Posted at 6:27 a.m., Monday, December 17, 2007
Doping: Italian doctor receives lifetime sports ban
Associated Press
ROME — A doctor at the center of an Italian doping investigation received a lifetime sports ban today.Carlo Santuccione was barred from being a member of any sports federation and participating in sports events, the Italian Olympic Committee said.
The committee's top judge for doping cases handed down the ban for a repeat offense. Santuccione had already served a five-year suspension from the Italian cycling federation from 1995-00.
Santuccione was accused of providing athletes with banned substances. Athletes sanctioned for allegedly having ties to Santuccione include Giro d'Italia champion Danilo Di Luca, who was banned for three months, and former world pole vault champion Giuseppe Gibilisco, who received a two-year doping suspension.
Both athletes have denied doping. Santuccione and his lawyers did not show Monday at the sports court for the sentencing, the committee said.
