French police on Wednesday said they had detained Patrice Ciprelli, the husband of champion cyclist Jeannie Longo, and a friend for dealing in banned substances which posed a danger to health.
Police were also searching the couple’s residence here, which was later confirmed by Ciprelli’s lawyer Bruno Ravaz.
Ravav told AFP he was “99-percent sure” that the police operation was linked to the case of Joe Papp, an American, who was banned for doping himself.
He has since told sports daily L’Equipe that he then turned to supplying banned drugs to cyclists and that he had sold banned substances to Ciprelli.
Police sources said that Ciprelli and the unidentified friend were also under investigation for “importing substances banned for use by athletes without medical justification.”
According to L’Equipe, on September 12, Ciprelli bought Chinese-made samples of the banned blood-booster EPO (erythropoietin) in April 2007 using a US website and with Papp as an intermediary.
The 52-year-old Longo, widely expected to retire after the London Olympics in 2012, is a 59-time national champion who has won the women’s Tour de France three times.
She has won a total of 30 medals from the Olympics and world championships combined.