2Slick
07-12-2006, 22:58
PARIS (AFP) - Spanish doctor Eufemiano Fuentes, who is alleged to have masterminded doping programmes for 200 top athletes, maintained in a newspaper interview that he worked with several football clubs in Spain.
Fuentes' name has, since May, been linked to a doping investigation dubbed 'Operation Puerto', which for most of the year has embroiled several top cyclists including Ivan Basso and Jan Ullrich.
On Thursday, French daily Le Monde reported that Fuentes, whose laboratory unearthed doping products and bags of blood when raided by Spanish police in May, had also worked with four of the country's top football clubs, including Real Madrid and Barcelona.
Fuentes later denied the Le Monde report, which was written after one of the newspaper's reporters procured documents containing allegations which have as yet been unfounded.
However in a separate interview with the newspaper Fuentes claimed that Barcelona, the current European champions, had tried to employ him on two separate occasions.
He said the club was fully aware that he specialised in helping "optimise performances, avoid injuries and delay the feeling of fatigue".
"I worked with first and second division Spanish clubs. I worked with several clubs simultaneously, sometimes directly with the footballers and indirectly by giving advice to the club doctors," said Fuentes in Le Monde.
"I was the doctor at Las Palmas in 2002 when they were in the first division."
Asked if he worked with Barcelona or Real Madrid, he replied: "I can't say. I've had death threats. I've been told that if I say certain things then me or members of my family could have serious problems.
"I've been threatened three times. I don't want to be threatened a fourth time."
Fuentes said Barcelona, who have denied all links with him, tried to employ him twice.
"I don't want to discuss the second offer. The first was in 1996," he added.
"(They wanted) the same things that all athletes want: medical supervision, testing and help to optimise their performances, avoid injuries and delay the feeling of fatigue."
Fuentes said he was first called upon to help improve the performances of Spanish athletes when the country's athletics federation sent him to eastern Europe to learn of doping practices in the 1980s.
"It's true. The federation sent me there to learn," said Fuentes when asked if he had been sent to eastern Europe with a view to helping Spanish athletes improve.
"They (federation) wanted me to find out the best ways to get the best out of Spanish athletes."
None of the cyclists or athletes linked with Fuentes has yet been sanctioned.
Basso, the Tour of Italy winner, was cleared last month by the Italian authorities after being sidelined by his team on the basis of supposedly damaging evidence from Spain.
In Spain, Fuentes has been charged with endangering public health.
The Spaniard has denied that charge. But he admitted he would not hesitate to administer certain banned products if it meant avoiding health risks from competing in top level sport.
"In 29 years as a professional none of my clients have had any health problems," he said.
"My job is to protect the health of the clients who come to me.
"It is top level sport which is a health risk. What is dangerous for most athletes is the demands of competition.
"If an athlete puts his life in danger simply by competing at the top level, my first role is as a doctor. If the medicine used to protect that athlete is on the banned list, that fact is secondary to me."
Fuentes also defended the use of the banned blood booster EPO (erythropoietin), claiming that its use, which boosts oxygen-rich blood cells, would protect rather than harm athletes.
"In certain circumstances, yes. In cycling for example we have a 50 percent limit for haematocrit (volume of red blood cells in blood), above which the cyclist is banned from racing on the pretext that we are protecting his health.
"But a minimum limit hasn't been set. Yet, it is much safer to compete in the Tour de France with a haematocrit level of 53 than one of 31.
"If you let a cyclist tackle the Alps with a level of 31, you're putting his life in danger."
On Thursday, four Spanish football clubs categorically denied Fuentes' claims.
He added: "I think some sports are less protected than others. Some sports are virtually untouchable because they can call upon powerful legal teams to defend them.
"And something like that could also lead to the person who is in charge of that sport losing his job."
http://sports.yahoo.com/sow/news?slug=afp-fblespcycling&prov=afp&type=lgns
Fuentes' name has, since May, been linked to a doping investigation dubbed 'Operation Puerto', which for most of the year has embroiled several top cyclists including Ivan Basso and Jan Ullrich.
On Thursday, French daily Le Monde reported that Fuentes, whose laboratory unearthed doping products and bags of blood when raided by Spanish police in May, had also worked with four of the country's top football clubs, including Real Madrid and Barcelona.
Fuentes later denied the Le Monde report, which was written after one of the newspaper's reporters procured documents containing allegations which have as yet been unfounded.
However in a separate interview with the newspaper Fuentes claimed that Barcelona, the current European champions, had tried to employ him on two separate occasions.
He said the club was fully aware that he specialised in helping "optimise performances, avoid injuries and delay the feeling of fatigue".
"I worked with first and second division Spanish clubs. I worked with several clubs simultaneously, sometimes directly with the footballers and indirectly by giving advice to the club doctors," said Fuentes in Le Monde.
"I was the doctor at Las Palmas in 2002 when they were in the first division."
Asked if he worked with Barcelona or Real Madrid, he replied: "I can't say. I've had death threats. I've been told that if I say certain things then me or members of my family could have serious problems.
"I've been threatened three times. I don't want to be threatened a fourth time."
Fuentes said Barcelona, who have denied all links with him, tried to employ him twice.
"I don't want to discuss the second offer. The first was in 1996," he added.
"(They wanted) the same things that all athletes want: medical supervision, testing and help to optimise their performances, avoid injuries and delay the feeling of fatigue."
Fuentes said he was first called upon to help improve the performances of Spanish athletes when the country's athletics federation sent him to eastern Europe to learn of doping practices in the 1980s.
"It's true. The federation sent me there to learn," said Fuentes when asked if he had been sent to eastern Europe with a view to helping Spanish athletes improve.
"They (federation) wanted me to find out the best ways to get the best out of Spanish athletes."
None of the cyclists or athletes linked with Fuentes has yet been sanctioned.
Basso, the Tour of Italy winner, was cleared last month by the Italian authorities after being sidelined by his team on the basis of supposedly damaging evidence from Spain.
In Spain, Fuentes has been charged with endangering public health.
The Spaniard has denied that charge. But he admitted he would not hesitate to administer certain banned products if it meant avoiding health risks from competing in top level sport.
"In 29 years as a professional none of my clients have had any health problems," he said.
"My job is to protect the health of the clients who come to me.
"It is top level sport which is a health risk. What is dangerous for most athletes is the demands of competition.
"If an athlete puts his life in danger simply by competing at the top level, my first role is as a doctor. If the medicine used to protect that athlete is on the banned list, that fact is secondary to me."
Fuentes also defended the use of the banned blood booster EPO (erythropoietin), claiming that its use, which boosts oxygen-rich blood cells, would protect rather than harm athletes.
"In certain circumstances, yes. In cycling for example we have a 50 percent limit for haematocrit (volume of red blood cells in blood), above which the cyclist is banned from racing on the pretext that we are protecting his health.
"But a minimum limit hasn't been set. Yet, it is much safer to compete in the Tour de France with a haematocrit level of 53 than one of 31.
"If you let a cyclist tackle the Alps with a level of 31, you're putting his life in danger."
On Thursday, four Spanish football clubs categorically denied Fuentes' claims.
He added: "I think some sports are less protected than others. Some sports are virtually untouchable because they can call upon powerful legal teams to defend them.
"And something like that could also lead to the person who is in charge of that sport losing his job."
http://sports.yahoo.com/sow/news?slug=afp-fblespcycling&prov=afp&type=lgns