UPDATE: D’Errico is banned for 9 years 4 months, ending 26 October 2032.

On Tuesday 27 June the Italian Anti-Doping Organization (NADO) charged amateur cyclist Alfonso D’Errico (Bike Squad San Servo) with multiple anti-doping violations after he won the 2023 Italian Masters Road Championship in Pezze di Grecco.

The 49 year-old D’Errico is accused of violating World Anti-Doping Articles 2.1, 2.2 and 2.5 – tampering with a doping test.

While violations of article 2.1 Presence of a Prohibited Substance in an Athlete’s Sample and 2.2 Use or Attempted Use by an Athlete of a Prohibited Substance are common anti-doping charges, the 2.5 Tampering or Attempted Tampering with any Part of Doping Control by an Athlete or Other Person charge is quite rare.

NADO did not disclose where the violations occurred or what prohibited substances were allegedly associated with D’Errico.

Besides winning the Italian Masters M45-49 Road Championship last weekend and adding a tricolore champion’s jersey to his closet, D’Errico also has two UCI Gran Fondo World Champion titles (Slovenia 2014 & Italy 2018). Though, he tested positive for the prohibited substance Methylhexanamine at the 2018 worlds and was banned from the sport by Italian NADO for six months.

If found guilty by NADO of these new anti-doping violations, D’Errico faces likely four-year ban from sport.

Photo Credit: file

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