Marion Sicot has finished a four-year suspension for using erythropoietin (EPO) and banned fat-burner clenbuterol, but she still faces a criminal trial which may see her going to jail. The criminal charges involve the illegal transport of drugs and could result in one year up the fleuve.
It was in September of 2019 that the 29-year-old cyclist tested positive for the banned blood-booster, following the French national TT champs. Her two-year ban was extended to four years after she confessed she had ordered EPO over the internet, according to L’Équipe.
During the trial, she said she injected herself with EPO a few days before the day of the TT, in which she finished 9th. The drug became infamous in professional cycling during the 1990s and early 2000s, as its ability to enhance endurance by increasing red blood cell production led to widespread abuse. High-profile scandals, including the Festina Affair and Lance Armstrong’s admissions, cemented its legacy as one of the sport’s most notorious PEDs.
During her career, Marion Sicot rode for several UCI teams, including Doltcini-Van Eyck Sport in 2018 and 2019, Servetto Footon in 2016, and Bourgogne-Pro Dialog in 2013. Among Marion Sicot’s results are 7th at the Grand Prix du Morbihan Féminin (2015), 5th on a stage of La Route de France (2016), 13th at La Classique Morbihan (2017), 17th overall at La Route de France (2016), 6th in the Queen of the Mountains classification at the Tour de Bretagne Féminin (2016), and 7th in the French National Road Race Championships (2016).
It is not clear if she had been doping prior to 2019. On the first day of her trial, she said that doping “was an integral part of this sport,” according to a report in Cycling Weekly, but that she regretted cheating and lying. “I dirtied my sport,” Sicot said. “I took the easy way out.” In recent years, she has worked as a coach, mainly in triathlon.
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