13 septembre 2005

Neil Davidson

(CP) - In a Canadian first, a mountain biker has been suspended for two years after testing positive for EPO.

EPO is a banned substance that builds endurance by boosting the amount of oxygen-rich red blood cells. It is the same substance that American star Lance Armstrong has been accused of using at the 1999 Tour de France. Armstrong has denied the allegation.

Chris Sheppard, 32, showed traces of the drug at an out-of-competition urine test May 29 at his home in Kamloops, B.C., the Canadian Cycling Association said Tuesday.

Kris Westwood, the association's high performance director, said he went through several emotions when he heard the news.

"To a certain extent yes, shock. Disappointment. I would even say just weariness," he said from Ottawa. "We're all tired of hearing doping stories and we all kind of hoped that Canadians were exempt as it were, or we were above that sort of thing.

"I still firmly believe that we are one of the cleanest nations in sport in general. But obviously there's no generalization that you can make about anything."

Sheppard has competed for Canada internationally and rides professionally for the Haro Bike team. He was eighth in the 2004 Canadian national 30-kilometre race in Quebec, when his ride was hampered by flat tires.

In June, he was 27th at a World Cup event in Quebec.

"I'd describe him as being an athlete in the later phases of a solid mountain biking career," said Westwood.

Presence of EPO was found in Sheppard's A-sample, then confirmed in Sheppard's B-sample on July 4, the association said.

EPO was banned in 1990 but the International Cycling Union did not begin a urine test for it until 2001. The first testing actually started in 2000 but it took some labs longer to get up to speed.

"This is certainly the first Canadian athlete, through our Canadian (anti-doping) program that has tested positive for EPO," said Paul Melia, president and CEO of the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport.

A form of EPO does naturally occur in the human body - in the form of a hormone produced by the kidney - but the test differentiates between natural and other forms of the drug.

EPO is associated with endurance sports and the drug has been seen in cross-country skiing.

"It increases the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood so it's of tremendous assistance in endurance sports," Melia said.

It can be administered in a number of different ways, from injections to blood transfusions.

Westwood said Sheppard has not commented publicly on the positive test. Attempts to reach the rider by phone Tuesday were not immediately successful.

Sheppard is now permanently ineligible to receive financial support from the federal government, Westwood said.

An arbitrator's hearing on the doping test was heard last week. That decision triggered the suspension, although the reasons have yet to be released by the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada.

Star Canadian mountain biker Roland Green tested positive for an asthma medication in 2004. He had permission to use it but he ended up serving a minimum six-month suspension because of paperwork problems.

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