Tour de France organizer A.S.O. has announced that Team Barloworld rider Moises Duenas Nevado has tested non-negative for EPO in a doping test carried out at the end of stage 4 of the 2008 Tour de France.

The Barloworld team management has pulled the rider out of the Tour de France and has also suspended him while they wait for the result of the 2nd doping test.

After being told of Moises Duenas’ non-negative doping test Team Barloworld manager Claudio Corti and team doctor Massimiliano Mantovani accompanied the rider to the local police station.
 
The Team Barloworld management has since discovered the results of the search carried out in the rider’s room ths morning and it is now clear that some banned medicines were found in Moises Duenas’ room. According to the team, these substances were absolutely not supplied or prescribed by the team management or team doctor.
 
“I’ve asked the French police to fully investigate the case so that we can fully understand the seriousness of what Moises Duenas has done,” Corti said.
 
“We’re absolutely stunned by what is happening and by the behaviour of one of our riders. He seems to have secretly used banned substances, hiding everything from everybody else in the team.”
 
“It’s terribly disheartening but because the team is not involved in what has happened, we hope that the whole truth can rapidly emerge so that we can take the necessary action and that Duenas can fully accept responsibility for what he has done.”

Earlier in this year's Tour de France, Team Liquigas rider and veteran cyclist Manuel Beltran also tested non-negative in an EPO doping test.

The team of editors and writers here at Roadcycling.com calls for the Tour de France organizers to carry out a complete scan of all riders in the 2008 Tour de France peloton by testing all riders for use of EPO either before or after a single stage. The two recent doping incidents have proven that spot checks and random tests are not sufficient.