Convicted sports-doping doctor Eufemiano Fuentes is "threatening to reveal the dirty secrets of the world's major sporting events as he offers to sell his story to newspapers after being convicted on public health charges in Spain for his role in helping top cyclists to cheat," according to Giles Tremlett of the London GUARDIAN. Fuentes has sent out a list of subjects that -- for a price -- he is now prepared to talk publicly about. It includes Spanish Champions League teams, "London marathon winners, Olympic medallists and a long list of cyclists he was involved with." He has also offered "to reveal how Tour de France officials failed to detect doping even when they tested those who had been taking performance-enhancing substances." One category of revelations he is offering is, "How I prepared a team to play in the Champions League." That alone "threatens to widen the scandal surrounding his doping activities to football, a sport in which Spain currently leads the world as European champions and World Cup holders" (GUARDIAN, 5/10).
NEW LAW IN SPAIN: The AAP reported the Spanish parliament on Thursday passed "a beefed-up anti-doping law that will toughen penalties in order to polish Spain's image as it bids to host the 2020 Olympic Games." According to a draft of the law, it raises fines for doping to up to A$521,000 ($521,469) "but stops short of making doping punishable by jail" (AAP, 5/10).
UCI TO APPEAL: The Int'l Cycling Union (UCI) will appeal the April 29 court decision not to release to the UCI and other anti-doping organizations the more than 200 bags of blood and other evidence gathered in police raids in '06, which were presented in Fuentes's trial (UCI).
SAIZ SPEAKS OUT: The EFE reported former Liberty Seguros Team Manager Manolo Saiz described the impact he has felt from the case since he was cleared of all charges in the April 29 ruling. Saiz: "In this case you're not the same Manolo that were you were before. You are a sadder, more down, more thoughtful and more insecure Manolo" (EFE, 5/12).
