Former US Postal Service pro cycling team doctor Prentice Steffens alleged last week that blood doping was common in the peloton.
He retracted those statements over the weekend and apologized to Lance Armstrong, among others.
Steffens' initial comments appeared in the French sporting newspaper L'Equipe. He was quoted in context of the doping scandal raised by L'Equipe over allegations that Armstrong had traces of a blood-boosting agent in his urine during the Tour de France bicycle race in 1999. A French lab allegedly found those traces in a retest in 2004. Steffens had been fired by the Postal team in 1996.
Steffens' retraction, quoted in CyclingNews, says in part:
“I do not know Lance Armstrong personally and have I never witnessed him taking banned substances. I based my assumptions about Mr. Armstrong on rumours I had heard, instead of on anything remotely factual and I want to issue this public retraction of comments. …
” … it is true that some athletes in the professional peloton, accused of doping, have willingly confessed that it is prevalent in the professional cycling. Just as many athletes, however, have done exceedingly well in the sport and have never been implicated in any way. It is an unfair assertion that the only way to achieve success in cycling is through doping.”
Steffens also announced he had resigned his position at doctor for Team TIAA-CREF, a US-based amateur cycling team that competes in Europe.
” … I also feel I should permanently remove myself from the role of team physician at Team TIAA-CREF, as my comments have damaged and dampened the spirits of these young athletes.”
So ends the latest chapter in the L'Equipe doping allegations.
Recent Comments