Doping House of Cards Continues to Topple as Professional Cyclist Bert Dietz Admits to Doping

By Steven Selthoffer

KOLN, Germany, May 22. WITH the recent additional exposure on the anti-doping campaign coming to light, those involved in doping efforts throughout the Olympic community are continuing to crack under this immense pressure.

As another positive sign that the anti-doping community is catching up to the cheaters, former top German cyclist Bert Dietz admitted during an ARD public television broadcast in his country last night to taking part in a systematic doping scheme instituted by Team Telekom (now known as T-Mobile) from 1994-98.

"The doctors did the injections themselves when they were on site," said Dietz on the broadcast. "When they weren't there, team masseur Jef d'Hont handled it."

The admission of Dietz's use of EPO backed up d'Hont's recent doping allegations that Team Telekom doped during the time period when Bjarne Riis and Jan Ullrich won the Tour de France in 1996 and 1997, respectively.

"They (the doctors) offered it, but in such a way that every rider knew: if you don't use it your results will be so bad at the end of the year that your contract won't be renewed. Yes, it was pretty obvious," said Dietz on the broadcast.

T-Mobile has responded to these allegations.

"German Telekom gave money to an operator," T-Mobile spokesperson Christian Frommert said. "The sponsor obviously wants success, but I can not imagine that the sponsor says: please use forbidden substances."

Frommert went on to say that the team is investigating the allegations. Meanwhile, Riis and Ullrich have both refuted allegations claiming that they are innocent.

Revelations of this nature are the result of long-term resilient pressure and multi-faceted efforts by anti-doping authorities such as WADA, NADA, the UCI leadership and media against doping in sports.

There is a simmering and growing, ground swell of support calling for stored samples taken from past Olympics and other testing to face new rounds of analysis. These types of efforts are being led by tip-of-the-spear scientists like Dr. Mario Thevis. Thevis, who works at the Institute Fur Biochemie, Sporthochschule Koln, has been instrumental in developing methodology and testing for exposing EPO. Those who have competed fairly in sports should take heart, and those who have cheated in cycling, swimming or other sports should beware.

It's the Domino Theory in effect. There is a zero tolerance policy. As more and more funds become available that are allocated to the anti-doping movement, more scandals, more users and networks will emerge, as global sports are cleaned up, and as cheats and dealers are driven down to negligible levels.

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