Jonathan Breyne (Crelan-Euphony) claimed his first pro win in Tour of Taihu(Image credit: Tour of Taihu)
The stage 8 podium at Tour of Taihu: Boris Shpilevsky, Jonathan Breyne and Ahmet Örken(Image credit: Tour of Taihu)
Jonathan Breyne's positive test for clenbuterol at last year’s Tour of Taihu Lake has been confirmed by the analysis of his B-sample, the rider revealed on Tuesday.
Breyne, who raced for the now-defunct Creylon-Euphony team, returned the positive test at the Chinese event on November 5, and it was announced publicly by the UCI on December 18. The Belgian had been waiting over two months for the B-sample to be analysed and received the result by courier on Monday.
"There is 0.000000005 of a gram of clenbuterol per millilitre of urine in the sample," Breyne told Het Nieuwsblad. "On one hand, I'm unhappy, but on the other hand, I'm relieved that I finally know the results of the counter-analysis. Things are clear now and my lawyer Johnny Maeschalk can start working in earnest on the dossier."
It is expected that the UCI will soon request the Belgian cycling federation to formally open proceedings against Breyne. He faces a two-year ban if found guilty of a doping infraction.
In December, sudinfo.be reported that Breyne had attempted suicide after learning of the initial positive test. "I was completely broken when I read the comments below the articles on the internet. I read the most negative comments and was shattered," Breyne said later.
Breyne maintains that the clenbuterol in his urine came from eating contaminated meat while racing in China, although the World Anti-Doping Agency has warned riders on the risks of eating meat while in the country.
"In the race road-book, it said that the food at the hotel was guaranteed to be without clenbuterol. We received meal trays after the stage, and I did not know that it was in the meat," Breyne told L’Équipe in January.
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Michael Rogers (Tinkoff-Saxo) also returned a positive test for clenbuterol after racing in China last autumn. The UCI revealed his case on the same day that it announced Breyne's positive case, although the result of the analysis of Rogers' B-sample has not yet been forthcoming.
Rogers returned his adverse analytical finding after winning the Japan Cup on October 20, and blamed the sample on consuming contaminated meat during the Tour of Beijing.
"I have never knowingly or deliberately ingested clenbuterol," Rogers said in a statement in December. "I was present in China for the WorldTour race, Tour of Beijing. I understand that it has been acknowledged by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) as well as other anti-doping bodies, that food contaminated with Clenbuterol is a serious problem in China."
