to the UCI Anti-Doping Tribunal. I look forward to filing my defense and am confident of being exonerated and continuing my career. I will respect the confidentiality of the procedure and therefore will not be commenting further,” he said.
His name now appears on the UCI website on Bahrain Victorious’s roster, although the team has not made a formal announcement that he will join the team.
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